Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God Context and Background

Johnathan Edwards was not known to be a condemning reverend, as most of his recorded sermons were about the gentler aspects of God. It is interesting to note that Edwards was not scheduled to deliver the sermon on this day, but had to cover for another minister who failed to arrive on time. Edwards had administered this sermon at other congregations as well, but the effect it produced was remarkable. Edwards spoke with a conviction that made several parishioners stand up and yell for mercy from God’s wrath.

To fully understand the sermon, we must place it in the appropriate context according to its time. Academics agree that this sermon is the representation of an intersection between two movements, the age of reason, and the first great awakening. The age of reason was a movement that focused on the development of rationality, science, and philosophy. People began to understand that they could gain knowledge through the application of rationality. The existence of this idea in the sermon is proven within the first few paragraphs as Edwards refers to the force of gravity. On the other side, the first great awakening was a time of revival as the leaders of the church began to fear that the Christians had grown too comfortable in their new lives in the American colonies. They decided that they needed to purify their people and make them run from the devil. These ideas are repeatedly represented in the sermon as Edwards uses fearful imagery to strike the fear of hell in the hearts of the parishioners.