Why would God harden Pharaoh’s heart?
In parashat Veira (Exodus 9:7) we read that in response to the plague of boils, God “hardens/strengthens” Pharaoh’s heart. As a result of Pharaoh’s hardened heart and his refusal to let the Israelites go free, much suffering is inflicted on the Egyptian people. On the surface, this seems problematic- it appears that God took away Pharaoh’s freewill and as a result made the Egyptians suffer unnecessarily. Yet, the midrash in Exodus Rabbah points out that five times Pharaoh makes his own heart harden or heavy. As the midrash puts it, “Since God sent [the opportunity for repentance] five times to him and he refused, God then said, ‘You have stiffened your neck and hardened your heart on your own.” Pharaoh hardened his own heart, God merely solidified Pharaoh’s own choices.
What are the ways that we harden our hearts today? In this week where we celebrated the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., how can we learn from him to open our hearts and respond with love to those around us?