Bible Strands
Exodus 8:32
But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time as well, and he would not let the people go.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator records Pharaoh’s response immediately after the LORD removes the plague of flies following Moses’ prayer. This moment closes the fly judgment cycle and precedes the next confrontation in Egypt.
The words — The verb וַ/יַּכְבֵּ֤ד (va/i.yakh.Bed) literally means "and he made heavy," depicting Pharaoh’s active choice to stiffen his resolve. The particle גַּ֖ם (gam) translates as "also" or "this time as well," underscoring his repeated pattern of refusal.
The thread — Pharaoh’s self-directed hardening reappears in Exodus 8:15 after initial relief, contrasting with the LORD’s sovereign hardening noted in Exodus 4:21. The principle extends to human unrepentance in Romans 2:5.
Why it lands — The text states that witnessing divine intervention does not compel obedience when the heart remains willfully closed. It requires the reader to recognize that repeated exposure to truth demands a decision, not merely observation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go.
Cross-references
- Exodus 8:15 When Pharaoh saw that there was relief, however, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said.
- Exodus 4:21 The 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 he will not let the people go.
- Romans 2:5 But because of your hard and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.
- Exodus 7:13 Still, Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said.
- Exodus 8:8 Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the LORD to take the frogs away from me and my people. Then I will let your people go, that they may sacrifice to 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.
- Acts 28:26 ‘Go to this people and say, “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.”
- James 1:13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone.