Literary Analysis Essay on "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"

“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” is a 2003 text written by philosophical theologian Jonathan Edwards and Mark Trigsted. He utilizes most common biblical anecdotes to appeal to universal fears of that period known as the great awakening, where the evangelical Christianity was propagating throughout the American colonies. It warns sinners that God is watching their moves and sets strict controls on political and social life as part of governance for the territories with no relevant founding documents written in the United States. The text is divided into three parts, where the first analyses a biblical passage from Deuteronomy 32:35, which states, 'their foot shall slide in due time’ (Edwards and Mark 405). He uses it to convince his audience that committing minor transgression is foolish. In the second phase, he points out ten points on sin, religion, and God with the intension of convening God's omnipotent power (Edwards and Mark 406). In the third phase, he speaks about hell's reality and how God's grace is sufficient for all when they repent (Edwards and Mark 418).

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The author uses his text to try and awaken people's social and political lives that were quickly changing during the American Colonial times. Edward aimed to teach his audience about how the hell looked like, how dangerous is sin, and the terrors of being lost. He uses the text also to compel the attendance to make quick decisions and accept his arguments. The author’s immediate goal for writing the document was to extend his warning to people to repent of their sinful ways and turn to God for forgiveness before it was too late (Edwards and Mark 407). He also wants the sinners to recognize God's judgment, which will be more fearful and painful to them if they fail to repent. He explains that sin separates man from God, who created them and the author of their lives. The author’s primary audience was the Christians who believed in God. However, he also intended the general public to get the information. The type of audience he most wished to reach to were the sinners (Edwards and Mark 408). He hoped to get the sinners into repentance by warning them of eternal damnation if they continued to sin. He also hoped that sinners would understand God's wrath and probably turn from their sinful ways, repent, and acquire forgiveness through God's grace through his sermon.

The author tries to attain his objective by dividing his text into three themes. The first, he tells that sinners will face a fearful judgment by God if they fail to repent. Secondly, he says to them that time is minimal for the unrepentant. He explains that God's wisdom and wrath will come untimely and unexpectedly. Thirdly, he shows them that God’s only free choice can extend the day of mercy by providing another opportunity for people to respond to His call (Edwards and Mark 415). The author uses direct language and metaphors to appeal to his readers. He directly appeals to his readers to consider their lives and amend their ways through repentance.

The author considers sinners as people who are wicked and had rejected God. Those who had not received an inward awakening he regarded as servants of the devil from whom all sinful acts originated. He uses metaphors to portray the idea of unbelieving human beings. He describes sinners as great heaps of light chaff before the whirlwind or large quantities of dry stubble before devouring flames, which God is preparing the fire for their destruction (Edwards and Mark 406). He also uses metaphors to describe the greatest worldly rulers as feeble, despicable worms, and grasshoppers (pg. 413). Each of the metaphors shows how weak and disgusting sinners are in God’s eyes.

The author uses definite descriptions when he talks of the dreadful pit of the glowing flames of God's wrath. He also tries to create images of lakes of fire and brimstone to describe the fire of hell and a bottomless pit expressing God's judgment and the primal fear of falling, in the eyes of his audience (Edwards and Mark 413). In response to the biblical text from Deuteronomy 32:35, the author seeks to create an image of a man seeking retainment of concrete footing as a metaphor to describe the moral universe (Edwards and Mark 406). However, the imagery and language used to neglect to represent heaven, how it is, and what God promises for those born again.

The author constructs his persona as the speaker of God's message to the people, calling them repentance. He also creates God's persona as the author and sustainer of life, and the one who is holy, omnipotent, and will judge people according to their deeds (Edwards and Mark 410). He describes Jesus as the mediator through whom God's promises shall come to pass (Edwards and Mark 411). He describes the congregation as representing sinners whose lives can only be redeemed through repentance of sins and committing their lives to God.

The text was first published during the Great Awakening period, aiming to awaken people on the reality of hell. It generated as part of an Evangelical movement aimed at reclaiming the changing British colonies' social and political lives (Edwards and Mark 410). The author's work recorded some success by opening many people's eyes where they were wandering and scared, feeling like they were already going to hell for the things they did. Most of them probably repented their sins. However, others may not have believed in him and thought he did not know what he was talking about.

The author, who wished to create an impact in the increasingly different behavior posited by the colonists, considered it most useful to discuss God's wrath with rampant sin. However, to make it more effective, the author could have offered a gentle protestation about sinful behavior (Edwards and Mark 410). He could have shown compassion to his audience by describing how careful he was about their ultimate lives based upon their excellent relationship with Divinity. The only method to be true with God is through repentance and living holy beings.it would have probably created a better understanding even to those who thought he did not understand what he was saying.

The author wrote the text when people of the thirteen colonies were still accustomed to the puritan traditions, and the fast colonial economic progress was giving those more opportunities to commit sins. He witnessed instances of sinful acts and believed his text would be an effective way to generate his protestant philosophy and lead people to repentance of their sins. In my opinion, the writing was successful in different ways (Edwards and Mark 412). It successfully made people aware of God's wrath and his awaiting judgment and making the first awakening period a great deal. The outrage in the author's tone and his imagery of hell make the sermon more effective. He was condemning the hypocrisy brand of Christianity that was much evidence before the great awakening took place. Additionally, the rhythm and beat in his writing and tone most likely struck fear into his audience's hearts, hence stimulating shock.

Today, the text resonated with me on the aspect of how the path of personal sin awakens God’s wrath. Many in the religious community today take the approach. They try to equate individuals' actions with a crime that triggers the anger of the divine. The text moved me, especially where the author changed his tone to emphasize his points and support his sermon by quoting biblical scriptures (Edwards and Mark 414). It made me see the reality of what he was speaking about God's wrath towards the sinners. The text also gave a historical moment of a religious revolution, which happened during the colonial era. It gives me an understanding of how Christianity was spread and fought for during a period when economic and political influences were rampant and led people to commit more sinful acts.

The text forced me to look into the world very differently as the current social, economic, and political aspects of society lead people to more evil deeds. On the contrary, how people preach about hell today when sin is more rampant than how the author spoke about it is very different. Today, hell is rarely mentioned on the pulpits, and God’s love is more preached than his wrath. The author’s teachings were very impactful, not because he talked about hell but how he did it. It made me think about the biblical teachings of today compared to those of the past. It made me see the reality of hell and God's wrath in a manner I had not seen before. It also made me realize the nearness to God’s judgment day, something I never saw occurring in the near future, there before.

Works Cited

Edwards, Jonathan, and Mark Trigsted. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Bridge-Logos Foundation, 2003. http://edwards.yale.edu/archive?path=aHR0cDovL2Vkd2FyZHMueWFsZS5lZHUvY2dpLWJpbi9uZXdwaGlsby9nZXRvYmplY3QucGw/Yy4yMTo0Ny53amVv Accessed on 11th July 2020.