The happiness of the church, or, A description of those spiritual prerogatives wherewith Christ…The happines of the church, or, A description of those spirituall prerogatiues vvherewith Christ…

Nothing helps when God will smite: mountains and rocks are no defence when God pursues. Doest thou think to reign because thou clothest thy self in Cedar? What, is Cedar against thunder? GOD hath a ¹hand that can strike through Forts, Rocks, and Bulwarks. The sevenfold walls of Babylon cannot defend the Tyrant within them. The heavens melt at the presence of the Lord: if he touch the mountains, they smoke for it. The of-spring of the revived world offer to build a Tower, whose top might reach to Heaven. What security could be in it? Are not things nearer to heaven more subject to the violences of Heaven; lightning, thunder, and those higher inflammations? Feriunt summos fulgura montes. In se magna ruunt, summisque negatum est stare diù. God soon made it a monument of their folly and his power. He gives confusion of their voices and their work at once. When God reigned from heaven that greatest shower, that ever the earth did or shall sustain, you know their shifts. They think to over-climb the judgement; and being got up to the highest mountains, look down with some hope on the swimming valleys. When the water began to ascend up to their refuged hills, and the place of their hope became an Island, lo now they hitch up higher to the tops of the tallest trees; till at last the waters overtake them half dead ⟨p. 47⟩with hunger and horror. The mountains could not save them in that day of water, nor shall the mountains in this day of fire. It is not then the defence of forts or ports, the secrecy of caves or graves, the bottom-burrows of hills, or vaulty dens of rocks; not a league with all the elements of the world, beasts of the earth, stones of the street, that can secure them.

Nothing helpes when God will smite: mountaines and rockes are no defence when God pursues. Doest thou thinke to raigne because thou cloathest thy selfe in Cedar? What, is Cedar against thunder? GOD hath a ¹hand that can strike through Forts, Rockes, and Bulwarkes. The seuenfold wals of Babilon cannot defend the Tyrant within them. The heauens melt at the presence of the Lord: if he touch the mountaines, they smoake for it. The of-spring of the reuiued world offer to build a Tower, whose toppe might reach to Heauen. What securitie could be in it? Are not thinges nearer to heauen more subiect to the violences of Heauen; lightning, thunder, and those higher inflammations? Feriunt summos fulgura montes. In se magna ruunt, summisque negatum est stare diù. God soone made it a monument of their follie and his power. He giues confusion of their voyces and their worke at once. When God raigned from heauen that greatest showre, that euer the earth did or shall sustaine, you knowe their shifts. They thinke to ouer-climbe the iudgement; and being got vp to the highest mountaines, looke downe with some hope on the swimming valleys. When the water began to ascend vp to their refuged hils, and the place of their hope became an Iland, loe now they hitch vp higher to the toppes of the tallest trees; till at last the waters ouertake them halfe dead