Edwards directed his sermon to "natural men": those who had not been "reborn." What images and figures of speech might have helped listeners to feel...

Edwards
uses a lot of very picturesque, luridto describe the exquisite torments that await sinners
should God choose to consign them to the fiery depths of hell. He tells his terrified
congregation that all the preparations for their arrival in hell have already been made. The pit
is prepared; the fire is ready; and Satan, with all his devils, lies in wait to seize sinners's
souls as if they were his own. Such vivid, terrifying imagery serves to reinforce the
precariousness of man's existence; he can be cast down into hell at any moment.

Edwards develops this theme by drawing upon theof a troubled sea from Isaiah 57:20. The
troubled sea represents the souls of the wicked. God uses his power to restrain them just as he
restrains the raging waves of the troubled sea. But if God should withdraw his power, then sin
would destroy everything in its path just as like a mighty, crashing wave. In this passage,
Edwards once again emphasizes the power of God to keep sin in check, which he does by sending
unrepentant sinners down to hell.