When Pharaoh’s false repentance is compared with Abraham’s obedience, the midwives’ courage, and Moses’ intercession, we learn what genuine fear of God looks like—and why fear of God produces obedience. We should examine ourselves because repeated unrepentance can lead to a hardened heart, just as it did with Pharaoh.




https://youtu.be/a-ue7H8kTz8




Table of Contents




* Introduction: History and Pharaoh



* Judas, Pharaoh, and the Pattern of False Repentance



* Abraham and the Fear of God



* The Hebrew Midwives: Fear That Produces Obedience



* Pharaoh’s False Repentance: Exodus 9–10



* Lessons from Pharaoh’s Repentance



* Fear of God Produces Obedience



* Practical Takeaways




Introduction: History and Pharaoh



In 1938, Europe stood on the brink of war. Hitler demanded the Sudetenland, a German-speaking region of Czechoslovakia. Britain had promised to defend its ally, but Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain changed his mind. Instead of supporting Czechoslovakia, Chamberlain appeased Hitler, hoping to avoid war. The Munich Agreement allowed Hitler to take the Sudetenland.



Chamberlain returned to Britain declaring “peace for our time,” but the victory was hollow. Within months, Germany occupied the rest of Czechoslovakia, and a year later, Germany invaded Poland, beginning World War II.



Pharaoh in Exodus provides a striking biblical example of changing one’s mind wrongly. Pharaoh changed his mind 11 times—10 during the plagues and once afterward—and it ended tragically when he and his army were swallowed in the Red Sea.



Judas, Pharaoh, and the Pattern of False Repentance



Last week, we studied Judas’ betrayal, who said:




“I have sinned,”
—Matthew 27:3-5




without truly repenting. Pharaoh’s account illustrates false repentance, where words are spoken but the heart does not turn. Read more in our False Repentance Sermon Series.



Abraham and the Fear of God



Consider Abraham in Genesis 22. God commanded him to sacrifice Isaac, yet an angel stopped him at the last moment:




“Do not lay your hand on the boy…for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”
—Genesis 22:12




Abraham’s obedience was rooted in his fear of God, which outweighed even his love for Isaac. James 2:23 calls Abraham a friend of God. For more examples of obedience, see Obedience to God Sermons.



The Hebrew Midwives: Fear That Produces Obedience



In Exodus 1,