Thank you for the question on God hardening Pharaoh’s heart, “Why did the Lord harden Pharaoh’s heart in the Bible? I just don’t understand why God would go to all the trouble of the plagues and harden Pharaoh so the people wouldn’t leave?”
The hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is one of those Biblical challenging questions. It is hard to understand, but may I share some thoughts on the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart.
A. Pharaoh began hardening his own conscience when he enslaved the Jewish people who were living in his land.
Since the time of Jacob to Moses, the Jewish people were living in the land. The Bible record does state the the Jewish people were rebellious or seditionist against Pharaoh and the Egyptians. The Biblical text states that Pharaoh’s motive for enslaving the Jews were from fear. He was fearful that the Jews may/would join an invading force to overthrow the Egyptians.
Exodus 1 in the New International Version says this, “Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. 9 “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. 10 Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.” Bible citations are from the New International Version.
It seems at that time of Pharaoh that his rule wasn’t too secure for fear of invasion whereby the Jews would join the enemy against the Egyptians and leave the country. This doesn’t seem reasonable to me since the Jews had no reason to leave the country for they had settled into the land for many decades, if one a few hundred years. The Biblical text states that a new king/Pharaoh had come to power and didn’t know or care about Joseph’s being the prime minister. In my opinion, Pharaoh’s action along with the administrators began to harden their heart by enslaving a people without cause. Fear drove them to their action.
B. Pharaoh and the administrators hardened their own hearts be commanding the midwives and later the Egyptians to ensure that the Jewish baby boys were thrown into the Nile River (Exod 1:15–22). Certainly the Jewish’s fathers and mothers pleaded with the Egyptians and even with Pharaoh to spare their sons. Pharaoh refused despite hearing the cries with his own court and in the community. This would include the Egyptian people who obeyed the command of Pharaoh. This action, in my opinion, was the hardening of their own hearts, not that God had hardened their hearts.
C. Pharaoh and his administrators continued their cruelty for an unknown period of time. This edict may have been rescinded at some point for the Egyptians came to realize that if there were no male sons born to the Jewish people, the work force would be inadequate in caring for the animals, being household slaves, and the building projects. The cries of the Jewish people to their God for deliverance. Did the Egyptians know that their force labor and cruelty was unjust but persisted in searing their own conscience? I believe so.
D. Pharaoh and his administrators’ pride had to be humbled in thinking that their Egyptian gods/goddess were the mightiest in the region (Rom. 9:16–18). Pharaoh had to learn there is the Creator God who is greater than any of the Egyptian gods/goddess, even himself. God used Moses and Aaron without any army to deliver the Jewish people from their dominion of them. That is astonishing.
God revealed to Moses that he will harden Pharaoh’s heart so that Pharaoh and the Egyptians will know there is the Creator God. God didn’t harden Pharaoh’s heart until the sixth plague. The previous five plagues states that Pharaoh hardened his own heart or was unyielding.
I cite for one observation:
- Exod. 7 says this, “12 Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs. 13 Yet Pharaoh’s heart became hard and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said.”
- Exod. 7 says this, “ But the Egyptian magicians did the same things by their secret arts, and Pharaoh’s heart became hard; he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said. 23 Instead, he turned and went into his palace, and did not take even this to heart.”
- Exod. 8 says this, “And the LORD did what Moses asked. The frogs died in the houses, in the courtyards and in the fields. 14 They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked of them. 15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said.”
- Exod. 8 says this, “But when the magicians tried to produce gnats by their secret arts, they could not. Since the gnats were on people and animals everywhere, 19 the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hard and he would not listen, just as the LORD had said.”
One can read the other plagues. It is important to note that in the plagues before the boils that Pharaoh hardened his own heart but with the last five plagues, God hardened his heart. Did God hardened Pharaoh’s heart in the previous five plagues? That can be debated, but prior to the plagues Pharaoh had already harden his own conscience and heart. Would Pharaoh freed the Jewish slaves to two insignificant persons who challenged his power and authority?
SUMMARY: The hardened conscience of Pharaoh with his pride had to be broken in recognizing there is the Creator God even over him.
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