A Dam
Edwards compares the wrath of God to water that has been dammed. The water is his wrath and God is the dam. At any moment, He may decide the pressure has become too great and some of that water needs to be released. The symbol of this message being that one should always be struggling against evil, because one never knows when God is going to open the floodgates to His wrath.
Bow and Arrow
The again, God’s wrath is also a bow. Edward engages the symbol of the bow to represent God’s wrath. The arrow of this bow is constantly trained upon the human heart by virtue of justice. The only thing that keeps God from delivering his just wrath straight to its target is the ineffable nature of His pleasure.
Spider
The spider is a symbol of the loathsomeness of mankind. Edwards chooses one of the most universal fears of man and turns it on its head. People fear spiders and so are quick to kill them the moment they are spotted. God is not afraid of spiders or man, but he finds them both loathsome creatures to hold at arm’s length. God is not afraid of spiders or man and unlike man, He sees no difference between them.
The Israelites
A quote from Deuteronomy prefaces Edward’s sermon: “Their foot hall slide in due time.” The sermon opens with an explanation of how this verse applies to destruction of the Israelites and become a recurring motif that eventually transforms the literal Biblical story into a symbol connecting in a straight line to the parishioner in his congregation.
The Seeds of Hellfire
Hellfire is a metaphor for eternal damnation, of course, but apparently the fire is ignited by seeds. Those seeds are the principles of corruption that man must always be on guard against giving full reign. Once corrupt principles are unleased, they become the seeds which catch flame.
