Jonathan Edwards’s “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” was an appeal to “sinners” to recognize that they will be judged by God and that this judgment will be more horrendous and agonizing than they can grasp. Edwards relies on three themes to deliver his point; immoral sinners will face judgment, time is short for the unrepentant, it is God’s choice to delivery mercy where it is deserved. To strengthen these three themes Edwards created vivid metaphors to scare his listeners. Anyone who did not experience an “awakening,” as had the many who were converted during that time, are considered a servant of the devil. Without spiritual renewal a man could not be trusted to be holy. “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 toward you burns like fire” …show more content…
Calvin thought to question predestination, the theology that all events have been willed by God, with allusion to the ultimate fate of the individual soul, was a deadly act. It was his belief that if the theology was not accepted it would destroy the humility of the world (Predestination). People would become full of themselves and act as Gods. To try and figure out why something happened was pointless, because God had a plan. “According to this notion, God has determined from eternity whom he will save and whom he will damn, regardless of their faith, love, or merit, or lack thereof” (Encyclopedia). God was the cause of everything. God would punish those who were unworthy. “Debate concerning predestination according to the common usage, concerns the destiny of the damned, whether God is just if that destiny is settled prior to the existence of any actual volition of the individual, and whether the individual is in any meaningful sense responsible for his destiny if it is settled by the eternal action of God”