Wasn't God unfair in hardening Pharaoh's
heart
God was very patient with Pharaoh
and gave Pharaoh plenty of opportunities to repent,
and in the end God simply gave him what he already wanted.
The Problem:
God manipulates man's free will, by hardening Pharaoh's heart, so that God
can display his glory.
For a summary of my argument go here
The offending verses in the NT are:
(Rom 9:14-24 NIV) What then shall we say? Is
God unjust? Not at all! {15} For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on
whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."
{16} It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's
mercy. {17} For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for
this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might
be proclaimed in all the earth." {18} Therefore God has mercy on whom he
wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden. {19} One of
you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who resists
his will?" {20} But who are you, O man, to talk back to God?
"Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like
this?'" {21} Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same
lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use? {22} What
if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great
patience the objects of his wrath--prepared for destruction? {23} What if he
did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy,
whom he prepared in advance for glory-- {24} even us, whom he also called, not
only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles?
Paul is quoting Ex 9:16 and 33:19
(Exo 33:19 NIV) And the LORD said, "I will
cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the
LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will
have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
(Exo 9:13-17 NIV) Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Get up early in the morning, confront Pharaoh and say to him, 'This is
what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may
worship me, {14} or this time I will send the full force of my plagues against
you and against your officials and your people, so you may know that there is
no one like me in all the earth. {15} 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. {16} But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might
show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.
{17} You still set yourself against my people and will not let them go.
He is alluding to Isa 29:15-16 (also see Isa 45:9).
(Isa 29:15-16 NIV) Woe to those who go to great
depths to hide their plans from the LORD, who do their work in darkness and
think, "Who sees us? Who will know?" {16} You turn things upside
down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay! Shall what is formed
say to him who formed it, "He did not make me"? Can the pot say of
the potter, "He knows nothing"?
And the offending verses in the OT are:
(Exo 4:21 NIV) 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 7:2-5 NIV) You are to say everything I
command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go
out of his country. {3} But I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though I
multiply my miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt, {4} he will not listen to
you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will
bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites. {5} And the Egyptians will
know that I am the LORD when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the
Israelites out of it."
(Exo 10:1 NIV) Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his
officials so that I may perform these miraculous signs of mine among them
(Exo 11:10 NIV) Moses and Aaron performed all
these wonders before Pharaoh, but the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and
he would not let the Israelites go out of his country.
(Exo 14:4 NIV) And I will harden Pharaoh's
heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through
Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD."
So the Israelites did this.
Exo 14:8 The LORD hardened the heart of
Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching
out boldly.
(Exo 14:17-18 NIV) I will harden the hearts
of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain glory
through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. {18}
The Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I gain glory through Pharaoh,
his chariots and his horsemen."
Note: KJV has Ex 7:13 as "And he hardened Pharaoh's
heart" NIV has "Yet Pharaoh's heart became hard" NASB has
"Yet Pharaoh's heart was hardened"
Background:
Jacob and his family are invited to live in Egypt by Pharaoh
himself (Gen 45:17) and were given the best of the land of Egypt (Gen 45:18).
Now some 400 years later (Gen 15:13) the children of Israel were in slavery,
but God had promised Abraham that he would bring them out and punish the
oppressors.
(Gen 15:13-14 NIV) Then the LORD said to him,
"Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not
their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. {14}
But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come
out with great possessions.
Then a new king, who did not know about Joseph, came to
power in Egypt. (Exo 1:8). The Israelites had become numerous (600,000 men (Ex
12:37)) and they were forced into harsh slave labour (Ex 1:9-14). Even then
Pharaoh did not want the Israelites to leave Egypt.
(Exo 1:8-14 NIV) Then a new king, who did not
know about Joseph, came to power in Egypt. {9} "Look," he said to his
people, "the Israelites have become much 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." {11} So they put slave masters over them to oppress them
with forced labor, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for
Pharaoh. {12} But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and
spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites {13} and worked them
ruthlessly. {14} They made their lives bitter with hard labor in brick and
mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields; in all their hard labor the
Egyptians used them ruthlessly.
Then Pharaoh gave orders that all male newborn babies were
to be killed (Exo 1:15-22).
(Exo 1:15-16 NIV) The king of Egypt said to the
Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, {16} "When you help
the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is
a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live."
(Acts 7:18-19 NIV) Then another king, who knew
nothing about Joseph, became ruler of Egypt. {19} He dealt treacherously with
our people and oppressed our forefathers by forcing them to throw out their
newborn babies so that they would die.
There follows the remarkable narrative about Moses and his
adoption into Pharaoh's family. How when he was forty (Acts 7:23) he saw the
oppression of his people, and killed an Egyptian and then fled to Midian and
married the daughter of Jethro, and tended sheep for forty years (Acts 7:30) .
During that period Pharaoh dies, but the Israelites continue in slavery.
