FAQ: "Was free will violated when God hardened Pharaoh's heart during the time God was sending plagues on the Egyptians?"

Answer:

That's a really thoughtful question, bro, and I love that you're digging into these deep biblical issues. It can seem confusing at first, but once we understand the context and the flow of the story in Exodus, things start to make more sense.

Let’s break it down.

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1. Pharaoh Already Had a Hard Heart

First, let’s look at Pharaoh’s own attitude before the Bible says that God hardened his heart. In Exodus 5:2, when Moses first came to him with God's command to let the Israelites go, Pharaoh said:

“Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.”

That right there tells us Pharaoh already had pride and rebellion in his heart. He didn’t care about the God of Israel. He wasn’t neutral. He was already resistant to God’s authority.

Think of it like this: If your heart is like clay, the sun hardens it. If your heart is like wax, the same sun softens it. God’s presence reveals what’s already in the heart. In Pharaoh’s case, his heart was like clay—it became harder the more he resisted God.

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2. The Language of “Hardening” Goes Both Ways

When you read through Exodus 4–14, you’ll notice something interesting. Sometimes it says that Pharaoh hardened his own heart (e.g., Exodus 8:15, 8:32, 9:34), and other times it says that God hardened Pharaoh's heart (e.g., Exodus 9:12, 10:1, 10:20).

So which is it? The answer is: both are true. God gave him over to what he already wanted, which is exactly what Romans 1:24–26 talks about. Paul says:

“Therefore, God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity…” (Romans 1:24)

God doesn’t have to force people to do evil. He simply lets them continue in their own stubborn path. In the case of Pharaoh, God allowed the natural consequences of Pharaoh’s rebellion to play out, and in doing so, God was still sovereign over the events for His greater purpose.

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3. Illustration: The Same Fire, Two Effects

Imagine two people sitting around a fire. One has wet clothes, the other has wax in their pocket. The fire dries one and melts the other. The fire is the same, but the reaction is different depending on what's inside.

God's presence is like that fire. For those who are humble and willing, God draws them near. But for the proud and resistant—like Pharaoh—it ends up hardening them even more.

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4. God’s Purpose Was Bigger than Pharaoh

God wasn’t being petty. He was making a global statement. In Exodus 9:16, God tells Pharaoh:

“But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.”

God used Pharaoh’s pride to show the nations that He alone is God. It was like a cosmic showdown between the gods of Egypt and the one true God. And even today, we still talk about how God delivered Israel from Egypt.

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5. Free Will and Divine Sovereignty Go Together

This might be the part that’s hard to grasp, but it’s biblical: God is 100% sovereign, and people are 100% responsible.

Pharaoh wasn’t a robot. He wasn’t being controlled like a puppet. He chose to resist God over and over again. At the same time, God was orchestrating the entire situation to fulfill His divine plan to save Israel and display His glory.

Even in the New Testament, Paul brings this up in Romans 9:17–18:

“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.’ Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.”

That doesn’t mean Pharaoh had no choice—it means that God used Pharaoh’s choices for His glory. God's judgment on Pharaoh was just because Pharaoh willingly and repeatedly disobeyed.

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Summary

So no, Pharaoh’s free will wasn’t violated. Instead, God let Pharaoh do what he already wanted to do, and used it as part of His greater plan. Pharaoh's stubbornness became the stage for God’s power to be clearly seen—not just by Egypt and Israel, but by the whole world.

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Final Encouragement

Let this remind us that our hearts really matter to God. Every time we hear His Word, we either soften or harden. Let’s not wait for our hearts to get hardened by pride and sin before we respond to Him.

As Hebrews 3:15 says:

“Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”

God is always speaking—may our hearts stay soft enough to listen.

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