A Hardened Heart

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh: for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew these my signs before him.”  Exodus 10:1

This passage used to trouble me because it tells us that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart during the time when the plagues were cast upon the Egyptians in order for them to free the Hebrew people from bondage and allow Moses to lead Israel to the promised land.  Some folks, unfamiliar with scripture and the ways of God, might interpret this to mean that God made Pharaoh to be an obstinate, sinful, arrogant, and ruthless ruler.  But nothing could be further from the truth.  It was definitely true that Pharaoh had all of these characteristics, but he had chosen to be that way.  God gives men and women free will and the ability to choose how they desire to live their lives, but He has also set the standard for right and wrong.

If we studied in school how Pharaoh rose to power, I don’t remember.  I would speculate that he was brought up privileged and was accustomed to being served.  He let power go to his head as do many folks when they are placed in positions of leadership.  You don’t have to look any further than Washington, D.C., or even your own local government to verify that fact.  I can think of one particular person who has been in the news recently who has been accused of sexual misconduct by several women, but who is also displaying a very arrogant attitude about his past indiscretions (that’s giving him the benefit of the doubt by not calling it what it is–sin.)  Of course, everyone is innocent until proven guilty, but if all the folks who claim to be innocent about various crimes and/or bad judgments were really innocent, this would be a different world.  There are some folks who get to the point when they think they can do no wrong.  Recently I wrote a blog about those whom God gives over to a reprobate mind–they are no longer able to determine right from wrong–a very dangerous place to be.  I think that is what happened to Pharaoh.

His quest for power and prestige had already given him a hardened heart, thus God just gave him what he already had by allowing his heart to become further hardened.  The folks who have been given over to a reprobate mind are only given what they desire–no relationship with the Lord.  They want nothing to do with Him so He gives them their desire.  But along with this so-called freedom to do as they please, they also are void of sound judgment and also forfeit the opportunity to repent.  I have always heard the saying, “Where there’s life, there’s hope”, however, a man or woman can go so far into sin, that they cut off any chance of reconciliation with the Lord.  Jesus told His disciples to wipe the dust off their feet of the homes and villages as a testimony against the people who refused to hear the words of life and of freedom from sin (Matthew 10:14).  God is not playing.

There was another time in scripture when God hardened the hearts of Israel’s enemies Joshua 11:20).  Did God design these people to fail?  Did he make them to become the way they were?  No and no.  They had decided to be idol worshippers rather than seeking out the one true God.  But how would they know about Him?  Paul explained in Romans 1:19-21 that God put into each person’s soul an instinct to realize that God exists.  All folks have to do is look at the earth and sky and understand that all was created by an unseen Hand.  They had to know that, even the least intelligent among them, wooden, stone, or metal idols could never create life, yet they chose to worship those man-made idols rather than their own Creator.  They worshipped natural materials that God had made rather than God Himself because of pride.  They did not want to bow before and worship One who was greater than themselves.  They decided to follow their own human wisdom, and instead of becoming wise, they, as Paul wrote, became fools.  God is a God of love and mercy, but there is a line across which those who step will not be forgiven.  Why would anyone want to gamble with his or her eternity?

I may be wrong, but it seems to me that when God hardened the heart of people in the Old Testament, it was the same as giving them over to reprobate minds as stated in the New Testament.  In both examples, those who want no part of serving, worshipping, or honoring the Lord God are given their walking papers.  They gain nothing and lose everything.