Exodus 9:34

He sinned yet more. In perverse impenitence the king “hardened his heart,” as Moses had predicted. Apparently his officials stood by him in this decision, though the following plague convinced them of the futility of further resistance (ch. 10:7). Whether they supported Pharaoh out of servility or because they were not yet convinced of the power of God is not certain.

Like some of the preceding plagues, the seventh again demonstrated the worthlessness of repentance born of fear. God might thus secure the submission of all men, but the conquest would be worthless, because men’s hearts would not be won. God is met, not in the tempest and fire of fear, but in the still small voice speaking within man’s breast. Many sinners have passed through the gates of fear, where they hear His voice, confess His power, and acknowledge their own unworthiness, but it is not until the silence of the soul has made that voice distinct that men will be transformed in character.