What is the meaning of Exodus 7:13? Still The verse opens with “Still,” signaling continuity—a stubborn persistence after God’s warning shots. • Before this moment, Aaron’s staff had swallowed the magicians’ staffs (Exodus 7:12), yet Pharaoh dug in. • Repeated opportunities for repentance had already come (see Exodus 5:1–2; 7:1–5). • This pattern matches later descriptions of hardened resistance, such as 2 Chronicles 36:13, and echoes Paul’s words about those who “oppose the truth” like Jannes and Jambres (2 Timothy 3:8). The single word “Still” reminds us that miracles alone do not soften a heart set against God; divine revelation demands a humble response. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened Scripture states the fact without apology. • Exodus 4:21 foretold that God would harden Pharaoh’s heart, while Exodus 8:15 shows Pharaoh hardening his own heart. Both dynamics operate—human rebellion and divine judgment intertwine (Romans 9:17-18). • A hardened heart is strong, immovable, and resistant, not merely ignorant. It is the opposite of the “new heart” promised in Ezekiel 36:26. • Each plague will expose this condition further (Exodus 9:34; 10:1). Pharaoh’s obstinacy becomes a billboard displaying the consequences of prolonged defiance. and he would not listen to them Refusal to hear is the practical outworking of a hardened heart. • “Listen” in Scripture often implies obedience (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). Pharaoh’s ears are shut, so his actions remain unchanged. • Moses had already met deafness from his own people due to their “broken spirit” (Exodus 6:9). Pharaoh’s refusal is willful, not weary. • Stephen later accused Israel’s leaders of the same trait: “You always resist the Holy Spirit” (Acts 7:51). Persistent unbelief silences God’s messengers in the hearer’s mind, but it never mutes God’s authority. just as the LORD had said The final phrase grounds everything in God’s prior declaration. • God told Moses in Exodus 3:19, “I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go,” and repeated it in 4:21 and 7:4. • His foreknowledge is never mere prediction; it is purposeful and trustworthy, as seen in Isaiah 46:10 and Numbers 23:19. • Every hardened response becomes proof that God’s word stands unbroken (Joshua 21:45). What looks like chaos to human eyes is unfolding exactly on God’s timetable. summary Exodus 7:13 captures a collision of power and pride. Despite clear signs, Pharaoh clings to rebellion, his heart reinforced in sin. His deafness to Moses and Aaron showcases humanity’s capacity to resist truth, yet each refusal fulfills God’s precise word. The verse invites us to treasure spiritual sensitivity, trust God’s sovereignty, and remember that His promises never fail, even when opposition seems immovable. |
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