Saturday 20 July 2024
The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt and he pursued the Israelites, who were going out boldly. (v. 8)
Background
Today is not the first time this week that we read of God hardening Pharaoh’s heart – the same image cropped up on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. It prevented Pharaoh from listening to Moses and Aaron (despite the miracles they performed) and from letting the Israelites go. After giving them permission to leave, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart again, and he pursued the Israelites. Then, in v. 17, God hardened the hearts of the Egyptians so that they followed the Israelites into the sea, which had parted to allow the Israelites to escape. The waters returned and the Egyptians drowned.
But why would God repeatedly harden Pharaoh’s heart, when doing so led only to death and suffering? Surely, if Pharaoh had simply let the Israelites go when Moses and Aaron first asked, the plagues would not have been necessary, and untold lives would have been spared.
Many people have told me that they struggle to relate to the God of the Old Testament, who is often perceived as violent and vengeful. I found it helpful when someone introduced me to the term ‘theodicy’. It means our human attempts to understand how there can be so much evil and suffering in the world when God is simultaneously all-loving and all-powerful. Many of the challenging passages in the Old Testament appear to me to be attempts to grapple with this very question. ‘Why is there so much suffering?’ ‘Why do bad things happen to good people?’ ‘Where is God in this?’
This particular text offers one explanation. In verses 17-18 God tells Moses that God’s purpose in hardening the hearts of the Egyptians is to gain glory for God over Pharaoh, his army, his chariots and his chariot drivers, so that the remaining Egyptians will know that God is the Lord.
This explanation is challenging. But it is interesting to note that it is not unique to the Old Testament. For example, Jesus appears to delay visiting his sick friend Lazarus (thereby prolonging his suffering and that of his sisters) so that God might be glorified when Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead (see John 11:1-7).
To Ponder:
- As a minister, I find I am often asked why God allows so much suffering, and why bad things happen to good people. What response would you give? Is it acceptable not to have a fully formed answer? If so, how can we still offer a suitable pastoral response?
- Do you think God hardened Pharaoh’s heart? If so, why?
- Have you ever experienced God helping you to change your mind, or see something from a new perspective?
Bible notes author: The Revd Naomi Oates
Naomi is a Methodist minister, currently serving in four churches in the North Kent Circuit. When not being rugby-tackled by her two toddlers, she enjoys cycling, baking and reading Golden Age detective fiction (although not all at the same time).