Read these sentences from the speech.

If we shall suppose that American slavery is one of those offenses which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which the believers in a living God always ascribe to Him?

What is Lincoln’s purpose in these sentences?

Responses

A. Lincoln wants the American people to understand that the war is God’s punishment for allowing slavery to exist and thrive.

B. He is attempting to shift the blame for the war from the government to the people because they turned away from God when they turned against each other.

C. He wants to instill fear in the American people that war is God’s revenge for refusing to allow the expansion of slavery.

D. Lincoln is trying to rally support for the war by asserting that it is what God wants for the American people.