Fear this

How's this for something to fear? God says he will harden Pharoah's heart so that He can punish him so that the Israelites can see the power of God.

This is something that from time to time in my life has caused me a great deal of anguish. Here's why: It shows the sovereignty of God. He is omnipotent and he uses that power to accomplish his purpose. I have or at least feel like I have very little to say about that purpose. Take the case of Pharoah. He ran up against the will of God in the worst way and paid for it with everything he held dear and still didn't have the chance to follow God at the end. His problem wasn't in what he did, it was in who he did it to. Hundreds of Pharoahs acted in a similar manner and didn't receive any temporal punishment. Instead they got to live a life of luxury and build impressive monuments to themselves on the backs of other groups of people who weren't the chosen of God.

This Pharoah ran up against God's chosen people at the particular time God had chosen to call them and give them a sign of his faithfulness. So the question that inevitably rises in my mind is why this Pharoah at this particular time. The same question arises--why Jacob and not Esau? or why Abraham and not some other nomad wandering out in the desert? or why Isaac and not Ishmael? None of these questions seems to have an answer that can be answered by human understanding. Why are some called by God and some not? According to this passage and others--because they fit his purpose.

This is not a critique of God--just an openly asked question. Why are some chosen for punishment? and if Pharoah, why not me?