@@MindShift-Brandon😂 Personally, the fear of Hades is not daunting to me in the most minuscule sense of the term. If the Abrahamic God doesn't exist, then his Hell is fictitious. It's that simplistic. Even if there's a hellish alterdimension, I refuse to fear such a hypothetical scenario as long as there's no concrete evidence for its petrifying existence ❤
@@BenjaminEaster-b8b I wouldn't ask for "concrete evidence" I think "any evidence" is preferable given the cost of being wrong...still waiting for any evidence myself
The best part of a discussion with Christians is when they start out with the 'God is 100% love' thing, but are backed up into a corner, and they do a 180 on you and suddenly go _"OK, so God actually did it! How 'bout that? Now what!? God can do whatever he wants! We can't fully understand his reasons, and we are in no position to judge him! His ways aren't ours! Whatever he does ends up being Good in the end, somehow. So there!"_
The whole "God made him be a jerk so he could further punish him" was a strong influence on my atheist awakening. It did not help me on the road to concluding the biblical god didn't exist, a conclusion I came to later, but it did convince me he was an unworthy megolomaniac, which helped me along.
@@mistylover7398 That _God made him be a jerk so he could further punish him_ ignores all the textual evidence. It's the problem of translational ambiguity which is present in eveyr translation of every text on earth: narrowly-defined concepts in the source language are widely-defined terms in the target language, or vice-versa. 'Hardened' is a passable translation for a Hebrew usage very difficult to adequately translate into English, for it translates two very different words. When God 'firms' Pharaoh's heart, he אֲחַזֵּ֣ק (’ă·ḥaz·zêq), which means to make courageous, firm, or resolute (and a bunch of other such positive terms). When Pharaoh 'hardens' his own heart, he כָּבֵ֖ד (kaved), which is the word for 'glory,' the fundamental meaning is 'weighty.' Pharaoh made himself important in his own eyes, and that is how he 'hardened' his heart: by not listening to anyone but himself. The 'hardenings' are very different, for different purposes. God's 'hardening' is strengthening, so that Pharaoh can do what he should, but he used that ability to do what he wanted. What he wanted was wrong. That has consequences.
I remember asking my parents when I was 6 why God punished the Egyptians when Pharoah only did it because God made him do it. As I recall, they said that Pharoah chose to not let the Israelites go, and that it wasn't God. As a child, I just dropped the subject because clearly we weren't reading the same story.
Perfect. You have described an experience similar to my own. The only difference being that my family was not at all religious. It was our school teachers who tried to convince us that the bible does not say what we think it says. I came to the same conclusion as you.
@@fantomx11 _God hardened pharaoh's heart many times so that he wouldn't let the Israelites go_ No. When God 'hardens' Pharaoh's heart he חֱזַ֤ק it, which means to make firm or even 'to strengthen,' but when Pharaoh hardens his own heart he הַכְבֵּד֙ which is a form of the word 'glorify.' Very different actions going on here. God strengthens Pharaoh to do the right thing and Pharaoh misuses the opportunity to do the wrong thing. It was Pharaoh's fault, not God's.
The thing is it was translated badly. God hardened Pharaoh's arteries. Pharaoh really liked fried frog and god gave him way too many frogs so he ate himself to a cardiac arrest. On a serious note, I am loving this channel. It is obvious you do your homework and also kick a lot of different ideas around in your head.
As someone that grew up in a household without religion these stories are so bizarre and obviously fantastical that I struggle to understand how anyone believes them
This is a good one. Pharoah in the 12 plagues was a hard swallow for me as a teenager. I didn't understand why god would control so many people (the Army in the Red Sea) and route them to their ultimate demise. I couldn't make John 3:16 and all the rest of it all fit together. Nothing like living 30 years of Calvinism in my rear end :) Great presentation. The alternating of God hardening Pharoah and Pharoah hardening it was confusing as well.
Perhaps that's because they are different words translated 'hardening.' When God 'hardens' Pharaoh's heart he 'strengthens' him to do what he should, and Pharaoh misuses that strength to 'glorify' his own heart and do only what he wants to do. Different actions going on, here. I'm sorry that you were confused by your teachers who didn't study this text enough to know what it was really saying. It's not really confusing, it's only one of the common pitfalls of translation.
Please go check out " Jacob I loved, yet Esau I hated". You'll find that even when translated to Greek or Hebrew the word for Hate (Miso if I remember right) is representing personal hatred on Gods behalf in relation to Esau. I can't accept your idea regarding Pharoah. The story ends with God filling Pharoah and his army with a desire to go after the Israelites (Mass death by drowning in Red Sea). God did tons of steering in these verses. I just can't accept reasoning gods actions away by interpretation. I do however appreciate your graceful response. Gracefulness seems to be a dying trait for all of us.@@craigsmith1443
I went to my youth pastor (also my school principal, lol) with the “God hardened Pharaoh’s heart” question at about 15 and got “God works in mysterious ways, it was part of His Plan to save the Hebrews, have faith”. I was a very rule-following child so i tried to accept that God Knows Best, Proverbs 3:5 etc., but i also had a strong sense of fairness and struggled with all the firstborns dying because God meddled in Pharaoh’s decisions. Eventually i stopped trying, but if I’d followed the reasoning as you do here i could’ve begun deconstruction 10 years earlier.
This was true for me too. How many years did i know there was an issue here and ignore it or excuse it. Thats a big part of the goal of this channel is to try and get this info clearly in front of people while removing any and all excuses.
Why do you think that God from Genesis 1 and the LORD God from Genesis are the same character? You know theology is broken AF. Do you think that legions of apologists for the usurper/deciever from Genesis 2 is causing this?
Brandon....ok buddy 😢....this is going to just sound weird to you, or maybe I'm doing something wrong with posting a comment and I know it looks shady how THIS comment went through....I don't know buddy...this is my second time attempting to contact you....and I LITERALLY write at least as many words as the first 2 chapter of the Bible in Genesis ...I can't do that again....I hope you can have the time to reply to me please 🙏 I can't write all that again with the same enthusiasm.😅Thanks buddy you are a great source of alleviation from this hell on 🌎 earth
Hey there. So sorry if i missed an earlier comment. Sometimes they get buried or youtube ghosts them etc. if you still have the comment, can you copy and paste it in an email to me. If not. Ill go digging.
Just because God interfered with Pharaoh's freewill doesn't mean he interferes with the freewill of everyone. God was sending a message NOT only to Pharaoh, the Egyptians, but also to the fallen angels pretending to be the gods of the Egyptians.
What are you talking about Egyptian Pharaohs have been known to alter the written history of their reigns. Do you know how much of an embarrassment it would be for Pharaoh to be forced to release the Israelites as slaves? You can bet that he changed the written history of his reign to remove all traces of the Israelites from it.
Studying Egyptian art, architecture and culture in college I learned they were meticulous record keepers. This is why we know so much about their history and every aspect of their lives. There is no record anywhere about the exodus of the Jews. Millions of people leaving all at once would have had a huge impact on their society. Yet - not a word is recorded. There is an amazing amount of bad theology based on a totally fictional event. 🤪
@@Joey-b8w So true. I studied ethnology in college and later saw much of the world as a flight attendant. When it comes to mankind’s history there is a fine line between reality, idealized memories and fiction.
I went to the Creation Museum when I was maybe fifteen, and I was so excited to see the real evidence for things like this. I wanted to see the artifacts that showed that there was a real person named Jesus, that there was really an Exodus from Egypt, and other stuff like that. What I got instead was the 3d version of a children's illustrated Bible. And the only real artifacts they had were in a small exhibit about the Holocaust. I think that was the beginning of my deconversion. Where was all the overwhelming evidence for God if it wasn't in the literal Creation Museum?? That's the whole point of a museum, to inform people about our world I'm now an atheist studying anthropology to work in natural history museums, and so much happier with my life
God: "I don't want to interfere with free will" God: I am going to harden Pharoh's heart so he'll deny you and I can punish him for it. Even though the story is absolutely complete fiction and an attempt from the ancient Israelites to smear the Egyptian culture, people read this and think nothing is wrong with it. I am like, "WTF?!!"
Wow. I've never really read this story! Everything had been told to me at the churches, and god, the way these people sugarcoat the stories! Thank you, Brandon. You're making me see the bible and its god for what they are without going through the CHORE of reading it! (PS. I'm watching your SBS with my sisters. You can't imagine how more curious and questioning that has made them. Kudos, man! 💕)
You have got to give us a way to say more than 'like'. Give us a button that says "Bravo" please. It is a privilege to visit with you and hear your rant. Keep up the great work.
The death of the firstborn could have wiped out a huge portion of the population. Many focus on kids, but I'm nearly 64 and a first born. If I had been Egyptian, I'd have died.
Same here, as I'm an only child. Every family that has children has a firstborn, but not always a second, third, etc. Taking the firstborn is the biggest blow he could have done. But at this point why would anyone expect mercy or kindness from the biblical God?
Congratulations on 5k! This is a bit off topic, but I remember when I was in highschool, and was very much still a Christian, I was talking to a Christian friend of mine about predestination and free-will. We were trying to figure out if it was a contridiction or not and at that time I landed on "I don't know if it's a contridiction but the Bible says that they are both true, so they must be true and I will just have to take it by faith. Today, that conversation would be very different for me.
Thank you and yes. Our youth is often just blind faith and defending the bible or finding a way to believe it or make it work. But You grew out of it far earlier than i did!
This is a common theme in evangelical Christianity: always blame the person who is struggling. It can't be God's fault because he's perfect, and it can't be our fault because we're good, faithful believers, so it must all be your fault.
