Then Pharaoh sent, and indeed, not even one of the livestock of the Israelites was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh became hard, and he did not let the people go.
Parallel translations
- WEB Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not so much as one of the livestock of the Israelites dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was stubborn, and he didn’t let the people go.
- KJV And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.
- BSB Pharaoh sent officials and found that none of the livestock of the Israelites had died. But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not let the people go.
- NASB And Pharaoh sent men, and they learned that, behold, not even one of the livestock of Israel was dead. But the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people go.
- NLT Pharaoh sent his officials to investigate, and they discovered that the Israelites had not lost a single animal! But even so, Pharaoh’s heart remained stubborn, and he still refused to let the people go.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Pharaoh investigates, finds Israel's livestock untouched, yet remains stubborn. Even clear evidence does not soften a hardened heart.
Overview
Pharaoh's inquiry shows he recognized the distinction yet refused to yield, exposing the willful nature of his hardness. This is the first explicit note that Pharaoh's own heart, not God's action alone, kept him resistant in this episode. Unbelief is not finally a matter of insufficient proof but of a hardened will. The passage warns that the heart can resist God against all evidence, a sober picture of sin's grip apart from grace.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Exod 7:14Yahweh said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is stubborn. He refuses to let the people go.
- Exod 8:32Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also, and he didn’t let the people go.
- Exod 9:12Yahweh hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he didn’t listen to them, as Yahweh had spoken to Moses.
- Rom 9:18So then, he has mercy on whom he desires, and he hardens whom he desires.
- Isa 48:4Because I knew that you are obstinate, and your neck is an iron sinew, and your brow brass;
- Dan 5:20But when his heart was lifted up, and his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took his glory from him:
- Prov 29:1He who is often rebuked and stiffens his neck will be destroyed suddenly, with no remedy.
- Job 9:4God who is wise in heart, and mighty in strength: who has hardened himself against him, and prospered?
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 9:7 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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