Final answer:
Jonathan Edwards describes the force that prevents God from smiting sinners in his wrath as 'the hand of God' in his sermon 'Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God'.
Step-by-step explanation:
Jonathan Edwards uses the phrase 'the hand of God' to describe the force that prevents God from smiting sinners in his wrath. In his sermon 'Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God', he emphasizes the precarious position of sinners, being spared only by God's mercy and not because of any merit on their part.
The phrase evokes a vivid image of a sinners' fate being solely in God's control and subject to his will. Edwards' use of this phrase is part of his larger goal to revive intense religious emotion and repentance among his congregation through the fear of divine judgment and the terrors of hell.