So that, thus it is that natural men are held in the hand of God, over the pit of hell; they have deserved the fiery pit, and are already sentenced to it; and God is dreadfully provoked, his anger is as great towards them as to those that are actually suffering the executions of the fierceness of his wrath in hell. —Jonathan Edwards Why does Edwards use the word provoked instead of the word angered in this passage? The word provoked suggests that God’s anger is fierce and irrational. The word provoked suggests that sinners bear responsibility for God’s anger. The word provoked suggests that God’s anger is sharp and deadly. The word provoked suggests that sinners do not want to change their ways.