(Exo 2:23-25 NIV) During that long period, the
king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and
their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God. {24} God heard
their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with
Jacob. {25} So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them.
Then God appears to Moses in the burning bush experience (Exo 3:2), and God
says:
(Exo 3:6-10 NIV) Then he said, "I am the
God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of
Jacob." At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
{7} The LORD said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in
Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am
concerned about their suffering. {8} So I have come down to rescue them from
the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and
spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey--the home of the
Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. {9} And now
the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians
are oppressing them. {10} So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my
people the Israelites out of Egypt."
In his initial negotiations with Pharaoh Moses only asked
him to let the people go for a while into the desert to sacrifice to God. At
this Pharaoh accuses the Israelites of being lazy and no longer supplied them
with straw for making bricks.
(Exo 5:1-8 NIV) Afterward Moses and Aaron went
to Pharaoh and said, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'Let
my people go, so that they may hold a festival to me in the desert.'" {2}
Pharaoh said, "Who is the LORD, that I should obey him and let Israel go?
I do not know the LORD and I will not let Israel go." {3} Then they said,
"The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Now let us take a three-day
journey into the desert to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God, or he may
strike us with plagues or with the sword." {4} But the king of Egypt said,
"Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? Get
back to your work!" {5} Then Pharaoh said, "Look, the people of the
land are now numerous, and you are stopping them from working." {6} That
same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and foremen in charge of
the people: {7} "You are no longer to supply the people with straw for
making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. {8} But require them to
make the same number of bricks as before; don't reduce the quota. They are
lazy; that is why they are crying out, 'Let us go and sacrifice to our God.'
God's ultimate plan is total freedom for his people the
Israelites, not just one week away from the Egyptians. God wants to take this
nation of slaves to be his chosen people and He to be their God. In doing this
at the formation of the nation of Israel, he demonstates that he is greater
than any of the local deities including the Egyptian gods. While Pharaoh wants
to keep them, the purpose of the plagues is so that Pharaoh will drive them
away. Regarding Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, God already knows that he will not
let the Israelites go unless he is compeled or forced into letting them go.
Clearly, God intends to rescue his people from the hands of the Egyptians, and
Pharaoh (who considers himself a god) wants to keep them. A mighty hand is
required to compel Pharaoh to drive them out.
(Exo 3:19-22 NIV) But I know that the king of
Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. {20} So I will
stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will
perform among them. After that, he will let you go. {21} "And I will
make the Egyptians favorably disposed toward this people, so that when you
leave you will not go empty-handed. {22} Every woman is to ask her neighbor and
any woman living in her house for articles of silver and gold and for clothing,
which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder the
Egyptians."
Note, that God will make the Egyptians favorably disposed to the Israelites,
because they feared for their own lives after the ten plagues, see:
(Exo 12:33-38 NIV) The Egyptians urged the
people to hurry and leave the country. "For otherwise," they said,
"we will all die!" {34} So the people took their dough before the
yeast was added, and carried it on their shoulders in kneading troughs wrapped
in clothing. {35} The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the
Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing. {36} The LORD
had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and they gave them
what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians. {37} The Israelites
journeyed from Rameses to Succoth. There were about six hundred thousand men on
foot, besides women and children. {38} Many other people went up with them, as
well as large droves of livestock, both flocks and herds.
In Ex 6:1-8 God fully discloses his plan for his people:
- He has heard the groaning of the Israelites
- He will bring them out of Egypt
- He will free them from slavery and bondage
- He will redeem them with mighty acts of judgement
- He will take them as his own people and He will be their God
- He will bring them into their own land
- He will give it to them as a possession
(Exo 6:1-8 NIV) Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: Because of my mighty hand he
will let them go; because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his
country." {2} God also said to Moses, "I am the LORD. {3} I appeared
to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I
did not make myself known to them. {4} I also established my covenant with them
to give them the land of Canaan, where they lived as aliens. {5} Moreover, I
have heard the groaning of the Israelites, whom the Egyptians are enslaving,
and I have remembered my covenant. {6} "Therefore, say to the Israelites:
'I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians.
I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an
outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. {7} I will take you as my
own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your
God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. {8} And I will
bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac
and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD.'"
The ten plagues upon Egypt:
- Exo 7:20 Nile turned to blood (the Niles was sacred to the Egyptians)
- Exo 8:6 plague of frogs (frogs were sacred to the Egyptians)
- Exo 8:17 plague of gnats
- Exo 8:24 plague of flies
- Exo 9:6 plague on livestock in the field (bulls, calf's, cows were sacred
to the Egyptians)
- Exo 9:10 plague of boils
- Exo 9:23 plague of hail
- Exo 10:13 plague of locusts
- Exo 10:21 plague of darkness (judgement on sun-god)
- Exo 12:29 firstborn in Egypt die
In the case of the fourth, fifth, seventh, ninth, and tenth
plagues there is a distinction mentioned between the Egyptians and the
Israelites, because the plagues do not affect the Israelites. With the fifth
plague on cattle and livestock another part of Egypt's wide array of gods was
hard hit: the Apis, or sacred bull Ptah; the calf god Ra; the cows of Hathor;
the jackal-headed god Anubis; and the bull Bakis of the god Mentu. The god's of
Egypt were judged (Exo 12:12), in all this God was showing the Egyptians, his
own people and the rest of the world who the true God is. (Expositors Bible
Commentary).
