“The LORD said to Moses, ‘When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go.’” Exo 4:21
Why would God harden Pharaoh’s heart? Seems rather unloving, doesn’t it? I mean if God directly intervened that would mean He created evil in Pharaoh’s heart. Is God the author of sin? Yet it is written, “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.” (James 1:13-14). So what gives? God did not actively harden Pharaoh’s heart; He hardened his heart passively.
How can God do so passively? He gave Pharaoh over to his sin, the sin that was already there in his heart. In regards to mankind, it is written, “Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts…They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised…Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done” (Rom 1:24-28).
God gave Pharaoh over to his sin and removed His hand of restraint. Have you ever heard the saying “Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely”? Think of the men in history who have had absolute power - Hitler, Stalin, etc - and think of how corrupted they became. In a way, you could argue the sin in their hearts had already been there, having absolute power merely allowed for the expression of it.
Even in this fallen world God has not completely given us over to sin, His hand restrains some of the evil. If His hand were removed, and we all had absolute power, chaos would ensue. But circumstances restrain us from doing whatever we please even at the cost of others, our will is not unlimited. There are bad consequences that keep us from acting out. For example, if you commit murder, you go to jail or face a death sentence. It is for this reason, circumstantial restraint, that evil does not run rampant in this world to a greater degree.
So at last, God let Pharaoh have his way. But that didn’t mean he was going to win. For what purpose did God passively harden Pharaoh’s heart? The Hebrew God was largely unknown at this point. And even if He were more known, He wouldn’t have been much to brag about since His people were in slavery. At this point he was unknown and probably viewed as weak. So the God wanted to make Himself known.
I’m sure the first time God announced to Pharaoh, “Let My people go,” Pharaoh laughed. He was probably thinking, “What are you going to do about it?” It wasn’t enough for God to say He was the all-powerful creator of the universe, He had to show it. He had to show that He was God above the Egyptian gods. He had to show that He was the God above every god, that He was God of the universe. Every plague shames an Egyptian God. The plagues reach a climax with the death of the first-born, showing that God is God over life and death.
Yet God is merciful even when expressing His wrath. In addressing the Egyptians, God warned them each time before He sent a plague. Particularly, before the seventh plague, the hailstorm, He says, “Let my people go…or this time I will send the full force of my plagues…so you may know there is no one like Me in all the earth. For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth” (Exo 9:14-15).
He goes on to warn, “Give an order now to bring your livestock and everything you have in the field to a place of shelter, because the hail will fall on every man and animal that has not been brought in and is still out in the field, and they will die” (Exo 9:19). He is telling them how to be safe. Those who believed were saved. Those who did not perished.
This is consistent with His character, “He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquity.” God tends to hold back when expressing His anger. Very rarely does He give full vent to His wrath. Many times His punishment is less than the crime. But even when He does punish, He always gives a promise of restoration and healing. Even when He expressed wrath against His own people, the Israelites, the story did not end there.
He did not say to His people, “You have been unfaithful and have betrayed me, therefore I will destroy you and wipe you out completely. I don’t want anything more to do with you ever again.” He never cuts them off relationally or says that they will live in misery forever. Nor does He leave and forsake them as a result of their sin. Instead, in His wrath He promises healing and restoration and a good future. That’s Who He is. He is a God who relents to send His wrath (Jonah 4:2).
