Edwards delivered his famous sermon during a revival movement intended to reinvigorate church attendance and bring more converts into the faith. He recognized that people were drifting away from church and relegating their faith to the background of their lives. The entire sermon is designed to shock listeners and instill...
See This Answer Now
Start your 48-hour free trial to unlock this answer and thousands more. Enjoy eNotes ad-free and cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
a sense of urgency in their return to religion.
Edwards likely believed that Hell was an abstract notion to many of his listeners, and so he loaded the sermon with horrifying sense imagery to try to convince the congregation that Hell was a concrete place of eternal tortures. To reach people who had become complacent about eternity, he spoke very directly:
You probably are not sensible of this; you find you are kept out of hell, but do not see the hand of God in it; but look at other things, as the good state of your bodily constitution, your care of your own life, and the means you use for your own preservation.
His words are meant to remind people that though they might be enjoying robust health and crediting themselves for their preservation, they are forgetting, at their own peril, that it is God who is responsible for their condition in both life and the afterlife.
Edwards believes that some of his congregation do not fear Hell because they are confident in their ability to avoid spiritual damnation.
According to Edwards, some in his congregation are relying on their own strength and wisdom to secure their place in Heaven. He relates that the average parishioner "flatters himself that he contrives well for himself and that his schemes won't fail."
Edwards warns his listeners that all their prudence, self-righteousness, and healthy constitutions are as effective in keeping them out of Hell as a spider's web is in stopping a falling rock. In other words, Edwards believes that some of his listeners are relying too much on their own capabilities to save them from the wrath of God. He warns that destruction awaits them and implores his listeners to be aware that the torments of Hell are eternal.