In the case of the seventh plague, the plague of hail, God
orders the Egyptians to bring their livestock indoors, so they could escape the
plague. Those who believed the word of the Lord escaped the plague.
(Exo 9:18-21 NIV) Therefore, at this time
tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen on Egypt, from
the day it was founded till now. {19} 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.'" {20} Those officials of Pharaoh who
feared the word of the LORD hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock
inside. {21} But those who ignored the word of the LORD left their slaves and
livestock in the field.
It is clear from Ex 14:5 that Pharaoh only wanted the Israelites for their
slave labour.
(Exo 14:5 NIV) When the king of Egypt was told
that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about
them and said, "What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and
have lost their services!"
Not only were the plagues a punishment upon the Egyptians for
mistreating the Israelites but a judgement on their gods.
(Exo 12:12 NIV) "On that same night I will
pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn--both men and animals--and
I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD.
(Num 33:3-4 NIV) The Israelites set out from
Rameses on the fifteenth day of the first month, the day after the Passover.
They marched out boldly in full view of all the Egyptians, {4} who were burying
all their firstborn, whom the LORD had struck down among them; for the LORD
had brought judgment on their gods.
While the plagues were punishment on the Egyptians, God was showing mercy on
His people, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, by redeeming them from
a life of slavery in Egypt.
(Deu 7:8 NIV) But it was because the LORD loved you and kept the
oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out with a mighty hand
and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of
Egypt.
Word of what the Lord did to the Egyptians had spread to Jericho, and Rahab
the harlot was saved. see also Josh 9:9
(Josh 2:8-11 NIV) Before the spies lay down for
the night, she went up on the roof {9} and said to them, "I know that
the LORD has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on
us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you.
{10} We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when
you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of
the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. {11} When we
heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you,
for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.
The date of the Exodus was c. 1446 BC when Thutmose III was Pharaoh (EBC),
see also
The
Old Testament Documents: Are They Reliable & Relevant? by Walter C.,
Jr. Kaiser
Analysis:
So what is going on, is God a glory hog who hardens
Pharaoh's heart so that he can display his glory? It is not as simple as that,
the events are complex and must be unraveled carefully. I suppose that we have
here an example of man's free will and God's. I will say here and probably
elsewhere that man has free will but that God's free will is freer.
As we will show, Pharaoh was stubborn and hardened his
own heart and God simply gave him what he had already chosen. Despite the
evidence of the signs and miracles, which gave him six chances to repent, and
against the advice of his advisors he persisted in defying God.
The initial request made by Moses to Pharaoh, was easier for Pharaoh to
grant, it was a week off work so that they could worship God.
(Exo 5:1-3 NIV) Afterward Moses and Aaron went
to Pharaoh and said, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'Let
my people go, so that they may hold a festival to me in the desert.'" {2}
Pharaoh said, "Who is the LORD, that I should obey him and let Israel go?
I do not know the LORD and I will not let Israel go." {3} Then they said,
"The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Now let us take a three-day
journey into the desert to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God, or he may
strike us with plagues or with the sword."
Pharaoh answered this simple request by accusing the
Israelites of being lazy and refusing to give them straw for making bricks. His
heart was hard.
(Exo 5:4-9 NIV) But the king of Egypt said,
"Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? Get
back to your work!" {5} Then Pharaoh said, "Look, the people of the
land are now numerous, and you are stopping them from working." {6} That
same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and foremen in charge of
the people: {7} "You are no longer to supply the people with straw for
making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. {8} But require them to
make the same number of bricks as before; don't reduce the quota. They are
lazy; that is why they are crying out, 'Let us go and sacrifice to our God.'
{9} Make the work harder for the men so that they keep working and pay no
attention to lies."
Before the first plague, Pharaoh is given a sign
(Exo 7:10-12 NIV) So Moses and Aaron went to
Pharaoh and did just as the LORD commanded. Aaron threw his staff down in front
of Pharaoh and his officials, and it became a snake. {11} Pharaoh then summoned
wise men and sorcerers, and the Egyptian magicians also did the same things by
their secret arts: {12} Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake.
But Aaron's staff swallowed up their staffs.
Pharaoh ignored this first sign and hardened his heart.
