Chapter VII The Hardening of Pharaoh’s Heart, Vii. 3–13
The assertion offends many, 112.—Was he a free agent? When hardened. A.V. incorrect, 113.—He resists five plagues spontaneously. The last five are penal, 114.—Not “hardened” in wickedness, but in nerve. A.V. confuses three words: His heart is (a) “hardened,” 115.—(b) it is made “strong” (c) “heavy,” 116.—Other examples of these words, 117.—The warning implied, 117–19.—Moses returns with the signs, 119.—The functions of miracle, 120.
The Plagues, Vii. 14
Their vast range, 121.—Their relation to Pantheism, Idolatry, Philosophy, 122.—And to the gods of Egypt. Their retributive fitness, 123.—Their arrangement, 124.—Like our Lord’s, not creative, 125.—God in common things, 126.—Some we inflict upon ourselves. Yet rationalistic analogies fail, 127.—Duration of the conflict, 128.
The First Plague, Vii, 14–25
The probable scene, 129.—Extent of the plague. The magicians. Its duration, 131.—Was Israel exempt? Contrast with first miracle of Jesus, 132.