This sermon emphasizes the imminent danger unconverted individuals face, likening their situation to walking over the pit of hell on a fragile covering, with unseen arrows of death ready to strike. It warns of the wrath of God being held back but steadily increasing, highlighting the eternal consequences of rejecting salvation and the unimaginable suffering awaiting those who remain unrepentant. The urgency to seek salvation through Christ is stressed, urging listeners to heed the call of God's mercy before it's too late.

Unconverted men walk over the pit of hell on a rotten covering. And there are innumerable places in this covering so weak that they will not bear their weight. And these places are not seen. The arrows of death fly unseen at noonday. The sharpest sight cannot discern them. God has so many different, unsearchable ways of taking wicked men out of the world and sending them to hell. But there is nothing to make it appear that God had need to be at the expense of a miracle or go out of the ordinary course of its providence to destroy any wicked man at any moment. All the means that there are of sinners going out of the world are so in God's hands and so universally and absolutely subject to His power and determination that it does not depend at all the less on the mere will of God that whether sinners shall at any moment go to hell, then it means we're never made use of or at all concerned in the case. The wrath of God is like great waters that are damned for the present. They increase more and more and they rise higher and higher till an outlet is given. And the longer the stream is stopped, the more rapid and mighty is its course when once it is let loose. It is true that judgment against your evil works has not been executed hitherto. The floods of God's vengeance have been withheld. But your guilt in the meantime is constantly increasing and you are every day treasuring up more wrath. The waters are constantly rising and waxing more and more mighty and there is nothing but the mere pleasure of God that holds the waters back that are unwilling to be stopped and press hard to go forward. If God should only withdraw His hand from the floodgates, it would immediately fly open and the fiery floods of the fierceness and wrath of God would rush forth with inconceivable fury and would come upon you with omnipotent power and if your strength were 10,000 times greater than it is, yea, 10,000 times greater than the strength of the stoutest, sturdiest devil in hell, it would be nothing to withstand or endure it. The bow of God's wrath is bent. The arrow is made ready on the string and justice bends the arrow at your heart and strains the bow and is nothing but the mere pleasure of God and that of an angry God without any promise or obligation at all that keeps that arrow one moment from being made drunk with your blood. It is an everlasting wrath. It would be dreadful to suffer this fierceness and wrath of almighty God one moment. But you must suffer it to all eternity. There will be no end to this exquisite, horrible misery. When you look forward, you shall see a long forever, a boundless duration before you which will swallow up your thoughts and amaze your soul and you will be absolutely despairing of ever having any deliverance, any end, any mitigation, any rest at all. You will know certainly that you must wear out long ages, millions of millions of ages in wrestling and conflicting with this almighty, merciless vengeance. And then when you have so done, when so many ages have actually been spent by you in this manner, you will know that all is but a point to what remains. So that your punishment will indeed be infinite. Oh, who can express what the state of a soul in such circumstances is? All that we can possibly say about it gives but a very feeble, faint representation of it. It is inexpressible and it is inconceivable. For who knows the power of God's anger? How dreadful is the state of those that are daily and hourly in the danger of this great wrath and infinite misery. But this is the dismal case of every soul in this congregation that has not been born again. However moral, however strict, sober and religious they may otherwise be. Oh, that you would consider it whether you be young or old. There is reason to think that there are many in this congregation now hearing this discourse that will actually be the subjects of this very misery to all eternity. We know not who they are or in what seats they sit or what thoughts they now have. It may be they are now at ease and hear all these things without much disturbance and are now flattering themselves that they are not the persons promising themselves that they shall escape. If we knew that there was one person and but one in the whole congregation that was to be the subject of this misery what an awful thing would it be to think of. If we knew who it was what an awful sight would it be to see such a person. How might all the rest of the congregation lift up a lamentable bitter cry over him but alas, instead of one how many is it likely will remember this discourse in hell? And would it be a wonder if some that are now present should not be in hell in a very short time even before this year is out? And would it be no wonder if some persons that now sit here in some seats of this meeting house in health and quiet and secure should be there before tomorrow morning? Those of you that finally continue in a natural condition that shall keep out of hell longest will be there in a little time. Your damnation does not slumber it will come swiftly and in all probability very suddenly upon many of you. And you have reason to wonder that you are not already in hell. It is doubtless the case of some whom you have seen and known that never deserved hell more than you and that here before appeared as likely to have been now alive as you. And their case is past all hope. They are crying in extreme misery and perfect despair. But here you are in the land of the living and in the house of God and have an opportunity to obtain salvation. What would not those poor, damned, hopeless souls give for one day's opportunity such as you now enjoy? And now you have an extraordinary opportunity. A day wherein Christ has thrown the door of mercy wide open and He stands in calling and crying with a loud voice to poor sinners. A day wherein many are flocking to Him and pressing into the Kingdom of God. Many are daily coming from the East, West, North and South. Many that were buried lately in the same miserable condition that you are in are now in a happy state with their hearts filled with love to Him who has loved them and washed them from their sins in His own blood and rejoiced in hope of the glory of God. How awful is it to be left behind at such a day. To see so many others feasting while you are pining and perishing. To see so many rejoicing and singing for joy of heart while you have caused to mourn for sorrow of heart and howl for vexation of spirit. How can you rest one moment in such a condition? Are not your souls as precious as the souls of the people at Suffield where they are flocking from day to day to Christ? Are there not many here who have lived long in the world and are not to this day born again? And so are aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and have done nothing ever since they have lived but treasure up wrath against the day of wrath? Moses, your case, your case in a special manner is extremely dangerous. Your guilt and hardness of heart is extremely great. Do you not see how generally persons of your years are passed over and left in the present remarkable and wonderful dispensation of God's mercy? You have need to consider yourselves and awake thoroughly out of sleep. You cannot bear the fierceness and wrath of the infinite God and you, young men and young women, will you neglect this precious season which you now enjoy when so many others of your age are renouncing all youthful vanities and flocking to Christ? You especially have now an extraordinary opportunity. But if you neglect it, it will soon be with you as with those persons who spent all the precious days of youth in sin and are now come to such a dreadful pass in blindness and hardness. And you children who are unconverted, do not you know that you are going down to hell to bear the dreadful wrath of that God who is now angry with you every day and every night? Will you be content to be the children of the devil when so many other children in the land are converted and become the holy and happy children of kings? And let everyone that is yet out of Christ and hanging over the pit of hell, whether they be old men and women or middle-aged or young people or little children now hearken to the loud calls of God's Word and providence. This acceptable year of the Lord, a day of such great favors to some, will doubtless be a day of as remarkable vengeance to others. Men's hearts harden and their guilt increases apace at such a day as this. If they neglect their souls, and never was there so great a danger of such persons being given up to hardness of heart and blindness of mind. God seems now to be hastily gathering in his elect in all parts of the land and probably the greater part of the adult persons that ever shall be saved will be brought in now in a little time and that it will be as it was on the great outpouring of the Spirit upon the Jews in the apostles' days. The election will obtain and the rest will be blinded. If this should be the case with you, you will eternally curse this day and will curse the day that ever you was born to see such a season of the pouring out of God's Spirit and will wish that you had died and gone to hell before you had seen it. Now, undoubtedly it is as it was in the days of John the Baptist. The axe is in an extraordinary manner laid at the root of the trees that every tree which brings not forth good fruit may be hewn down and cast into the fire. Therefore, let everyone that is out of Christ now awake and fly from the wrath to come. The wrath of Almighty God is now undoubtedly hanging over a great part of this congregation. Let everyone fly out of Sodom. Haste and escape for your lives. Look not behind you. Escape to the mountain lest you be consumed.