It baffles me that the bible is taken seriously. I had to fight my way out of it over many years, God has finally hardened my heart to the point that I find him to be a pathetic marvel character.
I have always wondered why the Bible God was constantly hurting people, treating them like crap, blaming them for things he did, and then expected them to love and worship him. If Insanity is doing the same things over and over again, this god never seems to learn about the benefits of positive vs. negative reinforcements.
"Heart was hardened" is passive voice. It's like saying, "she was r@ped". In both instances, there's someone who did the r@ping or hardening, but neither mention it. In order to call for accountability, we have to put it into active voice and give that action *and accountability* to someone.
Great as usual. Would love to see one focusing on cherry picking the Bible. Specifically the teachings of Jesus that Christians conveniently choose to embrace vs those they ignore.
Very interesting video Brandon and congrats on reaching 5K I am happy and honored to be one of them and you did this all without interfering with anyone`s freewill, lol.
Excellent video as always Brandon. The inconsistencies between judging the pharaoh to free the slaves, and then God turns around and allows it for his people, is so striking.
@@MindShift-Brandon I completely understand! I’m so glad you found something you’ve really found a passion for discussing. I’m not great on commenting, but I’m here rooting for you in the background. 😊
@@MindShift-Brandon I've also been sharing your channel with my friends. I feel like you are spreading a very important and well-thought-out message. You are seriously eloquent and it's my understanding the more comments you leave the more the algorithm will help spread your Channel. Good Luck. We need you!
It's notable that Yahweh can intervene in human decision making at any time while still running a Divine Perfect Plan in which everything is totally determined beforehand. This sounds to me like total control by God over human affairs.
Glad to see you're doing well! I don't know how long you've had 5k subs but congrats anyways! Thanks for this amazing, insightful and rational content!
Great well thought out presentation again! I have yet to watch one of your videos and not have an out loud chuckle over the the absurdity of things I used to believe 😂 Congrats again on the success of your channel and the “good news” that you’re able to spread on a wider basis!
I seem to remember the NIV translation saying the Lord hardened Pharoah's heart from the beginning. Am I misremembering? Edit: I found the verse, and it's not just the NIV. In Exodus Chapter 7, God is explaining the plan to Moses and Aaron. In verse 3, He makes it explicitly clear that he will harden Pharoah's heart so that he won't listen to Moses. This makes it explicitly clear that Pharoah was never acting on his own free will. Exodus 7:3-4 - "But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in Egypt, he will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites."
Also terrific job as you usual! You deserve a million+ subscribers!! (Although it would also make me sad because you wouldn't reply in the comments anymore as you're doing rn)
Reading through the passages and then turning back to Vlad's comment reminded me _yet again_ how eerily similar Christians talking about God are to victims of abuse talking about their narcissistic abusers. Talking around their horrible behavior in the most positive light they can muster, and then finding a way to blame themselves for it instead of the actual perpetrator. It's damn near one-to-one. And it hurts so much to see it time and time again, knowing that nothing I say will help them see it for themselves, because they trust the person hurting them more than anyone else in this world. That they've completely bought into the abuser's message that everyone outside their group is pure evil, no matter how much kindness I show them or how much I try to fight for their wellbeing. Nothing can ever break them out of it except their own realization that they're being hurt. And it's a lot harder for them to realize it when not only is God not there slapping them across the face like a human abuser might, they also see that the majority of the population has fallen into the same trap they have. So it must be legit. This many flawed humans can't all be wrong, can they? .....just let us help....please. you don't have to be so confused anymore. you don't have to feel so guilty anymore.
"Don't be like Pharaoh." Don't be like a Bronze Age god-emperor who leads an incestuous ancestor cult? Finally, some practical life advice from an apologist!
*With God, all things are possible* Except freeing Hebrew slaves without killing a lot of people and other animals Or writing laws specifically against slavery Or valuing women equally with men Or not committing genocide Or writing consistent laws Or defeating enemies who use iron chariots Or overcoming atheist “resistance” to knowing God, Or not creating people whom God knows will choose “evil” as the majority of people Etc Etc
@MindShiftSkeptic --- I love watching your stuff, because you're always touching on topics & questions that I always find myself contemplating. I always come back to this story whenever I hear any apologetics that lean heavily on the concept of 'free-will,' which seems to be roughly 85% of all apologetics. The idea that Yahweh took away Pharaoh's free-will nullifies any reasonable argument on the necessity of 'free-will.' The fact that Yahweh is stripping Pharaoh's free will in order to cause him harm, and to justify the wholesale slaughter of young children, completely obliterates any kind of argument regarding Yahweh being the source of good. This is yet another example showing that Yahweh not only permits evil, but actually causes evil. People will refuse to believe the contradiction, even though it's stated clearly enough in the bible. (FYI - I posted this before watching the video, just to lay out my thoughts on the matter. I'm not trying to argue or make any sort of point against the video, I just want to see how closely my thoughts match to the message of the video.)
So I've watched the video, and it's another exceptionally well thought-out critique of 'mainstream' Christianity and their desire to homogenize their followers thoughts and actions, while 'otherizing' those who disagree as electively defective. I really love your point that there is no Egyptian record of Jewish slavery, much less any records of the plagues, which is notable since we have Egyptian grain records from the very beginning of written history, so you'd think these terribly awesome miracles would have been mentioned, or at least they would have been referred. This is such a great rebuttal against the apologetics counter-argument is that Yahweh did all this so that he would show is power to both the Jewish and Egyptian populations.
A real human sacrifice something Christians condemn pagans for. But there is more than just the daughter though. Read this here as well: Exodus 22:29-30 "29“You shall not delay the offering from the fullness of your harvest and the juice of your wine vat. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me. 30And you shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep. It shall be with its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me." Here it states that the firstborn of the Israelites children shall be given to him. Afterwards he said the same about the firstborn animals too. What happens to the animals given to him? They were sacrificed. But that is not enough so let's get a bit more Information. Exodus 13:1-2 "1Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 2“Sanctify to Me every firstborn, the first offspring of every womb among the sons of Israel, both of man and beast; it belongs to Me.”" Here we have another quote which states the same. Now let's take a look at what happens to the things devoted to him. Leviticus 27:28-29 "28‘Nevertheless, anything which a man devotes to Yahweh out of all that he has, of man or animal or of the fields of his own possession, shall not be sold or redeemed. Anything devoted to destruction is most holy to Yahweh. 29No one who may have been devoted among men shall be ransomed; he shall surely be put to death." Anything devoted to the biblical God out of all he has, of MAN or ANIMAL shall not be sold or redeemed. It shall be surely put to death. That's human sacrifice. But is there another part in the bible which is a bit more specific? Yes, there is take a look at this: Ezekiel 20:25-26 "25And I also gave them statutes that were not good and judgments by which they could not live; 26and I pronounced them unclean because of their gifts, in that they caused all their firstborn to pass through the fire so that I might make them desolate, in order that they might know that I am Yahweh.” ’" Here it is stated openly. All their firstborns were passed through the fire. That's a human sacrifice. The reason for this in context was for "punishment" but it does not change the fact that they were human sacrifices. --- Deuteronomy 13:12-16 "12“If you hear in one of your cities, which Yahweh your God is giving you to live in, anyone saying that 13some vile men have gone out from among you and have driven the inhabitants of their city astray, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods’ (whom you have not known), 14then you shall inquire and search out and ask thoroughly. Behold, if it is true and the matter is confirmed, that this abomination has been done among you, 15you shall surely strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, devoting it to destruction and all that is in it and its cattle with the edge of the sword. 16Then you shall gather all its spoil into the middle of its open square and burn the city and all its spoil with fire as a whole burnt offering to Yahweh your God; and it shall be a ruin forever. It shall never be rebuilt." Here you might say that the people getting killed in that city are not human sacrifices directly because you sacrifice their belongings. But you can say that this is an indirect human sacrifice to appease anger. These quotes also give you the possibility to attack people who don't believe in the abrahamic God.
This story reminds me of Slavoj Zizek's Authoritarian vs Non-Authoritarian Father example (though I'm not a big fan of Zizek in general). Basically, it goes like this: A father tells his unwilling child to go visit grandma at the retirement home. The authoritarian father will say that it is an order and that the child has to go, behave properly and do its duty. So a classical form of authority where you at least get to retain your inner freedom or sense of rebellion because the only constraint you face is physical. The post-modern non-authoritarian father is much worse according to Zizek because he will say to the child that it only has to go if it sincerely wants to but it should know that grandma would greatly appreciate it because she loves her grandchild. The real tyranny illustrated in this example is the sort of tyranny that isn't just content with you following the rules, but you WANTING to follow the rules. I feel like god is like that in modern christianity. He gives you all the freedom in this life, never interfering but wait until you pass on, than you will get all your comeuppance in one go and burn forever. Like wtf lol? In this scenario, I would much rather prefer the OT god like in Exodus who is with his people at all times and disciplines them directly if they sin. It's much more preferable to get disciplined right when you did something instead of having a god that lets you travel on the wrong path straight to your damnation so to speak. The Christian god is just a terrible parent (in this and other ways) and the ultimate tyrant because he doesn't just wants your obedience, but also your inner freedom in the form of your acquiescence and devotion. So glad I escaped this mess.
