One of the reasons Edward was good preacher was because of his choice of words. He would put in simple terms, right and wrong, black and white, no in between a typical characteristic of the puritan …show more content…
“The bow of God’s wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string,.. 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” He makes us feel guilty and shamed for not converting to christianity Edward explains that we should convert to show our thanks for not being in hell at the moment, since God has the power to throw anyone in hell at any given time. “ The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds spider or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you and is dreadfully provoked: His wrath towards you burns like fire… You have offended him infinitely more than ever a stubborn rebel did his prince ; and yet it is nothing but His hand that holds you from falling into the fire every moment.” Edwards makes his recipients feel small, hopeless, and fearful when he speaks of us like ‘insects over the fire’. With these phrases Edward provokes the audience's emotions and catches their attention despite delivering it with a …show more content…
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 anything to hold of; there is nothing between you and hell but the air; it is the only power and mere pleasure of God that holds you up”. Edward uses this metaphor to express how hopeless people will be if they don’t reach out to God. It is very effective as it puts his audience on edge if they are ‘out of christ’. An example of a conceit would be,” 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 strings 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” With this and many other descriptions combined with conceits and similes, Edward brought more followers into Christianity. His descriptive words allowed the audience to imagine perfectly the agony of hell and the wrath of an angry God.
Towards the ending of this time period and the beginning of the Enlightenment, many were starting to rely and believe in science instead of religion. With this problem arising, Jonathan’s Edwards Application from Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God was a successful