A jeremiad is a text that was intended to be moralistic in nature. These texts generally talk about the evil and sin that exist in humans, and criticize the inability of people to stay on a virtuous path. A famous text of such nature is "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" by Jonathan Edwards. The purpose of the Puritan ministers that created such sermons was to scare people so that they would follow the mandates of the Bible. The preachers believed that is people were reminded of the horrors that awaited them in Hell they would be less likely to sin.