Sinners in The Hands of an Angry God: Rhetorical Analysis

Edwards declared, “There is the dreadful pit of the glowing flames of the wrath of God; there is hell’s wide gaping mouth open; and you have nothing to stand upon, nor any thing to take hold of”(Edwards 1). This quote is a great example of occasion. Edwards claims that the more we sin it acts as a bellow for the flaming pit of the wrath of God. The people need to repent so they have something to stand upon or take hold of to keep them from falling into the boiling pits of hell. Edwards proclaims, “There are the black clouds of God’s wrath now hanging directly over your heads, full of the dreadful storm, and big with thunder; and were it not for the restraining hand of God, it would immediately burst forth upon you”(Edwards 3). Edwards is saying that God is capable of doing anything he pleases, but he chooses not to because he wants to give people the chance to become a believer by repenting for their sins. Jonathan Edwards wanted to scare people into repentance by preaching about God’s wrath and anger towards them, not about his love. He spoke about God’s extreme punishments and anger that would send people to the pits of hell.

Some of the metaphors that Edwards uses to depict nonreligious human beings, show how weak and inferior we are in the sight of God. For example, “The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider or some loathsome insect over the fire…”(Edwards 4). This quote supports Edward’s purpose for his sermon because he lets people know how powerful God is by relating it to a real world situation. God is the one holding the spider or insect also known as the people over the fire because of their sinful nature. Edwards preached that they must repent for their sins and turn to God for forgiveness before it is too late and they go into the fire; while warning the people that God will judge them for their sins.

One of the things Edwards did not sugar coat is the wrath of God. He explains, “Therefore let everyone that is out of Christ now awake and fly from the wrath to come”(Edwards 14). The wrath of God is referred to as divine retribution. Throughout the sermon he talked about the wrath of God and how frightening and painful it will be once it comes. He uses the repetition of this word to brand it in people’s heads that God isn’t messing around and he could cause a disaster at any moment. In one of the quotes from the above paragraphs; he describes hell as the flaming wrath of God. He says that God’s wrath is like a black cloud hanging over your head. It will always stay with you and when it is time it will strike you down and leave you as a pile of ash. In the sermon Edwards illustrates, “The bow of God’s wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string, and justice bends the arrow at your heart, and strains the bow, and it is nothing but the mere pleasure of God, and that of an angry God, without any promise or obligation at all, that keeps the arrow one moment from being made drunk with your blood”(Edwards 5). Jonathan is saying that God is already angry and there is nothing we can do to stop him from taking the peoples life. By putting heavy emphasis on the word “wrath”, He shows that everyone is worthy of hell and if they have any hope of being saved they need to repent.

Jonathan Edwards has carefully chosen to implement fear in the audience; scaring them into walk a narrow and treacherous path that will lead them to God. “There is nothing between you and hell but the air; ’tis only the power and mere pleasure of God that holds you up”(Edwards 1) is an example of the way that Edwards uses his words to emphasize the opposition between two ideas in his sermon. This is a primary example of how Edwards uses antithesis as he is introducing the idea of hell; which is a direct contrast to the power of God. Edwards also precisely addresses the congregation on a personal level by telling them “You shall be tormented in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb;”(Edwards 1). This was meant to strike fear into the minds of the listeners by directly contrasting the thought of torment with heaven and God’s creations, holy angels and the Lamb.

In conclusion; metaphors, occasion, antithesis, and repetition aids to Edwards overall message and purpose of the sermon. He used his sermon to persuade people that God will judge them and it will be more terrifying and painful than they could ever fathom. He showed that all people were worthy of hell and they were at risk of God tossing the people into a lake of fire. This would terrify the people into believing him. Why did Edward uses the “scare” tactic to make people have faith in God? Why did he not just preach the way the bible says he truly was?

Works Cited

1. Edwards, J. (1741). Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Retrieved from https://www.apuritansmind.com/the-christian-walk/jonathan-edwards-collection/sinners-in-the-hands-of-an-angry-god-by-jonathan-edwards/
2. Stout, H. S. (2003). Jonathan Edwards and the Ministry of the Word: A Model of Faith and Thought. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
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10. McCollister, B. E. (2017). Jonathan Edwards and Justification by Faith. Wipf and Stock Publishers.