But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go.
Exodus 10:20 follows the dreadful plague of locusts that God sent upon Egypt, which darkened the land and ate every herb and fruit left by the hail, nearly destroyed Egypt, left the whole kingdom under judgment, and made the Egyptians fear the people themselves would be attacked next. The locusts came at Moses' command, and after Moses entreated the Lord they left only when he commanded them to go, when a mighty strong west wind took them away and cast them into the Red Sea so that not one locust remained in all Egypt.
While death from the locusts threatened him, Pharaoh made a hasty confession of sin against God and Moses, pleaded for forgiveness, and promised to let Israel go, but his humility was forced and lasted only while the threat remained. Once he was relieved from the plague, Pharaoh hardened his heart again and refused to let the children of Israel go. His refusal was proud and idolatrous: he chose to receive and endure God's judgments rather than submit to the requirements of the God of Heaven, watching without remorse while his kingdom lay under them.
He was very slow to yield, granting no more than he was compelled to grant by dreadful visitations of wrath, yielding a little under most grievous affliction and taking back all he had granted when the affliction was removed, persisting in rebellion even after Egypt was ruined. Moses and Aaron told him beforehand the nature and effect of each plague that would follow his refusal, and each plague came exactly as told, yet he would not yield; he first granted permission to sacrifice to God in the land of Egypt, then granted that the men alone should go, then after the locust devastation granted that the children and wives might go also but would not let their cattle go, after which Moses told him the angel of God would slay the firstborn. While Pharaoh remained unwilling, the Egyptian people desired Israel's release. The plagues showed Jehovah's supremacy and challenged trust in Egypt's idols, and the locust plague in particular exposed the powerlessness of Serapis, who was believed to protect the land from locusts.
Exodus 10:20 follows the dreadful plague of locusts that God sent upon Egypt, which darkened the land and ate every herb and fruit left by the hail, nearly destroyed Egypt, left the whole kingdom under judgment, and made the Egyptians fear the people themselves would be attacked next. The locusts came at Moses' command, and after Moses entreated the Lord they left only when he commanded them to go, when a mighty strong west wind took them away and cast them into the Red Sea so that not one locust remained in all Egypt.
While death from the locusts threatened him, Pharaoh made a hasty confession of sin against God and Moses, pleaded for forgiveness, and promised to let Israel go, but his humility was forced and lasted only while the threat remained. Once he was relieved from the plague, Pharaoh hardened his heart again and refused to let the children of Israel go. His refusal was proud and idolatrous: he chose to receive and endure God's judgments rather than submit to the requirements of the God of Heaven, watching without remorse while his kingdom lay under them.
He was very slow to yield, granting no more than he was compelled to grant by dreadful visitations of wrath, yielding a little under most grievous affliction and taking back all he had granted when the affliction was removed, persisting in rebellion even after Egypt was ruined. Moses and Aaron told him beforehand the nature and effect of each plague that would follow his refusal, and each plague came exactly as told, yet he would not yield; he first granted permission to sacrifice to God in the land of Egypt, then granted that the men alone should go, then after the locust devastation granted that the children and wives might go also but would not let their cattle go, after which Moses told him the angel of God would slay the firstborn. While Pharaoh remained unwilling, the Egyptian people desired Israel's release. The plagues showed Jehovah's supremacy and challenged trust in Egypt's idols, and the locust plague in particular exposed the powerlessness of Serapis, who was believed to protect the land from locusts.