Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God Analysis

“Confession of sin shuts the mouth of Hell and Opens the gates of paradise.” These Wise words from Thomas watson embody the aims and beliefs of the puritans. The puritans expressed their beliefs and thoughts of the bible through their writing; be it poems, sermons, or stories. In the short story A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson by Mary Rowlandson, The sermon From Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God by Jonathan Edwards, and the poem by Anne Bradstreet [Deliverance] From Another Sore Fit, there is a common theme of religion and the hardships these writers go through to produce such powerful works of literature. The puritan’s possessed a very unique style of writing which introduce many literary elements into all different types of

“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” is a sermon written by Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), a theologian and philosopher in the British Colonies of America. He was raised as a puritan in Connecticut and grew up to be one of America’s most influential protestant revivalists of that time. He delivered many sermons, the most well-known being “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” Edwards gave this sermon on July 8, 1741 in Northampton, Massachusetts. The main purpose of this sermon was to convey to the audience the reality of hell, the need to change their wicked lives, and, ultimately, that they should fear the wrath of God. Edwards does this to motivate the audience to live their lives as perfectly as they can in order to not anger God and to avoid Hell.

In the sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”, Edwards displays controversial viewpoints and ideas concerning heaven and hell. As Edwards speaks to the congregation he warns them of the misery and suffering they will face if they do not repent of certain sins. He also describes God as angry which probably struck fear into the hearts on many. To illustrate his own point that hell is unenviable without repentance Jonathan Edwards creates the idea of an angry God using intense similes, a harsh tone, and strong emotional appeal in “Sinners in the hand of an Angry God”.

Jonathan Edwards, a famous preacher in pre-colonial times, composed a sermon that was driven to alert and inject neo Puritanical fear into an eighteenth century congregation. This Bible based and serious audience sought after religious instruction and enlightenment. Through the sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," Edwards offers a very harsh interpretation to humankind. Edwards utilizes various rhetorical techniques to evoke an emotional response in his audience and to persuade the members of his congregation that their wicked actions will awaken a very ruthless and merciless God.

In Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Jonathan Edwards argues eternal fate is completely controlled by God. The famous recorded sermon Edwards preaches is written with one intention in mind. Due to the Great Awakening occurring while Edwards was alive, he wanted to help people double down on their faith. The sermon tries to convince religious believers to keep their faith despite the battle of religion versus science. Edwards scares the audience by stating how God can easily discard or send sinners to hell. As well, in the sermon God is the only one who can keep someone from going to hell. According to Edwards, humans might stand a chance of not going to hell if they refrain from sinning. Edward’s

Jonathan Edwards's sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" is moving and powerful. His effectiveness as an eighteenth century New England religious leader is rooted in his expansive knowledge of the Bible and human nature, as well as a genuine desire to "awaken" and save as many souls as possible. This sermon, delivered in 1741, exhibits Edwards's skillful use of these tools to persuade his congregation to join him in his Christian beliefs.

“I’m a devil worshiper” is the very first line as Fetty Wap begins rapping in his song, “679.” In a way, this statement is very similar to Jonathan Edwards writings because both speakers had very unconventional views for their respective times. In today's world, Fetty Wap’s satanic beliefs aren’t generally accepted by other people; this is similar to Edwards views because he opposed the stereotypical loving image of God by warning others of his potential destruction and power. In, “Sinners of the Hands of an Angry God,” Jonathan Edwards makes it clearly known that he portrays God as dangerous and unafraid to take violent action through the use of imagery in nature by water, wind and insects.

During the colonial era, there were many religions seeking to spread to America. Strong leaders and philosophers were able to spread their ideas through powerful sermons that captured the emotions of the audience. Jonathan Edwards, a preacher, creates a compelling and persuasive tone and diction to express God's fury very distinctly. He uses metaphors and imagery to contrast the relationship between sinners and God to those who are religious. John Winthrop, on the other hand, spoke optimistically and reassured his audience during his voyage to Arabella to demonstrate his desire for unity and a godly society within Massachusetts Bay. Both men were able to captivate their audiences through persuasive diction, tone, and style to succeed in gaining their support and trust.

Edwards' creative choice of words that he uses describes the power of God and the terrible Hell awaiting sinners. These words easily infiltrate into the minds of his congregation and frighten them beyond belief. These choices of words and his use of such vivid images are mostly successful in their intent, to scare and put fear into his audience. Edwards held his audience locked up with his promises of eternal damnation if proper steps were not taken. The congregation felt the intense impact of his rhetorical strategies and lived on the fear of the power of God. In this way, he was able to keep his followers from sin and away from the fiery pits of Hell.

The authors of both texts use strong words that describe their text, and theme. Both texts compare in style and theme, but they also contrast as well. The two authors Jonathan Edwards and Nathaniel Hawthorne have good styles but Jonathan Edwards style is more effective.

Puritan Test Question #4 Looking to help revive Puritanism, John Edwards became a traveling minuter giving intense, hellfire sermons. Through the powerful and relatable use of imagery, Edwards invoked fear and guilt from his audience in “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”.

“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” is a sermon delivered by the Puritan preacher Jonathan Edwards during the Great Awakening, a period of religious revival. The sermon is intended to restore religious convictions of the Puritans, which he felt was weakening, for people in the congregation. Edwards’ purpose in the sermon is to impress upon his audience the urgency of redemption from sin in order to persuade sinners to repent and obtain salvation. Through the effective use of ethos and metaphors, Edwards hopes to awaken fear and inspire faith in the Puritan congregation.

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God by Johnathan Edwards details the significance of God’s wrath over the wicked and unbelieving Israelites. Johnathan Edwards cleverly explains the reasoning behind why God punishes the unbelieving, the way that he does. Edwards writes this sermon to inform sinners of the fatal agony that will be bestowed upon them if they continue to rebel in God’s name and do not save themselves. His use of vivid imagery, symbols, and content contribute to the power and persuasiveness of the torturous fate of God’s wrath to sinners.

As people ran out of the church they vomited, screamed and tried to calm their frantic children. This was the effect of Jonathan Edwards sermon. At the time the Puritan religion was fading out of existence and there were less people confirming to the religion. Jonathan Edwards a preacher in the thirteen colonies was radically trying to revitalize the puritan religion. In his sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”, Jonathan Edwards uses devices such as imagery, personification, and similes to get his point across while delivering it in an intimidating and didactic tone in order to persuade his congregation to repent their sins and confirm their Puritan religion.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, a famous poet once quoted the following, “For every minute you remain angry, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind.” Anger as we all know can be a very powerful emotion that can have many different effects, firstly on the person that is experiencing the emotion, secondly the person or persons who is around the said anger filled individual. However, the intention of this paper is not to focus on anger, but to focus on the persuasion that people can use when giving speeches or in this case, preaching. John Edwards, a preacher in the new world takes the time to diligently preach his congregation, this is now the writing we know as, Sinners in the hand of an Angry God. While exploring this piece of writing, it is important to note that John Edwards uses many ways to persuade his congregation to believe that God is angry. The keys to his persuasion are as following, the people are out of God’s grace, they are wicked, and everyone has committed a sin.