(Exo 7:13-14 NIV) Yet Pharaoh's heart became
hard and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said. {14} Then
the LORD said to Moses, "Pharaoh's heart is unyielding; he refuses to let
the people go.
After the first plague, Pharaoh's heart became hard
(Exo 7:22-23 NIV) 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.
After the second plague, Pharaoh hardened his heart.
(Exo 8:15 NIV) 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.
After the third plague, the magicians recognise the finger of God but not
Pharaoh, his heart was hard.
(Exo 8:19 NIV) 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.
After the fourth plague, Pharaoh hardened his heart.
(Exo 8:32 NIV) But this time also Pharaoh
hardened his heart and would not let the people go.
After the fifth plague, Pharaoh's heart was unyielding.
(Exo 9:7 NIV) 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.
After the sixth plague, now God hardens Pharaoh's heart
(Exo 9:12 NIV) But the LORD hardened
Pharaoh's heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the
LORD had said to Moses.
After the seventh plague, Pharaoh and his officials hardened their hearts
(Exo 9:34-35 NIV) When Pharaoh saw that the rain
and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again: He and his officials
hardened their hearts. {35} So Pharaoh's heart was hard and he would not
let the Israelites go, just as the LORD had said through Moses.
Further, some of the plagues were conditional:
(Exo 8:2 NIV) If you refuse to let them go, I will
plague your whole country with frogs.
(Exo 8:21 NIV) If you do not let my
people go, I will send swarms of flies on you and your officials, on
your people and into your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of
flies, and even the ground where they are.
(Exo 9:2-3 NIV) If you refuse to let them
go and continue to hold them back, {3} the hand of the LORD will bring a
terrible plague on your livestock in the field--on your horses and donkeys and
camels and on your cattle and sheep and goats.
(Exo 9:13-14 NIV) Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Get up early in the morning, confront Pharaoh and say to him, 'This is
what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may
worship me, {14} or this time I will send the full force of my plagues
against you and against your officials and your people, so you may know that
there is no one like me in all the earth.
(Exo 10:4 NIV) If you refuse to let them go, I will
bring locusts into your country tomorrow.
Even his own magicians recognised the finger of God, but Pharaoh would not
listen.
(Exo 8:19 NIV) 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.
(Exo 9:20 NIV) Those officials of Pharaoh who feared the word of
the LORD hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock inside.
(Exo 10:7 NIV) Pharaoh's officials said to him,
"How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the people go, so that they
may worship the LORD their God. Do you not yet realize that Egypt is
ruined?"
Pharaoh was deceitful and double-minded in his dealings with
Moses, while the effects of the plague was on he agreed to let (some of) the
people go. He even asks Moses to pray for him (8:8, 8:28, 9:28, 10:17) but as
soon as the plague is gone he changes his mind, he hardens his heart and
refuses to let the people go. He even admits his sin in 9:27 and 10:16 while
the effect of the plague is on, but as soon as the plague stopped he hardened
his heart (9.34) and in 10:20 the Lord hardened his heart.
After the second plague
(Exo 8:8 NIV) Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron
and said, "Pray to the LORD to take the frogs away from me and my people,
and I will let your people go to offer sacrifices to the LORD."
(Exo 8:15 NIV) 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.
After the fourth plague
(Exo 8:28 NIV) Pharaoh said, "I will let
you go to offer sacrifices to the LORD your God in the desert, but you must
not go very far. Now pray for me."
(Exo 8:32 NIV) But this time also Pharaoh hardened his heart and
would not let the people go.
After the seventh plague
(Exo 9:27-28 NIV) Then Pharaoh summoned Moses
and Aaron. "This time I have sinned," he said to them.
"The LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. {28} Pray
to the LORD, for we have had enough thunder and hail. I will let you go;
you don't have to stay any longer."
(Exo 9:34 NIV) When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder
had stopped, he sinned again: He and his officials hardened their
hearts.
After the eighth plague
(Exo 10:16-17 NIV) Pharaoh quickly summoned
Moses and Aaron and said, "I have sinned against the LORD your God and
against you. {17} Now forgive my sin once more and pray to the LORD your
God to take this deadly plague away from me."
(Exo 10:20 NIV) But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he
would not let the Israelites go.
After the ninth plague
(Exo 10:24 NIV) Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and
said, "Go, worship the LORD. Even your women and children may go
with you; only leave your flocks and herds behind."
(Exo 10:27 NIV) But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he
was not willing to let them go.
There is a hint of mercy, God could have completely
destroyed the Egyptians, but only destroyed the firstborn males. We see God's
greater purpose is to proclaim his name in all the earth. Yet despite the
miracles Pharaoh sets himself against God's people and therefore against God
and his purposes for his people.
(Exo 9:15-17 NIV) 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. {16} But I have raised you up for this very
purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in
all the earth. {17} You still set yourself against my people and will not let
them go.
