"To preach more than half an hour, a man should be an angel himself or have angels for hearers"

This quote by George Whitefield is a reflection on the trouble of preaching for a long period of time. He recommends that in order to preach for over half an hour, one need to either be an angel themselves or have angelic listeners. This suggests that preaching for a long period of time is a difficult task, which it requires a special type of speaker and audience. Whitefield is recommending that it is hard to keep an audience engaged for a long period of time, and that it needs an unique kind of speaker and audience to make it happen. He is also indicating that it is difficult to be a good preacher, which it needs an unique sort of individual to be able to do it. Whitefield's quote is a pointer that preaching is a difficult task, and that it requires an unique sort of speaker and audience to make it effective.