I don't know why I find Zizecks example of second type of tyranny mediocre. At least in the example, if the child refuses and the parent accepts the refusal, it is not tyranny. If the child refuses and the parent doesn't accept it, starts/continues guilt-tripping the child, and using emotional manipulation until the child accepts, then it is tyranny. So one is physical tyranny (threat of punnisment or wrath), and the other is emotionally manipulative and gaslighting. So the christian god is acually a mix of both tyrannies
@@Marta-zm8oe I think the point he's trying to get at is that the second form is worse because it is less plain and more insidious in pernicious. If you're being physically coerced, you at least know that you don't want what's happening to you, but if expectations and emotional attachments is used, there's a higher chance that you will do the will of others as if it was your own will.
@@mr.goldenproductions_0143 so, it is emotional manipulation that is evil and harder to see, which I agree, but the example sucks at showing what emotional manipulation is.
@@Marta-zm8oe maybe you should look more into philosophy because you already have the key predisposition for being a good thinker: not being content with how others have expressed their arguments lol.
Can you cover the story of when god wanted to suddenly kill Moses for no apparent reason. And how his wife magically knew the solution to save his life was the magical forskin of their son toching Moses' foot/feet. This was befor he went to Pharoh. It is such a bizzar story.
THANK YOU! I am soon done with exodus myself so I have not seen you full video on it yet (looking forward to it though) but I saw this and I had to watch it cause I had so much problems with this exact issue! like someone else have pointed out already in verse 3 he hardens his heart so pharaoh was never in control of his own actions, all through my notes on this section of exodus I say again and again you caused this yourself! he could have soften his heart, made him change his mind, make him pro hebrews from birth. there is so many ways he could have done this WAY better that dont kill and destroy a whole lot of people that had nothing to do with it in the first place. Thank god (yes pun intended) that this god doesnt exist cause if he did like you said would be a monster. sorry that was a rant but I have been dealing with this for some days now and it felt good to get out
Congrats on the 5K! Very professional level content you're putting out! ☺ Correct me if I'm wrong though, but doesn't Paul comment on the Pharaoh in Romans? Something about how the actual point was for God to raise him up only to smack him down so as to demonstrate his might to the nations? 🤔
When I read the story, I interpreted the Pharaoh's response to the early plagues as a refusal to give in to threats. The banished prince Moses and his new patron, a desert spirit who made a pact with the ethnic group Moses turned out to be, were committing terrorism. I read it that the Pharaoh initially expected his own nation's magicians and gods to be able to protect his people from Moses's demon-like ally. Once it was shown that Yahway was too powerful for the Egyptian magics to stop, he started bargaining in an attempt to reduce the scale of the financial calamity and not establish a precedent that anyone with a pet demon can get whatever they demand. ... and then when he gave in unconditionally, Yahway mind-controlled him in order to show off and better cow the people he was taking as his minions. ... and THEN, once the Pharaoh found out that the Israelites had all abused their neighbours' trust by borrowing gold and sneaking off in the night, he tried to punish them for it. He was presumably too angry to consider the tactical problems of trying to fight on a sea floor when the enemy's spirit controls the ocean. Or maybe his court magicians were certain that THIS TIME they had a counter. I'm tempted to try to write a rephrased version of the story with Yahway as a djinn, Moses caught between using his ancestral ties to command it and trying to limit its bloodlust, and the Egyptian gods and guards trying to catch the terrorists. Would the death of the firstborn include the firstborn among the gods...? A divine assassination could certainly prompt magical assistance in seeking revenge. The terrorist deity can't both hide in the desert and protect his new slaves simultaneously, and surely he can't stand up to the Egyptian gods in open battle. Or at least, that's what the pursuing forces believe.
@MindShiftSkeptic Yes. I'd expected substantial dissonance of values from a story so old, but I hadn't expected such an unambiguous villain protagonist. Even from the perspective of the bloodline-based morality and blame-manipulation magic in the story, it's hard to approve of an entity who has to be talked out of wiping out the group he swore to help flourish. I was coming at it as an agnostic atheist, curious to figure out how religion works. Since christianity is the most common one around where I live, reading their book seemed the obvious place to start. I took a while to realise how little it has to do with their beliefs.
@@fadedyellowmm581 When I was a little girl, I adored sneaking into my parent’s and grandparent’s basement and attics. I was mostly scavenging for books and antiquities. I once found an old book. First published in the 19th century. It was a fascinating story about an Egyptian girl in love with a Pharaoh. She eventually becomes his second wife and seems very happy. But then, Moses and Aaron show up, with all the plagues. The details of the book are fuzzy, but I’ll never forget the way Moses was depicted and described as a villainous figure. That was quite bold for a 19th century French book!
God isn’t “allowing” the Pharaoh to sin, because allowing someone to sin is as easy as allowing them to sin, INSTEAD OF NOT. When you harden their heart, you make it impossible for them to do anything BUT sin. So frustrating.
And you're very right, because before the story, God tells Moses that He will harden Pharaoh so that He can show His power and judge the gods of the Egyptians.
That's not even a fair trial, it's "fixed" from the very beginning with God just wanting to murder babies and calling it "judging" when he caused the action that gave him the excuse to judge. It's like pressuring/manipulating a kind man to steel, just so you can put him to jail.
I like the Jonah story as well. In that story, the reader should get the strong impression that Jonah does not want to do what Yahweh told him to do. I mean, the guy runs away. Apparently free will wasn't a deal breaker in that story either. Jonah finally complies because God uses its power to force Jonah.
I heard a really interesting apologetic around the hardening of Pharoh's heart when I was in bible college that asserts that god didn't interfere with Pharoh's free will: The concept is that god was just pouring his love on Pharoh and when god loves people, the condition of their heart can detirmine the outcome. Imagine the sun (god) shining warmth on a block of ice, it can melt and soften it. Now imagine the sun shining on clay, the same warmth might harden clay. So, I was told it was the condition of one's heart that caused it to harden or soften in response to god simply pouring out his love As a long deconverted fundie, I see this as a bit of a flowery and poetic way of framing what seems like a clear violation of one's free will, but I'm surprised more apologists don't use this, and I'm surprised I haven't heard a lot of my fellow heathens respond to it. I'm only bringing this up because as someone who once fell victim to biased thinking, I want to make sure I'm comprehensive in my unbelief, and considering as many possible responses to bibical claims if I'm going to dismiss them. Anyhoo, another great video, thanks so much for being a non-believing voice in this often religious world.
It’s interesting that the ancients associated decision making and emotions with the human heart rather than with the brain. The Egyptians, when they mummified a human body, used to scrape the brain out through the nose because to them it was just stuffing for the skull, and It decayed so quickly - “Let’s get rid of this thing. It already stinks! I suppose God could have told his people the function of their brains, but as you point out, He let them stay stupid about soooo much!😂
@@MindShift-Brandon On your right, forth shelf down there are several items which look like cassette cases. But, having looked at my own collection, the appearance is only similar. If you are not familiar with The Teaching Company, search it. You'll find it very interesting.
About pharoah hardening his heart God said that he will harden pharaohs heart at Exodus 7:3-4 if you notice what happens at the end of each verse of him hardening his heart, those verses end with (As the lord had said) and what did the lord say? Just go back to verse 3 and 4 of chp 7 each time you read the end of each verse of him hardening his heart.
Haha related to this: the pastor of my uncle lied to him . The pastor claimed that the Merneptah Stele (which probably mention "Israel" as one of the tribes conquered by Pharaoh Merneptah) said that the " Jewish God" is an " great and powerful God." That is totally wrong - it was actually the Pharaoh calling himself a mighty god.
I was never indoctrinated, so I always found these stories to be silly faerie tales. The more I've learned, the more astounding it is to me that anyone who is a grown adult still believes and defends this nonsense.
The whole Exodus story is the most damning evidence that God is a horrible horrible character that does not deserve to be worshipped, ESPECIALLY if he really existed. The idea that we are his creation so he can do what he wants just really tells what kind of person you're dealing with and they would bend over backwards if you - for example - would offer them a similar situation where the parents would be allowed to hurt and murder their children etc. It's the worst.
God hardened Pharoah’s heart, full stop. And not only that, God preplanned to do this. How do we know? Simply start reading a few chapters prior to the interactions between Moses and Pharoah. What do we see? God explained, in no uncertain terms, what and why God would accomplished with this exercise-including what he’d do with Pharoah’s heart.
Great point, and I have one more to add. In the video, after the last plague, it tells us why the God character has done all of this hardening of Pharoah's heart. It was done for "glory". Exodus 14:4 _"And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.”_ As stated, the Egyptians still did not become worshippers of the God character, but it also states explicitly that this was for "glory". Why would an all powerful , all knowing god need or want "glory"?
I know I'm a bit late but I watch/listen to a lot of content as I spend a lot of time in my car but I would realy like to see a show completely dedicated to how christians would spend there time if they end up in heaven... It seems to me that they already have the chance to do that now on earth but do not do it. Hope my question makes sense.
"In this world is the destiny of mankind controlled by some transcendental entity or law? It is like the hand of God hovering above. If so then truly man has no control even over his own will." - Berserk opening.
