Exodus 10:20
“But Yahweh hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he didn’t let the children of Israel go.”
What does Exodus 10:20 mean?
Pharaoh faced plague after plague, yet each time he seemed ready to release the Israelites, he changed his mind and held firm to his refusal. This verse describes that stubborn resistance as something God allowed or even intensified, deepening Pharaoh's own inclination toward cruelty and control. The image of a "hardened heart" points to something closing off, becoming rigid and unable to bend. Whether we understand this as God actively hardening or God allowing Pharaoh's own nature to harden doesn't change the essential truth: when we repeatedly refuse to listen to conscience or compassion, our hearts do become harder. The tragic irony is that each refusal made the next one easier, trapping Pharaoh in a cycle of his own making. This can speak to us about how refusing to yield to what's right, again and again, gradually closes us off from mercy itself.