View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to the Doctrine section of the sermon, what is always hanging over the heads of sinners?

2. What is Edwards' first argument for the truth of his statement of doctrine?

3. Edwards' claim, the the Doctrine section of his sermon, that "Unconverted men walk over the pit of hell on a rotten covering" (408), is what type of argument?

4. In the Doctrine section of his sermon, what does Edwards say can make the soul perfectly miserable?

5. In the Doctrine section of his sermon, Edwards calls corruption "immoderate" (408). What is he claiming about corruption?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why, in the Doctrine section of his sermon, does Edwards say that sinners should not be comforted by the fact that there is no "visible means of death at hand" (408)?

2. When, in the Doctrine section of his speech, Edwards says that "The Scripture represents them as his 'goods'" (407), to whom does he refer when he says "them" and "his," and what point is he making about these people?

3. When, in the Doctrine section of his sermon, Edwards says of sinners that "The glittering sword is whet, and held over them, and the pit hath opened her mouth under them," (407), what does he mean, and what analogy found elsewhere in the sermon is he making reference to?

4. In the Doctrine section of his sermon, what does Edwards mean when he says that the "mere pleasure of God" (406) is all that keeps sinners out of hell?

5. Explain what Edwards is saying, in the Doctrine section of the sermon, about the nature of the souls of sinners when he says "There are in the souls of wicked men those hellish principles reigning, that would presently kindle and flame out into hell fire, if it were not for God's restraints" (408).

6. Why does Edwards say, in the Doctrine section of the sermon, that those who think that they are protecting themselves from hell are fooling themselves?

7. Explain why, in the Doctrine section of his sermon, Edwards says that God is not like an earthly prince.

8. In the end of the Doctrine section of his sermon, what criticism does Edwards make of religious authorities who do not believe what he believes?

9. In the Doctrine section of his sermon, Edwards compares God's power to the power of a human to crush a worm. Explain the meaning and significance of this analogy.

10. According to the Doctrine section of Edwards' sermon, what is God's attitude toward the sinners who are not yet in hell?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Choose a passage from "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" that makes use of parallel structure. Explain what makes the structure parallel and defend a claim about the rhetorical purpose of this parallelism.

Essay Topic 2

Explain how Edwards uses metaphor to make abstract ideas more concrete for his listener.

Essay Topic 3

Edwards' sermon uses a logical format that allows him to be extremely convincing if the audience accepts the premises of his argument. Explain how his argument can be critiqued by examining his premises.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,122 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample