Hardened still after the hail

Exodus 9:18-35; 3/15/2026; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang

Introduction

What is hail?  Simply put, hail is rain that falls from the sky in solid form.   From a historical and cultural perspective, hail has often been seen as a disaster or punishment from heaven.  We can clearly see this in the seventh plague among the Ten Plagues of Egypt.  Yet even after that, Pharaoh’s heart remained hard.  Now, let’s look at the first point.

The Greatest hailstorm in history

Moses records the greatest hailstorm in Egypt’s history.  We can try to imagine it—how big must the hailstones have been?  First, the hailstones that could kill.  The Bible says that whether people or livestock, if the hail fell on them, they would die.  That sounds frightening, doesn’t it?  How big would hail have to be to do that?  The Bible doesn’t describe the size, but it tells us the result—people could die.  In the Chinese historical book Han Shu, In 108 BC, during the Western Han dynasty in China, there is a record of hailstones as large as a horse’s head. But the hail God sent through Moses had a different purpose.  It was not meant simply to harm people or animals, but to let people know who the LORD is.  That is why Moses warned them ahead of time and urged the Egyptians to bring their servants and livestock into shelter.  And just like when we share the gospel today, some people believed, and some refused to listen to God’s word.

Second, this was hail like never before.  The Bible says that this seventh plague—the plague of hail—was something Egypt had never experienced in its history.  So we should ask: What exactly had never happened before?  Was it only that the hail was very large?  That is true.  But is that all?  Think about it—who can announce a hailstorm before it comes, tell people the damage it will cause, and warn everyone to bring their servants and livestock inside so they won’t be harmed?  Through this, God was revealing who He is—a God who is holy and just, yet also merciful and loving.  God’s timing was very precise.  He said, “About this time tomorrow I will send the heaviest hail.”  And He also warned them clearly: if they refused to listen, they would die.

Finally, there was no hail in the land of Goshen.  The Egyptians might ask, Why?  If everyone was in the land of Egypt, why was it that only the place where the Israelites lived had no hail?  In the ten plagues we see a clear exception: disaster came upon the land, but the Israelites were spared.  Why was that?  In many ways, it is similar to Israel today.  Through the many Middle East wars, Israel has often survived against the odds.   The key reason is this: God’s chosen people have the presence of the LORD with them.  Goshen was the place where the Israelites lived as sojourners.  So the difference was not really the location—it was the people.  The Israelites were God’s chosen people, and God watched over them.  In fact, conflicts in the Middle East are still ongoing today.  Now, let’s move to the second point.

 

Pharaoh confesses his sin

This was likely the first time Pharaoh publicly admitted his sin. That was quite rare, wasn’t it?  First, he witnessed God’s power.  Pharaoh heard Moses’ warning that hail would come.  Do you think he believed it?  Probably only half-believed, half-doubted.  Then Pharaoh saw Moses stretch out his staff toward heaven.  Perhaps Pharaoh thought, Anyone can raise a staff.  Isn’t my royal scepter more powerful than Moses’ staff?  But what Pharaoh never expected was this: ”when Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, the LORD sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed down to the ground. The LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt.”  At that moment, the damage from the hail was no longer Pharaoh’s main concern.  What shook him most was the power behind it.  He was stunned and could hardly believe what he had seen.  This is the tragedy of the human heart: a person may feel fear, even a sense of awe before God, yet still choose not to believe—or find it hard to believe.

Second, seeing God’s mercy.  Before the hailstorm fell, the LORD instructed Moses: “Now send your livestock and everything in your fields into shelter. Anyone left in the fields—whether person or animal—will be struck by hail and die.”  Pharaoh must have been puzzled.  If this were an enemy, wouldn’t hail just strike without warning?  Why would the LORD warn the Egyptians in advance?  There is only one explanation: God did not want to kill.  He had made it clear many times that His goal was not destruction, but to bring His people, the Israelites, out of Egypt to serve and worship Him in the wilderness.  Because of this, God repeatedly gave chances for mercy—even to those who rebelled against Him.

