NOTES for Exo 7:1-25
Reading today's passage naturally raises the question: why does God “harden” Pharaoh's heart (v. 3)? Of course, “harden” here does not mean “make cruel”, but “make firm”, that is, unyielding. Yet even with this understanding, such intransigence creates problems for both Jews and Egyptians, including Pharaoh himself. But everything is possible for God, so why could He not soften Pharaoh's heart? The answer must be sought in the account of the plagues of Egypt. What is particularly striking in today's story is the effect on Pharaoh of the Egyptian magicians, whose enchantments enabled them, at first glance, to do the same thing as the God of Moses (vv. 11–13, 22). Here we clearly see the inability of human reason, corrupted by the Fall, to penetrate to the depth of phenomena and perceive their spiritual first causes. Rational thought and logic see only the surface of things. Science can say much about the structure of the universe and its individual elements, but it knows nothing of purpose or first causes; questions such as “why?” and “what is the meaning of this?” should not be addressed to science. Only the one who created things, whether God or a human being, knows their meaning. Only their creator knows the real reasons for what happens to them. Rational thought, logic and science investigate only the consequences of these real, original causes. Pharaoh, like every human being, became a prisoner of his limited reason. He saw only one thing: staffs turning into snakes (vv. 10–11), and water turning into blood (vv. 20–22). The point is not even that, in the case of the water becoming blood, the causes were indeed entirely different: the Egyptian magicians' actions were an ordinary magic trick, whereas God's action can be viewed as a sign given by God through a natural phenomenon. The point is that God's action naturally formed part of His plan and therefore of His providence, while the magicians' actions did not exceed ordinary, natural human capabilities, although their abilities may have somewhat surpassed those of an average person. Yet even when God's action closely resembles the work of human hands, the person to whom God gives a sign is also given a hint which, if noticed, may become the key to understanding the situation. So it was with the staffs that became snakes, when the snake into which Moses' staff had turned swallowed the snakes into which the Egyptian magicians' staffs had turned (v. 12). But God does not impose Himself: this is only a hint, one that an obstinate heart can choose not to notice. A human being is free, and God does not deprive him of the freedom He Himself has given. He gives signs and points them out to whoever wishes to see. But He compels no one to do anything.