Gordon H. Clark reformed philosopher brilliantly summarized the problem: "The first verse of this subsection says explicitly that God hardened the heart of Sihon, King of Heshbon. Perhaps Pharaoh should have been used for this point. When Pharaoh is mentioned, some people grudgingly admit that the Bible says God hardened his heart but make the quick comeback that the Bible also says Pharaoh hardened his own heart. This, however, is not very effective as a comeback. Admittedly God often acts through human instrumentalities. The important question, therefore, is whether or not God is the cause of these instruments. Now, in the book of Exodus the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is mentioned eighteen times, plus one more verse that applies to the Egyptians in general. Exodus 4:21; 7:3, 13; 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:4, 8 all say that the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart. The extra verse says the Lord hardened the hearts of the Egyptians (Exodus 14:17). This is eleven times out of nineteen. In Exodus 7:14, 22; 8:19; 9:7, 35 no explicit mention of who hardened Pharaoh’s heart is made. This is five times. The other verses, three in number, 8:15, 32 and 9:34, say that Pharaoh hardened his heart. Who then, in the face of eleven statements that the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, can deny that God is the cause of this hardening? Not only is this statement made three times as often; but it is made three times before the other statement is made even once. After all, who runs Egyptian affairs, Pharaoh or God? Naturally Pharaoh also hardened his own heart, for God often uses human instrumentalities in certain situations. But the ultimate, original, and first cause is God. From "Predestination" available on THE ARCHIVE.
Can you do a video on the Holy Spirit , and the fruits of the spirit. Why do they sound like very normal traits everyone posses ? I really can’t prove I have the Holy Spirit because of its hiddeness and lack of supernatural powers in it’s different gifts
in the beggining, before god send moses to paharaoh, god already plan to harden pharaoh heart and already plan to multiply his sign. so, no matter what that guy said, god already plan to destroy pharaoh in the very bloody and ard way... so, if all this story true, god is the one already plan everything to do everything to destroy it all, pharaoh already become a doll...
I think its important to look at the Jewish understandings of these passages since we’re also dealing with their scriptures as well. To address this, the midrash attempts to soften the contradiction by pointing out that in the initial plagues, Pharaoh hardens his own heart, and only later does God take direct responsibility. This serves as a cautionary note on the limits of free will and the consequences of past actions, suggesting that prolonged obstinacy can lead to a loss of the capacity to repent (teshuva). The case of Pharaoh becomes a lesson on the difficulty of changing one's course when deeply entrenched in harmful patterns, analogous to situations in history where radical change required great violence, as in the Civil War. As a last thought Brandon, I really take issue with how you treat the history of the Exodus, not in the sense on how historically reliability is the Exodus, since that question is ultimately secondary the literary significance of that story. To this I like the take of Dr Joshua Bowen on this topic. He emphasizes that the focus should not solely be on finding historical reliability in the Book of Exodus but rather understanding the cultural and historical value of the Exodus tradition. Bowen suggests that while the story may not be historically reliable, it holds significance in terms of its cultural and religious importance. He concludes by mentioning that truth can be derived from the story of Exodus in different ways, and it may hold personal and spiritual meaning for individuals, even if it lacks historical accuracy. Bowen encourages a balanced approach that recognizes the limitations of historical reliability while acknowledging the value of the story beyond its factual accuracy. For these reasons, I think mocking the story as “ridiculous” is counterproductive, because its value its not found in if it actually happened or not (unless a person is a fundamentalist christian), but on the overall message and significance the communities who cherished it.
Brandon, Brandon, Brandon... never bring logic, reason and reading comprehension to a bible study!!! All one needs is an appeal to emotion and then you will be golden 🙏
This was the same god who permitted Job's life to be wrecked. If this mythical, immoral deity appeared to me after my death, I would still be unable to accept or worship it. I expect that most of us value virtue, compassion and peace more than Yaweh.
Wouldn't it have been great if God softened Pharaoh's heart instead of hardening his heart? I mean it would still be interfering with his free will but at least it would have been way better than the alternative
@@DarkAdonisVyers You don't have sufficient information to be making judgement calls regarding God's actions. That's no criticism of you, it's just the current reality for almost every human at this point in time.
@DarkAdonisVyers It is on him, and he says it's on him, and it's his doing, and it's deliberate. Which is why, it's "no criticism of you". But that does not change the fact that you currently don't have sufficient information to be making judgement calls. Not that you are not allowed to either.
Why would you want to follow a god whose primary way of demonstrating his power is by inflicting pain and suffering on others? Imagine if instead of 10 plagues it was 10 bountiful gifts. For example the Pharaoh could have been gifted wealth beyond what he currently had, make all the crops in the land grow to a surplus, have all sickness and illness in the land be instantly healed, and since we are ignoring free will via hardening of hearts why not make Egypt's enemies peacefully surrender to Egypt? I think this display would be more convincing then what the story says happened.
Right?! Its so frustrating to see the lack of imagination from theists. So content they are in believing this was the best and only way. Its an all powerful god! Ugg
Crazy how often god's 'goodness' becomes indistinguishable from cruelty. This hardening of pharaoh's heart really seemed just stupid to me when I read it. I mean, imagine you're all powerful, your objective is to free your chosen people from slavers. What do you do? - teleport them to a promised land for them to enjoy freedom, milk and honey? No, too easy. - instantaneously convince all mankind that slavery is wrong and must be avoided? No, too easy. - harden pharaoh's heart so that he will be forced to reject the Israelites' demands, so that you will feel justified in sending plagues killing and hurting many people to coerce them to eventually let your people go before they have a change of heart, pursue them, so that you can drown them in the sea after parting it to let your people through? Mmmm, sounds like a great scenario for a B movie, let's do this!!!
Can we also just point out that if god allegedly hardened pharaoh's heart to be able to kill more people, god could have just softened pharaoh's heart and not murdered so many people...which act would have been more moral?
It's like in Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse, where YHVH's plan to cleanse the world in fire (as opposed to water, like previously) is to harden the hearts of the world's leaders to cause nuclear war, and then blame the whole thing on "free will".
As an omniscient omnipotent being there is never a Time where God is required to kill someone in order to achieve a goal ( for example freeing the Jews from slavery) even while totally respecting human free will. That's the beauty of being omnipotent-there are no limits to what you can achieve under any restrictions. If the Bible is accurate, then the responsibility for every single death that has ever occurred under God's supervision is laid directly at his feet. Either God doesn't exist, God is Not omnipotent, or God takes pleasure in killing humans.
Oh you know vlad? Nice Can you open a debate with him speaking about real demons, either video proof, or like a real exorcism where you question the possessed person during or afterwards?
Loving your channel and I’m going through all of your old videos one by one so I’m a bit late here but: you mentioned that having a hard heart can be stubbornness and it got me thinking. Maybe it was God’s actions that made pharaoh stubborn and more stubborn as the actions escalated. so when it says that God hardened his heart, it is the equivalent of “ daddy took my Xbox so I’m mad and I’m not gonna listen” and the behavior didn’t change. Pharaoh did not give in and just doubled down. Not that God literally changed his will but was just doing things that made Pharaoh more defiant. I can imagine with my son if I instructed him to do something and just took more and more of his toys away and instead of relenting he just got more pissed and determined to win. Any who it’s all made up anyways but it was a thought.
Q to Xtians: Why doesn't Jesus/Yahweh change the hearts of all the non-believers ? A: Well, he wants you to choose him. He can't override your free will. Q to Xtians: Didn't he harden the Pharoh's heart ? A: That was different. LOL
I always thought that the phrase, "God hardened Pharaoh's heart." to mean that he somehow caused Pharaoh to want revenge against the Hebrews who just brought plagues upon his land. Like he needed any encouragement. The most interesting aspect of this story is that it is probably fiction.
I love how the Pharoah has a decent negotiation with Moses, but then God is just like, "But I wanted to use this last trick." :(
Lol exactly!
😂 Isn't there a story in the AnCiEnT Bible regarding the Sun stopping, and henceforth making the daytime, even though the Earth orbits the Sun 🤔
@@MindShift-Brandon😂 Personally, the fear of Hades is not daunting to me in the most minuscule sense of the term. If the Abrahamic God doesn't exist, then his Hell is fictitious. It's that simplistic. Even if there's a hellish alterdimension, I refuse to fear such a hypothetical scenario as long as there's no concrete evidence for its petrifying existence ❤
@@BenjaminEaster-b8b fair point
@@BenjaminEaster-b8b I wouldn't ask for "concrete evidence" I think "any evidence" is preferable given the cost of being wrong...still waiting for any evidence myself
The best part of a discussion with Christians is when they start out with the 'God is 100% love' thing, but are backed up into a corner, and they do a 180 on you and suddenly go _"OK, so God actually did it! How 'bout that? Now what!? God can do whatever he wants! We can't fully understand his reasons, and we are in no position to judge him! His ways aren't ours! Whatever he does ends up being Good in the end, somehow. So there!"_
Oh man have i seen that flip 1000 times. Its just nuts.
That description of god makes him more like cthulhu
It all comes down to might makes right when they get called out on the inconsistency of god's supposed loving nature.
Holy-Logic is filled with holes!
@@vaiytExcept Cthulhu never makes any pretense of loving us.
The whole "God made him be a jerk so he could further punish him" was a strong influence on my atheist awakening. It did not help me on the road to concluding the biblical god didn't exist, a conclusion I came to later, but it did convince me he was an unworthy megolomaniac, which helped me along.
Yes. Just another piece of the puzzle.
Izn't gawd actually EVIL
A pity that you concluded on false information.
@@craigsmith1443 how so??
@@mistylover7398 That _God made him be a jerk so he could further punish him_ ignores all the textual evidence. It's the problem of translational ambiguity which is present in eveyr translation of every text on earth: narrowly-defined concepts in the source language are widely-defined terms in the target language, or vice-versa. 'Hardened' is a passable translation for a Hebrew usage very difficult to adequately translate into English, for it translates two very different words. When God 'firms' Pharaoh's heart, he אֲחַזֵּ֣ק (’ă·ḥaz·zêq), which means to make courageous, firm, or resolute (and a bunch of other such positive terms). When Pharaoh 'hardens' his own heart, he כָּבֵ֖ד (kaved), which is the word for 'glory,' the fundamental meaning is 'weighty.' Pharaoh made himself important in his own eyes, and that is how he 'hardened' his heart: by not listening to anyone but himself.
