When Does God Harden a Sinner’s Heart? // Ask Pastor John

Does God harden sinners’ hearts only in response to their persistent sin, or is their sin a result of his prior hardening?

One of the most asked about themes in the inbox is God’s hardening of the sinner’s heart. It’s an incredible theme throughout Romans. And no chapter of Scripture has inspired more APJ questions than Romans 9. We now have over four hundred emails on this chapter alone — loads of questions, including this really good one from a listener named Nate.

“Hello, Pastor John! I was recently reading Romans 1:24–27, and Paul seems to be saying that God gave over these sinners to dishonorable passions as a consequence of their sin. But then when I got to Romans 9:1–29, Paul seems to indicate that God himself hardens sinners in unbelief. God ‘hardens whomever he wills’ (Romans 9:18). So in the case of Romans 1, did God first harden these sinners before he gave them up to dishonorable passions? Which came first: did the sinners harden their own hearts or did God harden their hearts?

“In thinking back to the Old Testament, God first promised to harden Pharaoh’s heart (Exodus 4:21; 7:3). And then Pharaoh hardened his own heart (Exodus 8:15, 32). Then God hardened his heart more (Exodus 9:12). Then Pharaoh hardened his own heart more (Exodus 9:34). Then God hardened his heart more (Exodus 10:1, 20; 11:10). How does this dynamic work, more generally, in culture? Or are the giving over in Romans 1 and the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart different categories altogether?” How would you respond to Nate?

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