Pharaoh's problem was that he did not know the Lord, the plagues remedied
that (Exo 7:5, 9:14, 14:4 ).
(Exo 5:1-2 NIV) Afterward Moses and Aaron went
to Pharaoh and said, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'Let
my people go, so that they may hold a festival to me in the desert.'" {2}
Pharaoh said, "Who is the LORD, that I should obey him and let Israel go?
I do not know the LORD and I will not let Israel go."
Only after Pharaoh has seen God's miracles six times and hardened his heart
six times did God harden Pharaoh's heart.
(Exo 9:12 NIV) But the LORD hardened
Pharaoh's heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the
LORD had said to Moses.
In Ex 13:15 Pharaoh's hardness of heart is called stubbornness:
(Exo 13:15 NIV) When Pharaoh stubbornly
refused to let us go, the LORD killed every firstborn in Egypt, both man
and animal. This is why I sacrifice to the LORD the first male offspring of
every womb and redeem each of my firstborn sons.'
The root of Pharaoh's problem was pride, he refused to humble himself before
God.
(Exo 10:3 NIV) So Moses and Aaron went to
Pharaoh and said to him, "This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews,
says: 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my
people go, so that they may worship me.
Back in Ex 4:21 and 7:3 God tells Moses that he will harden Pharaoh's heart
(an example of God's foreknowledge):
(Exo 4:21 NIV) 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 7:2-5 NIV) You are to say everything I
command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go
out of his country. {3} But I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though I
multiply my miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt, {4} he will not listen to
you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will
bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites. {5} And the Egyptians will
know that I am the LORD when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the
Israelites out of it."
God was dealing harshly with the Egyptians, just as they had
treated the Israelites harshly, one of God's purposes in hardening Pharaoh's
heart was so that the Israelites know that God is the LORD (Jehovah)
(Exo 10:1-2 NIV) Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his
officials so that I may perform these miraculous signs of mine among
them {2} that you may tell your children and grandchildren how I dealt
harshly with the Egyptians and how I performed my signs among them, and that
you may know that I am the LORD."
God knows beforehand that Pharaoh's heart is hard. In the
actual sequence of events it is Pharaoh who hardens his heart, despite the
miracles, he was given plenty of chances to repent (i.e. change his mind) but
in his stubbornness, he refuses to let the people go each time the plague has
passed. It is a solemn case of human responsibility and God's sovereignty. It
is also an illustration of the kindness and severity of God (Rom 11:22).
Through the plagues God was also revealing himself to the Egyptians (Exo 7:5,
14:18 ). Not only did the Israelites escape from Egypt but many others fled
also (Exo 12:38, Lev 24:10 ).
What about the death of the firstborn in Egypt? At his last
meeting with Pharaoh, this is what he told Pharaoh
(Exo 11:4-8 NIV) So Moses said, "This is
what the LORD says: 'About midnight I will go throughout Egypt. {5} Every
firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on
the throne, to the firstborn son of the slave girl, who is at her hand mill,
and all the firstborn of the cattle as well. {6} There will be loud wailing
throughout Egypt--worse than there has ever been or ever will be again. {7} But
among the Israelites not a dog will bark at any man or animal.' Then you will
know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. {8} All these
officials of yours will come to me, bowing down before me and saying, 'Go, you
and all the people who follow you!' After that I will leave." Then Moses,
hot with anger, left Pharaoh.
We should not think that the firstborn son meant just little
children, it meant the eldest son. With the slaughter of the firstborn male
Egyptians God was going to make a distinction between Egypt and Israel. But the
Israelites had a part to play, because they had to slaughter a lamb and put its
blood on the sides and top of the doorframes, so that when the destroyer comes
he sees the blood and passes over them. For the Christian this has deep
significance because the blood speaks of the blood of Jesus Christ.
(Exo 12:3-7 NIV) Tell the whole community of
Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb for his
family, one for each household. {4} If any household is too small for a whole
lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into
account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb
needed in accordance with what each person will eat. {5} The animals you choose
must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or
the goats. {6} Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when
all the people of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. {7}
Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the
doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs.
The death of the firstborn is spoken of as judgement upon the gods of Egypt.
(Exo 12:12-13 NIV) "On that same night I
will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn--both men and
animals--and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the
LORD. {13} The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and
when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will
touch you when I strike Egypt.
Another reason is given in Ex 4:22-23, where Israel is called by God
"my firstborn son", by refusing to let Israel go then Pharaoh would
forfeit the life of his firstborn son.
(Exo 4:21-23 NIV) 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. {22} Then say to Pharaoh, 'This is what the LORD
says: Israel is my firstborn son, {23} and I told you, "Let my
son go, so he may worship me." But you refused to let him go; so I
will kill your firstborn son.'"
After the Egyptians followed the Israelites into the sea and were drowned,
the result was that the Israelites put their trust in God and in Moses.
