Exodus 9:12
in Exodus 9But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said to Moses.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Jehovah hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them, as Jehovah had spoken unto Moses.
KJV
And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had spoken unto Moses.
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This verse in Exodus 9
Commentary
2 notes on this verseNote, Wilful hardness is commonly punished with judicial hardness. If men shut their eyes against the light, it is just with God to close their eyes. Let us dread this as the sorest judgment a man can be under on this side hell.
This site's exposition
the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh
This is the first place in Scripture that says the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and the order of the statements carries the argument. God says twice in advance that he will do it at 4:21 and 7:3, then through the first five plagues the act is put on Pharaoh or left stative at 7:13, 7:14, 7:22, 8:15, 8:19, 8:32 and 9:7. From this verse the LORD is the subject at 10:1, 10:20, 10:27, 11:10, 14:4, 14:8 and 14:17, with verses 34 and 35 of this chapter the last place Pharaoh hardens himself. R. C. Sproul reads the sequence as one act with two true descriptions, sovereignty and responsibility both real, while the free-will reading holds that God confirmed a man in the direction he had already taken, and three different Hebrew verbs stand behind the English harden across the book.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
It is possible that during the first plagues, the magicians hardened Pharaoh’s heart in order to pride themselves in their wisdom. But now that they did not come before him and there was none to help him and none to uphold him. See Isaiah:5.
2 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
They were ashamed, and confounded, and covered their heads. Jeremiah:3. since they were full of boils and could not rescue themselves. Therefore they made no appearance in the royal palace, nor did they appear before Moses in the streets. And so they were imprisoned in their homes.
Scripture does not here note that Pharaoh went out unto the water.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 3 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
13 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיְחַזֵּ֤ק | vaychazek | and he made strong | H2388 → | 291 times |
| יְהוָה֙ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| לֵ֣ב | lev | [the] heart of | H3820 → | 595 times |
| פַּרְעֹ֔ה | paroh | Pharaoh | H6547 → | 274 times |
| וְלֹ֥א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| שָׁמַ֖ע | shama' | he listened | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| אֲלֵהֶ֑ם | ʾalehem | to them | H413 → | 5510 times |
| כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר | kaasher | just as | H834 → | 5497 times |
| דִּבֶּ֥ר | diber | he had said | H1696 → | 1141 times |
| יְהוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| מֹשֶֽׁה׃ ס | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
וַיְחַזֵּ֤קand he made strong
vaychazekH2388 →291 times
יְהוָה֙Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
לֵ֣ב[the] heart of
levH3820 →595 times
פַּרְעֹ֔הPharaoh
parohH6547 →274 times
וְלֹ֥אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
שָׁמַ֖עhe listened
shama'H8085 →1159 times
אֲלֵהֶ֑םto them
ʾalehemH413 →5510 times
כַּאֲשֶׁ֛רjust as
kaasherH834 →5497 times
דִּבֶּ֥רhe had said
diberH1696 →1141 times
יְהוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
מֹשֶֽׁה׃ סMoses
moshehH4872 →765 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Exodus 4:21The LORD instructed Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders that I have put within your power. But I will harden his heart so that…
it leads to
- Romans 9:18
Therefore God has mercy on whom He wants to have mercy, and He hardens whom He wants to harden.
- Exodus 14:8
And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out defiantly.
- Joshua 11:20
For it was of the LORD to harden their hearts to engage Israel in battle, so that they would be set apart for destruction and would receive no mercy, being annihilated as the LORD…
- Isaiah 63:17
Why, O LORD, do You make us stray from Your ways and harden our hearts from fearing You? Return, for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your heritage.
- Exodus 9:35
So Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not let the Israelites go, just as the LORD had said through Moses.
- Romans 9:18
About Exodus
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on John Calvin, Commentary on the Four Last Books of Moses Arranged in the Form of a Harmony; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and R. C. Sproul, Chosen by God.