Ex 9:7b   Pharaoh sent men to investigate and found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had died. Yet his heart was unyielding and he would not let the people go.

       

Hard heartedness is a frightening thing. The story of Pharaoh in Exodus 1-12 shows us that man can be so stubborn that he will bring his own destruction down upon his head. The story of the plagues is one showing God's incredible mercy and grace. Only slowly does each ‘plague' get worse and worse, and Pharaoh and all Egypt are being given opportunity after opportunity to learn about God's greatness, and to turn from their idol worship to the one true Lord. At any point along the path of these plagues, Pharaoh could have relented and given in and let Israel go – and he would have been saved. The plagues only carried on because he would not relent. The ongoing plagues showed that he refused to learn from each one.

When you look dispassionately at this story, the only way to describe Pharaoh's hard heartedness is ‘stupid'! This story reveals more than any other in the Bible, the stupidity of the hard heartedness of men's hearts. When all the evidence is stacking up, revealing the power and might and greatness of God, what is it that keeps people stubbornly refusing to believe? It is this thing the Bible calls ‘Sin', this self-centred, godless outlook on life, that is so entrenched in some people that it seems they will never surrender to God. The story is a lesson and a warning to the rest of us. Check yourself, make sure you are not stubborn in this way!