The 'hardenings' are very different, for different purposes. God's 'hardening' is strengthening, so that Pharaoh can do what he should, but he used that ability to do what he wanted. What he wanted was wrong. That has consequences.
I remember asking my parents when I was 6 why God punished the Egyptians when Pharoah only did it because God made him do it. As I recall, they said that Pharoah chose to not let the Israelites go, and that it wasn't God. As a child, I just dropped the subject because clearly we weren't reading the same story.
Oh man. So frustrating
Perfect. You have described an experience similar to my own. The only difference being that my family was not at all religious. It was our school teachers who tried to convince us that the bible does not say what we think it says. I came to the same conclusion as you.
You weren't reading the Biblical story, certainly.
@@craigsmith1443 I most certainly was. God hardened pharaoh's heart many times so that he wouldn't let the Israelites go.
@@fantomx11 _God hardened pharaoh's heart many times so that he wouldn't let the Israelites go_
No. When God 'hardens' Pharaoh's heart he חֱזַ֤ק it, which means to make firm or even 'to strengthen,' but when Pharaoh hardens his own heart he הַכְבֵּד֙ which is a form of the word 'glorify.' Very different actions going on here. God strengthens Pharaoh to do the right thing and Pharaoh misuses the opportunity to do the wrong thing.
It was Pharaoh's fault, not God's.
The thing is it was translated badly. God hardened Pharaoh's arteries. Pharaoh really liked fried frog and god gave him way too many frogs so he ate himself to a cardiac arrest. On a serious note, I am loving this channel. It is obvious you do your homework and also kick a lot of different ideas around in your head.
lol, love that. and thanks so much. That is really wonderful to hear.
I guess it could have been arteries. But if you look at the god Min you'll see that hearts aren't the only things that were hardened in Egypt.
As someone that grew up in a household without religion these stories are so bizarre and obviously fantastical that I struggle to understand how anyone believes them
I bet! I would to if i hadn’t still believed these things just a few years ago.
You’re lucky! I wish I had that opportunity, but now I’m giving my kids that opportunity and the childhood I deserved 🥲
This is a good one. Pharoah in the 12 plagues was a hard swallow for me as a teenager. I didn't understand why god would control so many people (the Army in the Red Sea) and route them to their ultimate demise. I couldn't make John 3:16 and all the rest of it all fit together. Nothing like living 30 years of Calvinism in my rear end :) Great presentation. The alternating of God hardening Pharoah and Pharoah hardening it was confusing as well.
Thank you much! yes i felt that confusion for sure.
Glad you jumped ship. I just from the Baptist slave ship.
To quote wise Pumbaa “put your behind in your past”.
Perhaps that's because they are different words translated 'hardening.' When God 'hardens' Pharaoh's heart he 'strengthens' him to do what he should, and Pharaoh misuses that strength to 'glorify' his own heart and do only what he wants to do. Different actions going on, here.
I'm sorry that you were confused by your teachers who didn't study this text enough to know what it was really saying. It's not really confusing, it's only one of the common pitfalls of translation.
Please go check out " Jacob I loved, yet Esau I hated". You'll find that even when translated to Greek or Hebrew the word for Hate (Miso if I remember right) is representing personal hatred on Gods behalf in relation to Esau. I can't accept your idea regarding Pharoah. The story ends with God filling Pharoah and his army with a desire to go after the Israelites (Mass death by drowning in Red Sea). God did tons of steering in these verses. I just can't accept reasoning gods actions away by interpretation. I do however appreciate your graceful response. Gracefulness seems to be a dying trait for all of us.@@craigsmith1443
I went to my youth pastor (also my school principal, lol) with the “God hardened Pharaoh’s heart” question at about 15 and got “God works in mysterious ways, it was part of His Plan to save the Hebrews, have faith”. I was a very rule-following child so i tried to accept that God Knows Best, Proverbs 3:5 etc., but i also had a strong sense of fairness and struggled with all the firstborns dying because God meddled in Pharaoh’s decisions. Eventually i stopped trying, but if I’d followed the reasoning as you do here i could’ve begun deconstruction 10 years earlier.
This was true for me too. How many years did i know there was an issue here and ignore it or excuse it. Thats a big part of the goal of this channel is to try and get this info clearly in front of people while removing any and all excuses.
Hope you all enjoy this one! Remember to go post your question/s on my community post for the q@a this weekend.
Why do you think that God from Genesis 1 and the LORD God from Genesis are the same character?
You know theology is broken AF. Do you think that legions of apologists for the usurper/deciever from Genesis 2 is causing this?
Brandon....ok buddy 😢....this is going to just sound weird to you, or maybe I'm doing something wrong with posting a comment and I know it looks shady how THIS comment went through....I don't know buddy...this is my second time attempting to contact you....and I LITERALLY write at least as many words as the first 2 chapter of the Bible in Genesis ...I can't do that again....I hope you can have the time to reply to me please 🙏 I can't write all that again with the same enthusiasm.😅Thanks buddy you are a great source of alleviation from this hell on 🌎 earth
Hey there. So sorry if i missed an earlier comment. Sometimes they get buried or youtube ghosts them etc. if you still have the comment, can you copy and paste it in an email to me. If not. Ill go digging.
Just because God interfered with Pharaoh's freewill doesn't mean he interferes with the freewill of everyone.
God was sending a message NOT only to Pharaoh, the Egyptians, but also to the fallen angels pretending to be the gods of the Egyptians.
What are you talking about Egyptian Pharaohs have been known to alter the written history of their reigns.
Do you know how much of an embarrassment it would be for Pharaoh to be forced to release the Israelites as slaves?
You can bet that he changed the written history of his reign to remove all traces of the Israelites from it.
Studying Egyptian art, architecture and culture in college I learned they were meticulous record keepers. This is why we know so much about their history and every aspect of their lives. There is no record anywhere about the exodus of the Jews. Millions of people leaving all at once would have had a huge impact on their society. Yet - not a word is recorded. There is an amazing amount of bad theology based on a totally fictional event. 🤪
Ohh well said. Bad theology based on fictional event. So sad and so true.
Ha! Pure truth about the fiction of the bible. 😂 I'm glad to be free of the cognitive dissonance of Christianity.
@@Joey-b8w So true. I studied ethnology in college and later saw much of the world as a flight attendant. When it comes to mankind’s history there is a fine line between reality, idealized memories and fiction.
I went to the Creation Museum when I was maybe fifteen, and I was so excited to see the real evidence for things like this. I wanted to see the artifacts that showed that there was a real person named Jesus, that there was really an Exodus from Egypt, and other stuff like that. What I got instead was the 3d version of a children's illustrated Bible. And the only real artifacts they had were in a small exhibit about the Holocaust. I think that was the beginning of my deconversion. Where was all the overwhelming evidence for God if it wasn't in the literal Creation Museum?? That's the whole point of a museum, to inform people about our world
I'm now an atheist studying anthropology to work in natural history museums, and so much happier with my life
@ The evidence for god iss the same place Trump’s evidence for a stolen election in 2020 is! 🤣
God: "I don't want to interfere with free will"
God: I am going to harden Pharoh's heart so he'll deny you and I can punish him for it.
Even though the story is absolutely complete fiction and an attempt from the ancient Israelites to smear the Egyptian culture, people read this and think nothing is wrong with it. I am like, "WTF?!!"
Wow. I've never really read this story! Everything had been told to me at the churches, and god, the way these people sugarcoat the stories!
Thank you, Brandon. You're making me see the bible and its god for what they are without going through the CHORE of reading it!
(PS. I'm watching your SBS with my sisters. You can't imagine how more curious and questioning that has made them. Kudos, man! 💕)
Man, so glad to hear that! Thanks so much for being here.
You have got to give us a way to say more than 'like'. Give us a button that says "Bravo" please. It is a privilege to visit with you and hear your rant. Keep up the great work.
Ha. Thank you so much! Thats very encouraging!
The death of the firstborn could have wiped out a huge portion of the population. Many focus on kids, but I'm nearly 64 and a first born. If I had been Egyptian, I'd have died.
Same here, as I'm an only child. Every family that has children has a firstborn, but not always a second, third, etc. Taking the firstborn is the biggest blow he could have done. But at this point why would anyone expect mercy or kindness from the biblical God?
You have a very kind personality.
Thanks for all your kindness, Sandi. A bright light!
Congratulations on 5k! This is a bit off topic, but I remember when I was in highschool, and was very much still a Christian, I was talking to a Christian friend of mine about predestination and free-will. We were trying to figure out if it was a contridiction or not and at that time I landed on "I don't know if it's a contridiction but the Bible says that they are both true, so they must be true and I will just have to take it by faith. Today, that conversation would be very different for me.
Thank you and yes. Our youth is often just blind faith and defending the bible or finding a way to believe it or make it work. But You grew out of it far earlier than i did!
Mindshift I will a program about the Hindus holy book and the Muslims holy book.
This is a common theme in evangelical Christianity: always blame the person who is struggling. It can't be God's fault because he's perfect, and it can't be our fault because we're good, faithful believers, so it must all be your fault.
i'd say this is mostly true for all forms of christianity, but yes its heavy in the evangelical circles.
It baffles me that the bible is taken seriously. I had to fight my way out of it over many years, God has finally hardened my heart to the point that I find him to be a pathetic marvel character.
ha, yes a fight is the right word.
