Without trying to beat a dead horse, it needs to be pointed out that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he wouldn’t let the people go (which was disobedience on his part), and in response, God killed his firstborn son.
[+] And the LORD said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’” (Exod 4:21-23)
Sobering.
But are there other times and places where God hardened the heart of someone so that they would do something that was sin for them to do? Yes. And the list is long if we change ‘hardened’ to ‘ordained’. Here’s a partial list:
- Genesis 3: Adam’s fall was ordained (think about 1 Pet 1:20)
- Genesis 37: Joseph’s enslavement (See Gen 45:8)
- Exod 1: Egypt’s hatred/oppression of Israelites (See Ps 105:25)
- Exod 4-13: God repeatedly hardening Pharaoh’s heart so he would disobey Him
- Deut 2:30: King Sihon’s stubbornness -> destruction
- Deut 3:1-7: I’m perfectly content to put Og in with Sihon, but I can see how some might object (especially if they don’t know Israel’s history. Deut 29:7; 31:4 and Josh 9:9-10)
- Josh 11:21: Canaanites warring against Israelites
- Judges 14:4: Samson’s destruction of Philistines
- 1 Sam 2:25: Eli’s sons and their refusal to listen to their father
- 1 Kings 12:15: Rehoboam’s rejection of the people’s advice
- 1 Kings 22:20-23: False prophets lying to King Ahab
- Isaiah 6: People’s refusal to believe Isaiah’s words and repent
- Isaiah 63:17 People lament to God for hardening their hearts so that they won’t repent
- Ezekiel 14:1-10: False prophets lying to their followes so that both may be destroyed by God
- Matthew 13; Mark 4; Luke 8: Jews refusal to believe (quoting Is 6)
- John 12:39-40: Jews’ refusal to believe Jesus and repent (quoting Is 6)
- Acts 28: Jews’ refusal to believe (Paul quotes Is 6)
- 1 Cor 2: unbelivers prevented from understanding the truth
- Rev 17:17: God puts it in the heart of the people to follow the Beast and be destroyed
Of particular interest to me is Ezekiel 14, 1 Kings 22, and 2 Thess 2. In these verses, we see Principle, Practice, and Prediction.
Principle:
[+] And if the prophet is deceived and speaks a word, I, the LORD, have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand against him and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel. (Ezek 14:9)Practice:
[+] Now therefore behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the LORD has declared disaster for you.” (1Kgs 22:23)Prediction:
[+] Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2Thess 2:11-12)
I would encourage you to read each chapter so you can get the feel of the whole context, of course.
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