(Exo 14:31 NIV) And when the Israelites saw the
great power the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the
LORD and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.
It also resulted in Moses father-in-law, Jethro, knowing that the Lord is
greater than all other god's.
(Exo 18:10-11 NIV) He said, "Praise be to
the LORD, who rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and
who rescued the people from the hand of the Egyptians. {11} Now I know that the
LORD is greater than all other gods, for he did this to those who had treated
Israel arrogantly."
Three hundred years later the Philistines still recalled the the defeat of
the Egyptians.
(1 Sam 4:8 NIV) Woe to us! Who will deliver us
from the hand of these mighty gods? They are the gods who struck the Egyptians
with all kinds of plagues in the desert.
(Lev 26:45 NIV) But for their sake I will
remember the covenant with their ancestors whom I brought out of Egypt in
the sight of the nations to be their God. I am the LORD.'"
The Exodus was a great and defining event in the history of
Israel, for hundreds of years God had not spoken to his people, they had
greatly multiplied and now were slaves in Egypt, God was going to reveal
himself in power to his people and be their God, as these later quotes testify.
(Num 15:41 NIV) I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of
Egypt to be your God. I am the LORD your God.'"
(Deu 4:34-39 NIV) Has any god ever tried to take
for himself one nation out of another nation, by testings, by miraculous signs
and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and
awesome deeds, like all the things the LORD your God did for you in Egypt
before your very eyes? {35} You were shown these things so that you might know
that the LORD is God; besides him there is no other. {36} From heaven he made
you hear his voice to discipline you. On earth he showed you his great fire,
and you heard his words from out of the fire. {37} Because he loved your
forefathers and chose their descendants after them, he brought you out of Egypt
by his Presence and his great strength, {38} to drive out before you nations
greater and stronger than you and to bring you into their land to give it to
you for your inheritance, as it is today. {39} Acknowledge and take to heart
this day that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is
no other.
(2 Sam 7:22-24 NIV) "How great you are, O
Sovereign LORD! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we
have heard with our own ears. {23} And who is like your people Israel--the one
nation on earth that God went out to redeem as a people for himself, and to
make a name for himself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving
out nations and their gods from before your people, whom you redeemed from
Egypt? {24} You have established your people Israel as your very own forever,
and you, O LORD, have become their God.
What about Psa 136:10, God smote the first-born Egyptians and showed his
loving kindness to HIS PEOPLE the Israelites who were being oppressed by the
Egyptians.
(Psa 136:10 NASB) To Him who smote the Egyptians in their
first-born, For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
Was God unfair in destroying the firstborn sons of all the
Egyptians for the wickedness of Pharaoh? They had corporately benefited from
the slave labour of the Israelites and would suffer or benefit from the
decisions of their leader as is the case throughout the world now. This would
be demonstrated in the case of the Midianites who
also made disastrous decisions as far as their people were concerned.
God's final act, the parting of the Red Sea, the deliverance of the
Israelites and the destruction of the Egyptian army.
The Egyptians had oppressed God's people and were being
justly punished for this by the plagues. In doing so God had kept his covenant
with Abraham. Those who persisted in rebellion against God after seeing all the
miracles were destroyed by the waters of the sea.
Even at this stage the Israelites were wavering in their
faith in God, and God knew this, so he avoided Philistine country to avoid war
which might tempt the Israelites to turn back to Egypt.
(Exo 13:17-18 NIV) When Pharaoh let the people
go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though
that was shorter. For God said, "If they face war, they might change their
minds and return to Egypt." {18} So God led the people around by the
desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for
battle.
(Exo 14:4 NIV) And I will harden Pharaoh's
heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself
through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the
LORD." So the Israelites did this.
Even now the Israelites wavered, they saw the Egyptians
marching after them and still did not trust God to deliver them. One further
miracle was required, the parting of the Red sea so that the Israelites could
escape and the destruction of the pursuing Egyptian armies.
(Exo 14:10-14 NIV) As Pharaoh approached, the
Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They
were terrified and cried out to the LORD. {11} They said to Moses, "Was it
because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?
What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? {12} Didn't we say to you
in Egypt, 'Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians'? It would have been
better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!" {13}
Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see
the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you
will never see again. {14} The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be
still."
(Exo 14:17-18 NIV) I will harden the hearts
of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain
glory through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his
horsemen. {18} The Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I gain
glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen."
With the final miracle from God, the Israelites feared the
LORD and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant. It was necessary that
God demonstrate his power and glory so that His people would trust in him.