I have always wondered why the Bible God was constantly hurting people, treating them like crap, blaming them for things he did, and then expected them to love and worship him. If Insanity is doing the same things over and over again, this god never seems to learn about the benefits of positive vs. negative reinforcements.
Well put, Elaine. Thanks for the comment.
"Heart was hardened" is passive voice. It's like saying, "she was r@ped". In both instances, there's someone who did the r@ping or hardening, but neither mention it. In order to call for accountability, we have to put it into active voice and give that action *and accountability* to someone.
Thanks!
Thanks for this generous gift!
You did phenomenally well to elucidate your points. Another topic that would be amazing to hear from you is the concept of generational sin.
Thank you very much. Yes ive covered it a bit here and there but it does deserve its open deep dive. Thanks.
Another excellent, well thought out and well presented video!
Congratulations on reaching 5K , you thoroughly deserve it 🎉🎉🎉🎉
Thank you kindly, Jerry!
I’m subscribed! Love to see you hitting 5k
Appreciate that, just crossed over!
Great as usual. Would love to see one focusing on cherry picking the Bible. Specifically the teachings of Jesus that Christians conveniently choose to embrace vs those they ignore.
Im sure ill do that sometime soon. Thanks for the rec!
Very interesting video Brandon and congrats on reaching 5K
I am happy and honored to be one of them and you did this all without interfering with anyone`s freewill, lol.
Ha! Love that. Thanks for the support, my man.
This story always drive me crazy!! Thanks for discussing it. I ask my christian friends about the meaning and I get blank stares.
My pleasure!
Excellent video as always Brandon. The inconsistencies between judging the pharaoh to free the slaves, and then God turns around and allows it for his people, is so striking.
Theres just no doubt of who this god would be if he were real.
Free will (or not) issues are what started me on a long journey out of the bubble.
So happy do see you doing so well! I’m enjoying these videos and thankful for your perspective! 😊
SAM! its a delight to see your name pop up! I really just abandoned booktube, but miss you.
@@MindShift-Brandon I completely understand! I’m so glad you found something you’ve really found a passion for discussing. I’m not great on commenting, but I’m here rooting for you in the background. 😊
The Old testament: "My God can beat up your god".
Spot on
Thank you for spreading the word ❤
Always my pleasure. Appreciate how much you have engaged
@@MindShift-Brandon I've also been sharing your channel with my friends. I feel like you are spreading a very important and well-thought-out message. You are seriously eloquent and it's my understanding the more comments you leave the more the algorithm will help spread your Channel. Good Luck. We need you!
Thats true and you are leading the charge. Thank you for this support!
It's notable that Yahweh can intervene in human decision making at any time while still running a Divine Perfect Plan in which everything is totally determined beforehand.
This sounds to me like total control by God over human affairs.
Exactly!
So much for free will.
Glad to see you're doing well!
I don't know how long you've had 5k subs but congrats anyways! Thanks for this amazing, insightful and rational content!
happened like 2 min ago lol so thank you very much. And appreciate the kindness.
@@MindShift-Brandon no worries you really deserve it.
Good job mister
Thank you much
Perfect. Thank you.
You're welcome!
Awesome job again Brandon!
Thanks, Jake!
Great well thought out presentation again! I have yet to watch one of your videos and not have an out loud chuckle over the the absurdity of things I used to believe 😂 Congrats again on the success of your channel and the “good news” that you’re able to spread on a wider basis!
Ha. Love that i can allow you these moments. I, too, have them almost daily. Thank you kindly!
Congratulations on passing 5000 subscribers!
Thank you very much!
0:26 to think you were at only 5000 only a year ago, it its nice to see how your channel has grown
Yet another great video!
Thank you ❤
Always my pleasure.
I seem to remember the NIV translation saying the Lord hardened Pharoah's heart from the beginning. Am I misremembering?
Edit: I found the verse, and it's not just the NIV. In Exodus Chapter 7, God is explaining the plan to Moses and Aaron. In verse 3, He makes it explicitly clear that he will harden Pharoah's heart so that he won't listen to Moses. This makes it explicitly clear that Pharoah was never acting on his own free will.
Exodus 7:3-4 - "But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in Egypt, he will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites."
Interesting. That clears up the uncertainty we saw in the video about the pharaoh's heart "was hardened", without saying who did it.
Congrats on 5k 🤘
Thank you much!
Powerful points.
Also terrific job as you usual! You deserve a million+ subscribers!! (Although it would also make me sad because you wouldn't reply in the comments anymore as you're doing rn)
Ha! I will always try best i can, especially for those of you here early and so supportive! Thank you!
Reading through the passages and then turning back to Vlad's comment reminded me _yet again_ how eerily similar Christians talking about God are to victims of abuse talking about their narcissistic abusers. Talking around their horrible behavior in the most positive light they can muster, and then finding a way to blame themselves for it instead of the actual perpetrator. It's damn near one-to-one. And it hurts so much to see it time and time again, knowing that nothing I say will help them see it for themselves, because they trust the person hurting them more than anyone else in this world. That they've completely bought into the abuser's message that everyone outside their group is pure evil, no matter how much kindness I show them or how much I try to fight for their wellbeing.
Nothing can ever break them out of it except their own realization that they're being hurt. And it's a lot harder for them to realize it when not only is God not there slapping them across the face like a human abuser might, they also see that the majority of the population has fallen into the same trap they have. So it must be legit. This many flawed humans can't all be wrong, can they?
.....just let us help....please. you don't have to be so confused anymore. you don't have to feel so guilty anymore.
Man do i hear and feel all that. Just let us help. All of this is so unnecessary!
Oh wow you certainly gained a lot of subscriber in the year since this was posted. 5K to 62.5K Nice one.
Thanks so much!
As of the time of this comment, your subscriber count is at 5.01k! 🎉🎉🎉 congratulations, can't wait to see it at 10!
Thank you much! Getting there.
The Lord giveth then taketh away free will as it suits him.
If it can be taken away it was not free to begin with.
Great point!
The fool hath said in his heart god gives free will
"Don't be like Pharaoh." Don't be like a Bronze Age god-emperor who leads an incestuous ancestor cult? Finally, some practical life advice from an apologist!
Lol! Nuggets of truth happen if they just keep saying enough words.
*With God, all things are possible*
Except freeing Hebrew slaves without killing a lot of people and other animals
Or writing laws specifically against slavery
Or valuing women equally with men
Or not committing genocide
Or writing consistent laws
Or defeating enemies who use iron chariots
Or overcoming atheist “resistance” to knowing God,
Or not creating people whom God knows will choose “evil” as the majority of people
Etc
Etc
Love this!
Or forgiveness after blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
Great vidio
Thanks very much
Boy-howdy, but this was awesome.
Glad to hear it. Thank you!
Nice.
thanks!
@MindShiftSkeptic --- I love watching your stuff, because you're always touching on topics & questions that I always find myself contemplating. I always come back to this story whenever I hear any apologetics that lean heavily on the concept of 'free-will,' which seems to be roughly 85% of all apologetics. The idea that Yahweh took away Pharaoh's free-will nullifies any reasonable argument on the necessity of 'free-will.' The fact that Yahweh is stripping Pharaoh's free will in order to cause him harm, and to justify the wholesale slaughter of young children, completely obliterates any kind of argument regarding Yahweh being the source of good. This is yet another example showing that Yahweh not only permits evil, but actually causes evil. People will refuse to believe the contradiction, even though it's stated clearly enough in the bible. (FYI - I posted this before watching the video, just to lay out my thoughts on the matter. I'm not trying to argue or make any sort of point against the video, I just want to see how closely my thoughts match to the message of the video.)
So I've watched the video, and it's another exceptionally well thought-out critique of 'mainstream' Christianity and their desire to homogenize their followers thoughts and actions, while 'otherizing' those who disagree as electively defective. I really love your point that there is no Egyptian record of Jewish slavery, much less any records of the plagues, which is notable since we have Egyptian grain records from the very beginning of written history, so you'd think these terribly awesome miracles would have been mentioned, or at least they would have been referred. This is such a great rebuttal against the apologetics counter-argument is that Yahweh did all this so that he would show is power to both the Jewish and Egyptian populations.
Thanks for all the kind words and i love what you have said here. Seems we were both very much on the same page with this one!
I don’t know if you’ve covered it yet but I’d love to hear your thoughts on Jepthah’s daughter.
Coming thursday at 9am!
A real human sacrifice something Christians condemn pagans for. But there is more than just the daughter though. Read this here as well:
Exodus 22:29-30
"29“You shall not delay the offering from the fullness of your harvest and the juice of your wine vat. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me. 30And you shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep. It shall be with its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me."
Here it states that the firstborn of the Israelites children shall be given to him. Afterwards he said the same about the firstborn animals too. What happens to the animals given to him? They were sacrificed. But that is not enough so let's get a bit more Information.
Exodus 13:1-2
"1Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 2“Sanctify to Me every firstborn, the first offspring of every womb among the sons of Israel, both of man and beast; it belongs to Me.”"
Here we have another quote which states the same. Now let's take a look at what happens to the things devoted to him.
Leviticus 27:28-29
"28‘Nevertheless, anything which a man devotes to Yahweh out of all that he has, of man or animal or of the fields of his own possession, shall not be sold or redeemed. Anything devoted to destruction is most holy to Yahweh. 29No one who may have been devoted among men shall be ransomed; he shall surely be put to death."
