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Sofia Cacho

Ms. Storer

English 3H

September 4, 2019

The Fate of a Sinner

All are all doomed to die one day, but the question remains of what will happen after that

fated end. In “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” the author Jonathan Edwards attempts to

convince his audience that hell will consume them unless they have a change of heart. In order to

convince sinners to repent, Edwards uses literary devices such as metaphor, repetition, and

allusion.

Edward’s use of metaphor is his sermon allows the listener to see how angry God is so

that they may choose to repent. Edwards convinces the crowd of this wrath by saying, “The God

that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect, over the

fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked; his wrath towards you burns like fire” (Edwards

98). In this quote, the metaphor comparing the sinner to a spider or other bug shows the reader

how disgusted God is by them, as they would be if they saw a bug themselves. By comparing a

sinner to something disgusting to the average person, Edwards helps the listener to better

understand how God feels. This metaphor is employed to convince sinners that they really are

leading a life dangling above the pits of hell, which makes God, as well as Edwards, angry.

Furthermore, the extent of God’s wrath is shown in a metaphor when Edwards says “The bow of

God’s wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string…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 98). Edwards ignites urgency
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and fear into the heart of the sinner he wants to convert in this dramatic metaphor of God’s

arrow, ready to kill at any moment. This shows the extreme side of God’s anger, and how, at any

moment, that wrath will be shot upon sinners. All in all, this use of metaphor gives the sinner an

idea of God’s wrath, creating a desire for them to repent.

To make sure his point resonates with those in the congregation, Edwards uses repetition

in his sermon. This is shown in the repetition of the word “you”, which is most clear in the lines

“nothing of your own, nothing that you have ever done, nothing you can do, to induce God to

spare you one moment” (Edwards 99). In these lines, Edwards speaks to his audience, calling

them “you” multiple times when referring to God’s wrath towards them. He drills the word

“you” specifically in the heads of his audience so that each person feels it is more directed

towards them instead of someone else. This repetition is also shown when Edwards says, “the

devil is waiting for them, hell is gaping for them, the flames gather and flash about them”

(Edwards 97). Edwards uses “them” when speaking about sinners and what will become of them.

Though different than speaking directly to his listener, the repetition of the word “them” refers to

sinners as if they were a separate group, one looked down upon by all. By creating a divide

between the sinners and the faithful, Edwards creates a desire for the people in the congregation

to be included in the number of those in union with God, as being included with “them” is to be

cast into hell with the devil. These uses of repetition show the important points that Edwards

wanted his audience to remember, so that they may be moved to turn away from sin and towards

God.

In this sermon, Edwards alludes to the Bible to support the fact that he is speaking the

will of God, so people are inclined to take him seriously and repent. This is shown in his

reference to Genesis 19:15-17, when he says, “Let everyone fly out of Sodom!” (Edwards 99). In
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this Bible verse, an angel is warning a lone virtuous man to leave the sinful city of Sodom before

it is destroyed. As this angel is warning the last faithful man in a world of sinners, so Edwards is

urging people to leave sin and live with God. Furthermore, he quotes the same Bible verse to

warn the people of what will happen to them if they don’t flee sin, saying, “Haste and escape for

your lives, look not behind you, escape to the mountain, lest you be consumed” (Edwards 99).

The angel is still encouraging the righteous man to leave and never look back, or else God’s

wrath will be brought upon him. This Bible verse illuminates the consequences of denying God,

showing the congregation one of the many times God has cast sinners into hell without a second

thought. These allusions to the Bible allow sinners to think upon what has happened to sinners in

the past and how to avoid the wrath of God.

All in all, Edwards is effective in giving his sermon and using a variety of tactics to

convince his listeners to follow his lead. The use of literary devices such as metaphor, repetition,

and allusion are effective in portraying the message of repenting so that a sinner will not be cast

into hell. Today, a variety of religions exist with the goal to convert people, as they have been

doing since the invention of religion; the methods used by Edwards are just one type of many

tactics used to convert, however, those today tend to be more inviting and less dramatic than his.
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Works Cited

Edwards, Jonathan. “from Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” Glencoe American

Literature, by Jeffrey D. Wilhelm et al., Glencoe McGraw-Hill, 2009, pp. 97-99.