(Exo 14:21-31 NIV) Then Moses stretched out his
hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove the sea back with a strong
east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, {22} and the
Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their
right and on their left. {23} The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh's
horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. {24} During the
last watch of the night the LORD looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud
at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. {25} He made the wheels of
their chariots come off so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians
said, "Let's get away from the Israelites! The LORD is fighting for them
against Egypt." {26} Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your
hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their
chariots and horsemen." {27} Moses stretched out his hand over the sea,
and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing
toward it, and the LORD swept them into the sea. {28} The water flowed back and
covered the chariots and horsemen--the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed
the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived. {29} But the Israelites
went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on
their left. {30} That day the LORD saved Israel from the hands of the
Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. {31} And
when the Israelites saw the great power the LORD displayed against the
Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in him and in Moses
his servant.
Pharaoh perished as well as his army:
Psa 136:15 but swept Pharaoh and his army into
the Red Sea; His love endures forever.
A suitable commentary on these events is:
(Deu 7:8-10 NIV) But it was because the LORD
loved you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you
out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the
power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. {9} Know therefore that the LORD your God is
God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand
generations of those who love him and keep his commands. {10} But those who
hate him he will repay to their face by destruction; he will not be slow to
repay to their face those who hate him.
For us in the modern era:
(1 Cor 10:11 NIV) These things happened to them as examples and
were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has
come.
We should take these things to heart, and not be stubborn or double-minded
as Pharaoh was and incurred God's judgement on himself, his family and his
people.
Final thoughts:
Had Pharaoh humbled himself before God, the story could have been different.
Even the heathen king Nebuchadnezzar had humbled hiumself before God
(Dan 4:37 NIV) Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and
exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and
all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.
When Jonah pronounced judgement on Nineveh, the king responded by calling on
the Lord and issuing a call for repentance, and judgement was averted.
(Jonah 3:4-10 NIV) On the first day, Jonah
started into the city. He proclaimed: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be
overturned." {5} The Ninevites believed God. They declared a fast, and all
of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. {6} When the news
reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes,
covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. {7} Then he issued a
proclamation in Nineveh: "By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not
let any man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything; do not let them eat or
drink. {8} But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call
urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. {9} Who
knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so
that we will not perish." {10} When God saw what they did and how they
turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the
destruction he had threatened.
Even Ahab, one of the most wicked Hebrew kings, humbled himself and averted
judgement for a time.
(1 Ki 21:22-29 NIV) I will make your house like
that of Jeroboam son of Nebat and that of Baasha son of Ahijah, because you
have provoked me to anger and have caused Israel to sin.' {23} "And also
concerning Jezebel the LORD says: 'Dogs will devour Jezebel by the wall of
Jezreel.' {24} "Dogs will eat those belonging to Ahab who die in the city,
and the birds of the air will feed on those who die in the country." {25}
(There was never a man like Ahab, who sold himself to do evil in the eyes of
the LORD, urged on by Jezebel his wife. {26} He behaved in the vilest manner by
going after idols, like the Amorites the LORD drove out before Israel.) {27}
When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and fasted.
He lay in sackcloth and went around meekly. {28} Then the word of the LORD came
to Elijah the Tishbite: {29} "Have you noticed how Ahab has humbled
himself before me? Because he has humbled himself, I will not bring this
disaster in his day, but I will bring it on his house in the days of his
son."
The worst thing that God can do to us is to give us up to our own desires
and lusts.
(Rom 1:18-31 NIV) The wrath of God is being
revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who
suppress the truth by their wickedness, {19} since what may be known about God
is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. {20} For since the
creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine
nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so
that men are without excuse. {21} For although they knew God, they neither
glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile
and their foolish hearts were darkened. {22} Although they claimed to be wise,
they became fools {23} and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images
made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. {24}
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to
sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. {25} They
exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things
rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen. {26} Because of this,
God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural
relations for unnatural ones. {27} In the same way the men also abandoned
natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men
committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due
penalty for their perversion. {28} Furthermore, since they did not think it
worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved
mind, to do what ought not to be done. {29} They have become filled with
every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy,
murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, {30} slanderers,
God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil;
they disobey their parents; {31} they are senseless, faithless, heartless,
ruthless.
However like hoarding treasure in a treasure chest such people accumulate
God's wrath for themselves on the day of judgement.
(Rom 2:5-6 NIV) But because of your
stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against
yourself for the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be
revealed. {6} God "will give to each person according to what he has
done."
We also see that God sends powerful delusions upon those who refused
to love the truth, but have delighted in wickedness.
(2 Th 2:9-12 NIV) The coming of the lawless one
will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of
counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, {10} and in every sort of evil that
deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the
truth and so be saved. {11} For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion
so that they will believe the lie {12} and so that all will be condemned who
have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.
Paul has his own extended commentary on the hardening of Pharaoh's heart.
(Rom 9:14-24 NIV) What then shall we say? Is
God unjust? Not at all! {15} For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on
whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."