Anything devoted to the biblical God out of all he has, of MAN or ANIMAL shall not be sold or redeemed. It shall be surely put to death. That's human sacrifice. But is there another part in the bible which is a bit more specific? Yes, there is take a look at this:
Ezekiel 20:25-26
"25And I also gave them statutes that were not good and judgments by which they could not live; 26and I pronounced them unclean because of their gifts, in that they caused all their firstborn to pass through the fire so that I might make them desolate, in order that they might know that I am Yahweh.” ’"
Here it is stated openly. All their firstborns were passed through the fire. That's a human sacrifice. The reason for this in context was for "punishment" but it does not change the fact that they were human sacrifices.
---
Deuteronomy 13:12-16
"12“If you hear in one of your cities, which Yahweh your God is giving you to live in, anyone saying that 13some vile men have gone out from among you and have driven the inhabitants of their city astray, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods’ (whom you have not known), 14then you shall inquire and search out and ask thoroughly. Behold, if it is true and the matter is confirmed, that this abomination has been done among you, 15you shall surely strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, devoting it to destruction and all that is in it and its cattle with the edge of the sword. 16Then you shall gather all its spoil into the middle of its open square and burn the city and all its spoil with fire as a whole burnt offering to Yahweh your God; and it shall be a ruin forever. It shall never be rebuilt."
Here you might say that the people getting killed in that city are not human sacrifices directly because you sacrifice their belongings. But you can say that this is an indirect human sacrifice to appease anger. These quotes also give you the possibility to attack people who don't believe in the abrahamic God.
This story reminds me of Slavoj Zizek's Authoritarian vs Non-Authoritarian Father example (though I'm not a big fan of Zizek in general). Basically, it goes like this: A father tells his unwilling child to go visit grandma at the retirement home. The authoritarian father will say that it is an order and that the child has to go, behave properly and do its duty. So a classical form of authority where you at least get to retain your inner freedom or sense of rebellion because the only constraint you face is physical. The post-modern non-authoritarian father is much worse according to Zizek because he will say to the child that it only has to go if it sincerely wants to but it should know that grandma would greatly appreciate it because she loves her grandchild. The real tyranny illustrated in this example is the sort of tyranny that isn't just content with you following the rules, but you WANTING to follow the rules. I feel like god is like that in modern christianity. He gives you all the freedom in this life, never interfering but wait until you pass on, than you will get all your comeuppance in one go and burn forever. Like wtf lol? In this scenario, I would much rather prefer the OT god like in Exodus who is with his people at all times and disciplines them directly if they sin. It's much more preferable to get disciplined right when you did something instead of having a god that lets you travel on the wrong path straight to your damnation so to speak. The Christian god is just a terrible parent (in this and other ways) and the ultimate tyrant because he doesn't just wants your obedience, but also your inner freedom in the form of your acquiescence and devotion. So glad I escaped this mess.
I have only read a bit of Zizek and that example is new to me. Fascinating. Thanks so much for sharing.
I don't know why I find Zizecks example of second type of tyranny mediocre. At least in the example, if the child refuses and the parent accepts the refusal, it is not tyranny. If the child refuses and the parent doesn't accept it, starts/continues guilt-tripping the child, and using emotional manipulation until the child accepts, then it is tyranny. So one is physical tyranny (threat of punnisment or wrath), and the other is emotionally manipulative and gaslighting. So the christian god is acually a mix of both tyrannies
@@Marta-zm8oe I think the point he's trying to get at is that the second form is worse because it is less plain and more insidious in pernicious. If you're being physically coerced, you at least know that you don't want what's happening to you, but if expectations and emotional attachments is used, there's a higher chance that you will do the will of others as if it was your own will.
@@mr.goldenproductions_0143 so, it is emotional manipulation that is evil and harder to see, which I agree, but the example sucks at showing what emotional manipulation is.
@@Marta-zm8oe maybe you should look more into philosophy because you already have the key predisposition for being a good thinker: not being content with how others have expressed their arguments lol.
When you do Christian Crossfit, Jesus hardens your abs. 💪
Lol
Remember to wipe down your equipment with sanitizer - Help prevent cross contamination! 😅
@@tulpas93 Lol. NICE.
Can you cover the story of when god wanted to suddenly kill Moses for no apparent reason. And how his wife magically knew the solution to save his life was the magical forskin of their son toching Moses' foot/feet. This was befor he went to Pharoh.
It is such a bizzar story.
It is indeed!
To say nothing of what little YHVH Jr. did to that poor fig tree.
THANK YOU! I am soon done with exodus myself so I have not seen you full video on it yet (looking forward to it though) but I saw this and I had to watch it cause I had so much problems with this exact issue! like someone else have pointed out already in verse 3 he hardens his heart so pharaoh was never in control of his own actions, all through my notes on this section of exodus I say again and again you caused this yourself! he could have soften his heart, made him change his mind, make him pro hebrews from birth. there is so many ways he could have done this WAY better that dont kill and destroy a whole lot of people that had nothing to do with it in the first place. Thank god (yes pun intended) that this god doesnt exist cause if he did like you said would be a monster. sorry that was a rant but I have been dealing with this for some days now and it felt good to get out
Nobody wants to be told they are in an abusive relationship
5K
Woohoo
Thank you!
I always thought there's something odd about the Exodus story
As a programmer this level of hacking can only be done by a super intelligence.
Congrats on the 5K! Very professional level content you're putting out! ☺ Correct me if I'm wrong though, but doesn't Paul comment on the Pharaoh in Romans? Something about how the actual point was for God to raise him up only to smack him down so as to demonstrate his might to the nations? 🤔
Yes. God says as much here in exodus also. Even Paul was trying to justify gods insanity lol. And thank you!
When I read the story, I interpreted the Pharaoh's response to the early plagues as a refusal to give in to threats. The banished prince Moses and his new patron, a desert spirit who made a pact with the ethnic group Moses turned out to be, were committing terrorism. I read it that the Pharaoh initially expected his own nation's magicians and gods to be able to protect his people from Moses's demon-like ally. Once it was shown that Yahway was too powerful for the Egyptian magics to stop, he started bargaining in an attempt to reduce the scale of the financial calamity and not establish a precedent that anyone with a pet demon can get whatever they demand.
... and then when he gave in unconditionally, Yahway mind-controlled him in order to show off and better cow the people he was taking as his minions.
... and THEN, once the Pharaoh found out that the Israelites had all abused their neighbours' trust by borrowing gold and sneaking off in the night, he tried to punish them for it. He was presumably too angry to consider the tactical problems of trying to fight on a sea floor when the enemy's spirit controls the ocean. Or maybe his court magicians were certain that THIS TIME they had a counter.
I'm tempted to try to write a rephrased version of the story with Yahway as a djinn, Moses caught between using his ancestral ties to command it and trying to limit its bloodlust, and the Egyptian gods and guards trying to catch the terrorists.
Would the death of the firstborn include the firstborn among the gods...? A divine assassination could certainly prompt magical assistance in seeking revenge. The terrorist deity can't both hide in the desert and protect his new slaves simultaneously, and surely he can't stand up to the Egyptian gods in open battle. Or at least, that's what the pursuing forces believe.
nailed it, its all so clear that god is the biggest badguy in the room.
@MindShiftSkeptic Yes. I'd expected substantial dissonance of values from a story so old, but I hadn't expected such an unambiguous villain protagonist. Even from the perspective of the bloodline-based morality and blame-manipulation magic in the story, it's hard to approve of an entity who has to be talked out of wiping out the group he swore to help flourish.
I was coming at it as an agnostic atheist, curious to figure out how religion works. Since christianity is the most common one around where I live, reading their book seemed the obvious place to start. I took a while to realise how little it has to do with their beliefs.
This sounds so cool, I would totally read a book retelling the Moses myth like that!
@@fadedyellowmm581 When I was a little girl, I adored sneaking into my parent’s and grandparent’s basement and attics.
I was mostly scavenging for books and antiquities.
I once found an old book. First published in the 19th century.
It was a fascinating story about an Egyptian girl in love with a Pharaoh.
She eventually becomes his second wife and seems very happy.
But then, Moses and Aaron show up, with all the plagues.
The details of the book are fuzzy, but I’ll never forget the way Moses was depicted and described as a villainous figure.
That was quite bold for a 19th century French book!
God isn’t “allowing” the Pharaoh to sin, because allowing someone to sin is as easy as allowing them to sin, INSTEAD OF NOT. When you harden their heart, you make it impossible for them to do anything BUT sin. So frustrating.
And you're very right, because before the story, God tells Moses that He will harden Pharaoh so that He can show His power and judge the gods of the Egyptians.
Yup. Just awful.
That's not even a fair trial, it's "fixed" from the very beginning with God just wanting to murder babies and calling it "judging" when he caused the action that gave him the excuse to judge. It's like pressuring/manipulating a kind man to steel, just so you can put him to jail.
@@acupofwhitetea Pharaoh is exactly what God created him to be and got exactly what he deserved. Fair? God doesn't owe Pharaoh anything.
I like the Jonah story as well. In that story, the reader should get the strong impression that Jonah does not want to do what Yahweh told him to do. I mean, the guy runs away. Apparently free will wasn't a deal breaker in that story either. Jonah finally complies because God uses its power to force Jonah.
