Matthew Poole and continuators on Genesis 7:19

19. And the Waters prevailed exceedingly upon the Earth, and all the high Hills that were under the whole Heaven were covered .

Profane Wi[illegible: 1+ letters]s pretend this to be impossible because of the vast height of divers Mountains. But 1. This cannot be thought impossible by any man that believeth a God; to whom it was as easie to bring forth a sufficiency of water for this end as to speak a word. And if we acknowledge a miracle of the Divine Power and Providence here, it is no more than even Heathens have confessed in other cases. 2. Peradventure this Flood might not be simply universal over the whole Earth, but only over all the habitable World where either Men or Beasts lived, which was as much as either the meritorious cause of the Flood, mens sins, o[illegible: 1+ letters] the end of it, the destruction of all Men and Beasts, required. And the or that whole Heaven may be understood of that which was over all the habitable parts of it. And whereas our modern Heathens that mis-cal themselves Christians laugh at the History of this Flood upon this and the like occasions as if it were an idle Romance, they may please to note that their Predecessors the antient and wiser Heathens have diverse of them acknowledged the Truth of it, though they also mixed it with their Fables, which was neither strange, nor unusual for them to do. Lactantius appeals to the Heathens of his age concerning it. Nay there is not onely mention of the Flood in general, but also of the Dove sent out of the Ark, in Plutarch, and Berosus, and Abydenus. And the memory of this general Flood is preserved to this day among the poor ignorant Indians, who asked the Christians who invaded their Land, whether they ever heard of such a thing, and whether another Flood was to be expected. And the Chinese Writers relate that but one person, whom they call Pumcu[illegible: 1+ letters]s, with his Family were saved in the Flood, and all the rest perished.