Does God harden people’s hearts?

Here’s an example of where I think this passage is going. The Amalekites had attacked Israel from behind when they came out of Egypt. God told Moses that He was going to show mercy to this heathen nation for a period of time, but eventually their judgment would come. The judgment that was coming on the Amalekites was based on their behavior. God chose to extend mercy to them longer than some other nations.

The penalty for sin is death (Romans 6:23). We could all be justly executed now for our sins. When God extends grace, He extends it in varying degrees. Sometimes God strives longer with someone, but He is saving everyone by grace. None of us “deserves” salvation.

Romans 9:21 says, “Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?” God does exercise His choice concerning what He does with the “clay”—how to intervene, for instance.

In the Old Testament, we have another example in Pharaoh. The Bible says that God “hardened Pharaoh’s heart” (Exodus 10:20). But the Bible also tells us that Pharaoh hardened his own heart (see Exodus 8:15; 8:32; 9:34).

The way God dealt with Pharaoh is a microcosm of the way He deals with the wicked. He gives them opportunities, time after time, to come to a realization of the truth, and it is God’s desire that all men be saved. Yet He is the One who chooses how much grace, how many opportunities, to give. God is doing everything He can to save people. But ultimately, our destiny is in our own hands.

Key Bible Texts

Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. (Romans 9:18 KJV)