Dante's Portrayal of the Different Sides of God

As we discussed in class, Dante depicts different sides of God in the Inferno. Beatrice resembles the merciless God, and the angel that comes to aid Virgil resembles the side of God that provokes fear in order to "wake" people up. The reason this divine messenger or angel reminds of of the side of God that causes fears is because of the righteous anger or wrath that this angel demonstrates. A week ago at my church, the priest's homily spoke about Matthew 22, the parable of the Wedding Banquet. In this parable, the king, representing God, invites all to a wedding, but most refuse to attend. One person did attend but was not dressed properly, so the king said "Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." This imagery of cruelness and of mercilessness reminded me of the the way in which the angel acts. I think that this part of the parable that I quoted represents the side of God that Dante is trying to show, a side where fear is provoked in order to get people's attention and to get them to obey.