{16} It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's
mercy. {17} For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for
this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might
be proclaimed in all the earth." {18} Therefore God has mercy on whom he
wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden. {19} One of
you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who resists
his will?" {20} But who are you, O man, to talk back to God?
"Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like
this?'" {21} Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same
lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use? {22} What
if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great
patience the objects of his wrath--prepared for destruction? {23} What if he
did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy,
whom he prepared in advance for glory-- {24} even us, whom he also called, not
only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles?
Paul's commentary is entirely God centred. As Lord of the
universe, God has the right to harden some and have mercy on others. However, a
detailed look at Pharaoh's hardening of heart shows us both sides, and that God
gave every opportunity for Pharaoh to change his mind. Pharaoh saw the evidence
of the signs and miracles, his own magicians recognised the hand of God, but
Pharaoh remained stubborn.
The Exodus account shows us the dynamics of the hardening of
Pharaoh's heart. How he stubbornly hardened his own heart before God hardened
it. God was patient with Pharaoh, revealing his power progressively through an
escalation in the severity of the plagues. After the third plague the magicians
recognised the finger of God, but not Pharaoh. God's ultimate purpose was to
reveal himself to the Egyptians, his chosen people and to the whole earth.
Ultimately he wanted to uses Abraham's descendents to bless all the peoples of
the earth.
(Gen 12:3 NIV) I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed
through you."
This process is still in progress, he sent Jesus to die for
our sins, our Passover Lamb, so that when he sees the blood he will not condemn
us. God's name is not yet known throughout the earth, but it continues to be
known by more and more people. Ultimately there will be a great multitude from
every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in
front of the Lamb giving praise to God for their salvation.
(Rev 7:9-10 NIV) After this I looked and there
before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation,
tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the
Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their
hands. {10} And they cried out in a loud voice: "Salvation belongs to our
God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb."
Our attitude to the Exodus can harden us to damnation or
soften us to salvation. Pharaoh, refused to recognise God as the true God and
he lost in the battle of wills, and was used to magnify the glory and name of
God anyway. Had Pharaoh, humbled himself before the true God the plagues would
have stopped.
We have God's promise that those who call apon the name of
the Lord will be saved.
(Rom 10:11-13 NIV) As the Scripture says,
"Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." {12} For there
is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and
richly blesses all who call on him, {13} for, "Everyone who calls on the
name of the Lord will be saved."
Those who come to Jesus he will not drive away.
(John 6:37 NIV) All that the Father gives me
will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.
Summary:
- God had told Abraham 400 years earlier that his descendants would be
mistreated and that God would punish the nation they served. God told Moses
beforehand that he would harden Pharaoh's heart.
- The Egyptians were oppressing God's people with harsh slavery, Pharaoh
ordered the slaughter of newborn males. God heard the cry of his people and it
was time to act to release them from bondage.
- Pharaoh was given numerous opportunities to change his mind and let the
Israelites go. He was given signs even before the plagues had begun. He was
stubborn and hardened his heart, and he was deceitful in his dealings with
Moses. He repeatedly said that some of the Israelites could go, only to change
his mind, once the plague had stopped.
- Many of the plagues were conditional and were of increasing serverity, if
Pharaoh had humbled himself and let the people go the plagues would not have
happened, including the last and most dreadful in which the first-born male
Egyptians died (eldest sons).
- After Pharaoh had seen the evidence of the miracles of the first five
plagues, which had convinced his own advisors, he continued to harden his
heart, he refused to humble himself before the true God. Only after the sixth
plague did God give what Pharaoh had chosen, and he hardened Pharaoh's heart,
so that he would not let God's people go.
- After that God proceeded with more plagues, and finally Pharaoh let them
go. Even then he changed his mind and pursued them to the sea. One further
miracle was required, the parting of the Red Sea so that the Israelites could
escape the pursuing Egyptian armies and the destruction of Pharaoh and his army
as they pursued the Israelites into the sea.
- The final result was that God's power and glory were demonstrated to the
Egyptians and his people. The Israelites were delivered from slavery in Egypt
and they now believed that God was Lord (Jehovah) and trusted his servant
Moses. God's name was spread throughout the world. Egypt was punished and her
god's judged.
- Although God knew that Pharaoh would harden his heart, he was more than
fair with Pharaoh. Only after Pharaoh ignored the evidence of the miracles and
the advice of his own advisors, and had repeatedly acted stubbornly and
deceitfully did God give him over to his own desires and harden his heart and
then judge him.
- God does not delight in the death of the wicked, he sent his Son to die for
our sins, God has made it possible for us to enter heaven and to enjoy him
forever.
Further comments: Glenn Miller's comments
here and
here on
God being a glory-hog see
here
Recommended reading The
Pleasures of God: Meditations on God's Delight in Being God by John Piper,
see chapter 4 "The pleasure of God in his fame".
See also John W Wenham, The goodness of God.
For further reference
Expositor's
Bible Commentary
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