Jonathan Edwards was a major agitator of the Great Awakening, the rebirth of Protestant faith in North America in the middle of the 18th century. His sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”, was delivered before a congregation of Protestants, as well as unconverted persons. The timeliness of Edwards's sermon was impeccable: It was delivered when the fear of hell was predominant in the minds of Christians. Edwards acknowledged this vulnerability, which is …showed first 75 words of 751 total…

…showed last 75 words of 751 total…Edwards strategically chose to quote only those verses that threatened the audience with God's rage. This lack of reference - obviously not a coincidence - perhaps was meant to keep him focused on his objective: scaring the audience into conversion. If Edwards had written a sermon for another time-he hadn't had to worry about converting non-Protestants-he probably would have focused on the benefits of leading a pure life, rather than the consequences of being wicked.