Finally, seeing human humility.  Pharaoh wasn’t unfamiliar with Moses, right?  Moses was the adopted son of Pharaoh’s daughter, possibly raised in the palace with Pharaoh himself, so they likely knew each other well.  Pharaoh knew exactly who Moses was—from his perspective, Moses was just a failed prince with no claim to the throne.  Pharaoh even looked down on him.  Yet here was Moses, humble and lowly, standing before him filled with God’s power!  So what about me?  I, Pharaoh, facing Moses’ authority and God’s power, I wouldn’t dare say a single word.  Pharaoh saw human humility—but more importantly, he saw his own humility.  This is the beginning of hope: we must first recognize our own smallness.  Now, let’s look at the third point.

 

Admits sin but remains hardened

Confessing without repenting is the common trait of Adam’s descendants—or in other words, repenting without changing, right?  First, knowing the truth.  Human foolishness does not erase basic awareness, do you agree?  After Pharaoh admitted his sin, he said: “The LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.” By now, Pharaoh’s self-awareness was quite deep.  He not only knew the truth, he could express it clearly and precisely.  This was the seventh plague—he could no longer claim ignorance about who the LORD is.  After seven plagues, as the ruler of Egypt, what would you think, what decision would you make?  Today, it is similar with Iran: Khamenei is gone, his son is gone, dozens of ships destroyed, missile stockpiles gone,  nuclear fuel depleted, Revolutionary Guards weakened, morale broken, the economy collapsed!  And yet—will they still not turn back?

Second, he couldn’t endure suffering.  Pharaoh’s fear wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, right?  He said to Moses: “Enough with the thunder and hail! Pray to the LORD, and I will let you go; I won’t stop you anymore.”  Pharaoh didn’t even leave himself a moment to think—he immediately begged Moses to ask God to stop it.  What does this tell us?  Pharaoh was also a second-generation royal, a privileged elite!   Raised in the palace, living in luxury every day—how could he endure all the snakes, insects, blood, frogs, lice, boils, locusts, and hail?  When darkness came, the angel of death even took the lives of the firstborn.  Pharaoh must have thought: Who did I offend?  All I wanted was a comfortable life, born to live in the palace!

Finally, he forgot the pain.  When suffering comes, people experience pain.  With pain, they want relief.  To escape it, they may lower themselves, admit mistakes—even betray friends or compromise principles—just to survive.  The Bible says: “But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again; he and his officials hardened their hearts.”  Pharaoh wasn’t acting alone—he represented a whole group.  Everyone was talking, debating, defending ideals and pride, afraid of being seen as weak.  So when the rain, hail, and thunder stopped, Pharaoh hardened his heart again and refused to let the Israelites go, just as the LORD had said through Moses.  There’s no way around it—this is human nature!

Conclusion

The Bible says: “Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).  Clearly, death was drawing closer—to Egypt, to Pharaoh, and to his officials.  To save Egypt, God did not hesitate to unleash the greatest hailstorm in Egyptian history, all to help Pharaoh repent and let His people go.  But this was already the seventh plague—would Pharaoh and his officials truly repent now?

 

Let us pray……

 

18 Behold, about this time tomorrow I will cause very heavy hail to fall, such as never has been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now.

19 Now therefore send, get your livestock and all that you have in the field into safe shelter, for every man and beast that is in the field and is not brought home will die when the hail falls on them.

20 Then whoever feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh hurried his slaves and his livestock into the houses,

21 but whoever did not pay attention to the word of the Lord left his slaves and his livestock in the field.

22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man and beast and every plant of the field, in the land of Egypt.”

23 Then Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt.

24 There was hail and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very heavy hail, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.

25 The hail struck down everything that was in the field in all the land of Egypt, both man and beast. And the hail struck down every plant of the field and broke every tree of the field.

26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, was there no hail.

27 Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, “This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong.

28 Plead with the Lord, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.”

29 Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to the Lord. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the Lord’s.

30 But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the Lord God.”

31 (The flax and the barley were struck down, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud.

32 But the wheat and the emmer were not struck down, for they are late in coming up.)

33 So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and stretched out his hands to the Lord, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured upon the earth.

34 But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart, he and his servants.

35 So the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the people of Israel go, just as the Lord had spoken through Moses.