Edwards God's Wrath

Life is fleeting, and the afterlife is eternal, prompting many people tolook for answers of what awaits them beyond this life. Religion answered that question for many people, predetermining salvation and damnation with no ability to change the fate that awaited after this life. Enlightenment during the 17th and 18th century caused people to question predetermination and to question how much control they had over the fate of their own eternal souls. For many the answer was revealed like a emotional lightning bolt from the heavens above, striking through the words of impassioned evangelicals and awakening them through scorching sermons. The truth revealed through a picture of hell itself painted with words and the terrifying fate awaiting all
A clear illustration of this is “God’s wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string” a concept not unknown to Colonial America where native Americans used bows and arrows commonly making this an easily relatable and understandable tool to use in the metaphor for the audience. Thus, God’s wrath is bent means the energy of God’s rage has been gathered and he has prepared to release his rage, as someone would bend a bow prior to shooting it release god has prepare his rage for release. Therefore, understood by the audience as the mechanism to deliver Gods is ready. Furthermore, “the arrow made ready on the string” just as the arrow must be placed on the string to absorb the energy of the bent bow when released and send that energy with the arrow to a target it implies the instrument to absorb Gods rage and deliver it to the target is in place. Colonial Americans understood someone with bow bent and arrow on the string had a target and were preparing to shoot that target with the arrow causing a fatal injury, making this metaphor both understood and
Creating a clear imagery would involve something that is familiar to the audience so when used a mental image will come to mind in the context you used the image for. As an example, “The wrath of God is like great waters that are damned for the present; they increase more and more, and rise higher and higher, till an outlet is given” used by Edwards in his sermon is a part of the natural world around the audience. The image is clear and familiar, when water is dammed it grows into a larger body of water, larger and bigger until the water is released.by extension what Edwards was saying that Gods anger is building and building growing larger, stored up until it is released. It is effective use because it happens in the natural world around them and is an undeniable truth. Therefore, by extension the idea paired with this metaphor would be an undeniable truth as well that Gods anger build greater and greater. Using the word present in his metaphor as a clear and effective warning because his audience would be familiar with what happens when a damn busts or