Jonathan Edwards uses the art of persuasion, to make his claim agreeable towards others. The art of persuasion can be effective, as Edwards has proven in “Sinners in the hands of an Angry God.” Edwards uses guilt, snarl words, and fearful statements to convince people to accept God into their hearts. Jonathan Edwards uses guilt to persuade people that we are evil and are able to do harm toward others without feeling remorse, as he says on line one “We find it easy to tread on and crush a worm that we see crawling on the earth” (pg.124). He uses this to support logical appeal, by making us believe that this in fact is how we are. He makes us think of every bad thing we have ever done and uses that guilt against us. If the guilt is strong enough, …show more content…
He portrays God as merciless and full of vengeance. For example, “ God has so many different unsearchable ways of taking wicked men out of the world and sending them to hell, that there is nothing to make it appear, that God had need to be at the expense of a miracle, or go out of the ordinary course of his providence, to destroy any wicked man, at any moment…” He also uses the tone of fear. He produces horrifying images. For example, “The wrath of God burn against them, their damnation does not slumber, the pit is prepared, the fire is made ready, the furnace is now hot, ready to receive them and the flames do now rage and glow. The glittering sword now whet and held over them, and the pit as opened its mouth under them.” Edwards’ description of the horror and sufferings that awaits the sinners have a remarkable effect of fear and horror on the reader. Edwards also uses a compassionate tone toward the end of the selection. For example, “ And now you have an extraordinary opportunity, a day wherein Christ has thrown the door of mercy wide open, and stand in the door calling and crying with a loud voice to poor sinners; a day wherein many are flocking to him, and pressing into the kingdom of God.” This shows that God is merciful and that all sinners are given the opportunity to repent and live a happy when God is accepted into their …show more content…
For repetition he uses “wrath” multiple time throughout the passage. The reason he constantly repeats it is to strike fear. He gives people a metaphor so they can have an idea of how God sees them when he says “much as one holds up a spider, or some loathsome insect over the fire” (pg.126). He wants us to have an idea of how small and hopeless we are when it comes to God’s wrath. An example of imagery is “ men are held in the hand of God, over the pit of hell” and “the bow of God’s wrath is bends, and the arrow made ready on the string, and justice bends the arrow at your heart” (pg. 126). This shows that God is constantly tempted to punish the sinner, but rather see you suffer than kill you quickly. He also mentions “the fire is made ready, the furnace is now hot, ready to receive them” (pg.126), also “a great furnace of wrath, a wide and bottomless pit, full of the fire of wrath” (pg. 128). These are meant to give an image of a burning hell that awaits them for all the sins they have committed. There are so many imagery of a burning hell used by Edwards in hopes to strike fear leading to people letting God into their hearts. For sensory details, he uses the words burn and heat to give effect to the eternal hell that they would face if not accepting