“In my judgment, sir, we are not only ripe, but rotting.”

Early Colonial America was united in its religious freedom and Puritan beliefs, as set out in the 1643 Articles of Confederation, the first political union in American history. This rich heritage was passed down through generations in America as one of the anchors of American culture. A culture that was well represented by men such as John Witherspoon and Samuel Adams.

John Witherspoon, a Scottish Presbyterian minister who immigrated to America in 1768 to be president of the College of New Jersey (Princeton), was elected as a delegate from New Jersey to the Second Continental Congress in June of 1776. Witherspoon went on to sign the Declaration of Independence and to be one of the authors of the Articles of Confederation. It was during the Second Continental Congress debates on the Declaration of Independence that Witherspoon made his famous quote, “In my judgment, sir, we are not only ripe, but rotting,” in reply to hesitant delegates on declaring independence from Britain.

It can be argued that those accomplishments were not what propelled John Witherspoon to historical prosterity; that distinction belonged to his revolutionary rhetoric. A colony-wide day of fasting was the occasion on which Witherspoon preached at the College of New Jersey in May of 1776, two weeks before he represented New Jersey in the Second Continental Congress. Fasting days were colony-wide days of fasting, penitence, and prayer. The full support of the Continental Congress to religious days of fasting provides evidence that the colonial culture was inherently religious and God-fearing.

Revolutionary Sermon

Witherspoon’s sermon that fasting day in May at the College of New Jersey was titled “The Dominion of Providence over the Passions of Men.” In what historians would later call the “Dominion Sermon,” Witherspoon underscores that all events, including human suffering and wrath, are under God’s control and contribute to His glory. Witherspoon emphasizes the importance of faith in God’s providence, which gives believers the strength to endure suffering patiently and even to embrace it as part of God’s will. Witherspoon states, “When a man is under distress or calamity of any kind, and considers it only in itself, and independently of his relation to God, it retains its old nature, and tastes with all the bitterness of the original curse; but when it is considered as limited in its nature—its measure, and its continuance by a kind Saviour, the believer submits to it with patience, as a part of his Creator’s will.”

The sermon was rooted in Psalm: “Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee; the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain” (Ps. 76:10 KJV). This passage lays the foundation for Witherspoon’s rallying call to revolutionaries, providing them with divine consent for their actions. Witherspoon elaborates, “What follows from this? That he is the best friend to American liberty, who is the most sincere and active in promoting true and undefiled religion, and who sets himself with the greatest firmness to bear down profanity and immorality of every kind.” Witherspoon also wrapped the call to revolution with a redemption message, in that human wrath and suffering are conditions of fallen man, leading us to be conscious of our sin and to redemption through Christ’s mercy.

The sermon ends with Witherspoon’s call to action for revolutionaries, urging them to stay strong in their faith and trust in God’s providence. Witherspoon states, “Let us act with prudence, firmness, and unanimity, committing our cause to God.” Witherspoon expresses hope that the coming struggle for American independence will strengthen Americans’ faith in God and civil liberties by stating, “There is not a single instance in history in which civil liberty was lost, and religious liberty preserved entire.” Witherspoon also resolved that the wrath of man will continue to praise God by fulfilling His divine purpose, “He can restrain the remainder of wrath, and cause even the passions of men to praise him.”

Conclusion

Witherspoon’s Dominion Sermon likely influenced many revolutionaries; one such person was Samuel Adam, who heard him speak at the First Continental Congress and shared many of Witherspoon’s values, including God’s providence, virtue, liberty, and resistance to tyranny. Adams stated, “The hand of heaven appears to have led us on to be, perhaps, humble instruments and means in the great Providential dispensation which is completing.” Adams also patiently stated that, “Our independence will redeem one quarter of the globe from tyranny and oppression, and consecrate it to the chosen seat of truth, justice, freedom, learning, and religion. We are laying the foundation of happiness for countless millions. generations yet unborn will bless us for the blood-bought inheritance we are about to bequeath them.” It is undeniable that, among the audiences at Witherspoon’s sermons, those who heard the sermons published in contemporary newspapers and pamphlets, and those who attended the debates in Congress and heard word of mouth, Witherspoon was influential in rallying many to the “Flag of 1777” and the divine right of revolution. The popularity of Witherspoon and other revolutionary orators, like Samuel Adams, who espoused the divine right of revolution through virtuous action, reveals the use of Christianity not only in the American Revolution but also represented the structural and institutional foundation on which the United States of America was built and with which it must persevere.

References:

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Moore, Frank. American Eloquence: A Collection of Speeches and Addresses by the Most Eminent Orators of America; With Biographical Sketches and Illustrative Notes. ol. 1. New York; London: D. Appleton and Company; Little Britain, 1872. Accessed April 7, 2026. ttps://go.gale.com/ps/retrieve.do?docId=GALE%7CCY0112271161.

Winthrop, John, and James Savage. The history of New England from 1630 to 1649. ol. 2. Boston: Printed by Phelps and Farnham, 1825-1826. abin Americana: History of the Americas, 1500-1926 (accessed April 7, 2026). https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CY0104230547/SABN?u=vic_liberty&sid=bookmark-SABN&xid=340fa57d&pg=113.

John Witherspoon.  Sermons, by the Late John Witherspoon, S.S.T.P., President of the College of New Jersey. Supplementary Volume, Including Such Sermons as Are Not Already Published in His Works. o Which Are Added, by the Same Author, The History of a Corporation of Servants, and Other Tracts. vols. Edinburgh: J. Dickson, J. Fairbairn, and J. Ogle, 1798. Accessed April 7, 2026. https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=ECCO&u=vic_liberty&id=GALE%7CCW0121759885&v=2.1&it=r.