Right?! Excellent comparison
The tri-omni claims escalated and refined over time
I heard a really interesting apologetic around the hardening of Pharoh's heart when I was in bible college that asserts that god didn't interfere with Pharoh's free will: The concept is that god was just pouring his love on Pharoh and when god loves people, the condition of their heart can detirmine the outcome. Imagine the sun (god) shining warmth on a block of ice, it can melt and soften it. Now imagine the sun shining on clay, the same warmth might harden clay. So, I was told it was the condition of one's heart that caused it to harden or soften in response to god simply pouring out his love
As a long deconverted fundie, I see this as a bit of a flowery and poetic way of framing what seems like a clear violation of one's free will, but I'm surprised more apologists don't use this, and I'm surprised I haven't heard a lot of my fellow heathens respond to it. I'm only bringing this up because as someone who once fell victim to biased thinking, I want to make sure I'm comprehensive in my unbelief, and considering as many possible responses to bibical claims if I'm going to dismiss them.
Anyhoo, another great video, thanks so much for being a non-believing voice in this often religious world.
I don't remember any instance where the Bible says god softened someone's heart.
@@Marta-zm8oe Touche'
How to become an atheist. Step One: read the Bible.
It’s interesting that the ancients associated decision making and emotions with the human heart rather than with the brain. The Egyptians, when they mummified a human body, used to scrape the brain out through the nose because to them it was just stuffing for the skull, and It decayed so quickly - “Let’s get rid of this thing. It already stinks!
I suppose God could have told his people the function of their brains, but as you point out, He let them stay stupid about soooo much!😂
Thanks for the extra context!
Is there a collection of Teaching Company Courses on the shelf behind you?
Nope. Not sure which stack you are referring to though
@@MindShift-Brandon On your right, forth shelf down there are several items which look like cassette cases. But, having looked at my own collection, the appearance is only similar. If you are not familiar with The Teaching Company, search it. You'll find it very interesting.
@@MindShift-Brandon Your right side, forth shelf, several items that look like cassette boxes.
@user-ug2hk3go6i ahh just a group of classics from birders back in the day lol but i do have a full and gorgeous set of the harvard classics
@@MindShift-Brandon If you are unfamiliar with The Teaching Company I suggest searching them. You'll find them very interesting.
About pharoah hardening his heart God said that he will harden pharaohs heart at Exodus 7:3-4 if you notice what happens at the end of each verse of him hardening his heart, those verses end with (As the lord had said) and what did the lord say? Just go back to verse 3 and 4 of chp 7 each time you read the end of each verse of him hardening his heart.
Haha related to this: the pastor of my uncle lied to him . The pastor claimed that the Merneptah Stele (which probably mention "Israel" as one of the tribes conquered by Pharaoh Merneptah) said that the " Jewish God" is an " great and powerful God." That is totally wrong - it was actually the Pharaoh calling himself a mighty god.
I was never indoctrinated, so I always found these stories to be silly faerie tales. The more I've learned, the more astounding it is to me that anyone who is a grown adult still believes and defends this nonsense.
lol it seems so absurd, and its just insane and embarrassing to me, that this was me just a few years ago.
Hard to make a splash in this world weary market segment. Hell of a job, man.
appreciate that! getting there.
The whole Exodus story is the most damning evidence that God is a horrible horrible character that does not deserve to be worshipped, ESPECIALLY if he really existed. The idea that we are his creation so he can do what he wants just really tells what kind of person you're dealing with and they would bend over backwards if you - for example - would offer them a similar situation where the parents would be allowed to hurt and murder their children etc. It's the worst.
Agreed!
God hardened Pharoah’s heart, full stop. And not only that, God preplanned to do this. How do we know? Simply start reading a few chapters prior to the interactions between Moses and Pharoah. What do we see? God explained, in no uncertain terms, what and why God would accomplished with this exercise-including what he’d do with Pharoah’s heart.
excellent point, wish I would have covered that. Thanks for adding in.
Great point, and I have one more to add. In the video, after the last plague, it tells us why the God character has done all of this hardening of Pharoah's heart. It was done for "glory".
Exodus 14:4
_"And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.”_
As stated, the Egyptians still did not become worshippers of the God character, but it also states explicitly that this was for "glory". Why would an all powerful , all knowing god need or want "glory"?
I know I'm a bit late but I watch/listen to a lot of content as I spend a lot of time in my car but I would realy like to see a show completely dedicated to how christians would spend there time if they end up in heaven... It seems to me that they already have the chance to do that now on earth but do not do it. Hope my question makes sense.
"In this world is the destiny of mankind controlled by some transcendental entity or law? It is like the hand of God hovering above. If so then truly man has no control even over his own will." - Berserk opening.
Gordon H. Clark reformed philosopher brilliantly summarized the problem: "The first verse of this subsection says explicitly that God hardened the heart of Sihon, King of Heshbon. Perhaps Pharaoh should have been used for this point. When Pharaoh is mentioned, some
people grudgingly admit that the Bible says God hardened his heart but make the quick comeback that the Bible also says Pharaoh hardened his own heart. This, however, is not very effective as a comeback. Admittedly God often acts through human instrumentalities. The important question, therefore, is whether or not God is the cause of these instruments. Now, in the book of Exodus the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is mentioned eighteen times, plus one more verse that applies to the Egyptians in general. Exodus 4:21; 7:3, 13; 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:4, 8 all say that the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart. The extra verse says the Lord hardened the hearts of the Egyptians (Exodus 14:17). This is eleven times out of nineteen. In Exodus 7:14, 22; 8:19; 9:7, 35 no explicit mention of who hardened Pharaoh’s heart is made. This is five times. The other verses, three in number, 8:15, 32 and 9:34, say that Pharaoh hardened his heart. Who then, in the face of eleven statements that the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, can deny that God is the cause of this hardening? Not only is this statement
made three times as often; but it is made three times before the other statement is made even once. After all, who runs Egyptian affairs, Pharaoh or God? Naturally Pharaoh also hardened his own heart, for God often uses human instrumentalities in certain situations. But the ultimate, original, and first cause is God. From "Predestination" available on THE ARCHIVE.
Can you do a video on the Holy Spirit , and the fruits of the spirit. Why do they sound like very normal traits everyone posses ? I really can’t prove I have the Holy Spirit because of its hiddeness and lack of supernatural powers in it’s different gifts
in the beggining, before god send moses to paharaoh, god already plan to harden pharaoh heart and already plan to multiply his sign. so, no matter what that guy said, god already plan to destroy pharaoh in the very bloody and ard way... so, if all this story true, god is the one already plan everything to do everything to destroy it all, pharaoh already become a doll...
Free Willy
This story is also the reason why some christians have a prejudice against Egyptians.
I think its important to look at the Jewish understandings of these passages since we’re also dealing with their scriptures as well.
To address this, the midrash attempts to soften the contradiction by pointing out that in the initial plagues, Pharaoh hardens his own heart, and only later does God take direct responsibility. This serves as a cautionary note on the limits of free will and the consequences of past actions, suggesting that prolonged obstinacy can lead to a loss of the capacity to repent (teshuva). The case of Pharaoh becomes a lesson on the difficulty of changing one's course when deeply entrenched in harmful patterns, analogous to situations in history where radical change required great violence, as in the Civil War.
As a last thought Brandon, I really take issue with how you treat the history of the Exodus, not in the sense on how historically reliability is the Exodus, since that question is ultimately secondary the literary significance of that story. To this I like the take of Dr Joshua Bowen on this topic.
He emphasizes that the focus should not solely be on finding historical reliability in the Book of Exodus but rather understanding the cultural and historical value of the Exodus tradition. Bowen suggests that while the story may not be historically reliable, it holds significance in terms of its cultural and religious importance.
He concludes by mentioning that truth can be derived from the story of Exodus in different ways, and it may hold personal and spiritual meaning for individuals, even if it lacks historical accuracy. Bowen encourages a balanced approach that recognizes the limitations of historical reliability while acknowledging the value of the story beyond its factual accuracy.
For these reasons, I think mocking the story as “ridiculous” is counterproductive, because its value its not found in if it actually happened or not (unless a person is a fundamentalist christian), but on the overall message and significance the communities who cherished it.
Brandon, Brandon, Brandon... never bring logic, reason and reading comprehension to a bible study!!!
All one needs is an appeal to emotion and then you will be golden 🙏
lol, silly me. I should have just turned on some piano music and focused on the one pretty part where God "frees' his people.
This was the same god who permitted Job's life to be wrecked. If this mythical, immoral deity appeared to me after my death, I would still be unable to accept or worship it. I expect that most of us value virtue, compassion and peace more than Yaweh.
Yes it sure seems we do! Thanks for the comment. Agree!
Wouldn't it have been great if God softened Pharaoh's heart instead of hardening his heart? I mean it would still be interfering with his free will but at least it would have been way better than the alternative
Obviously not, or else that's what God would have done.
@@glenwillson5073 Stop defending YHVH's crimes.
@@DarkAdonisVyers
You don't have sufficient information to be making judgement calls regarding God's actions.
That's no criticism of you, it's just the current reality for almost every human at this point in time.
@@glenwillson5073 Nah, if he's shit at explaining himself, then that's _also_ on him.
@DarkAdonisVyers
It is on him, and he says it's on him, and it's his doing, and it's deliberate. Which is why, it's "no criticism of you".
But that does not change the fact that you currently don't have sufficient information to be making judgement calls.
Not that you are not allowed to either.
I used to watch vlad when i became christian. his videos are cool and i still think hes a great dude !
I dont know him as a person to comment on that, but i 100% believe the kind of channel he runs and the videos he makes are extremely harmful.
Why would you want to follow a god whose primary way of demonstrating his power is by inflicting pain and suffering on others?
Imagine if instead of 10 plagues it was 10 bountiful gifts. For example the Pharaoh could have been gifted wealth beyond what he currently had, make all the crops in the land grow to a surplus, have all sickness and illness in the land be instantly healed, and since we are ignoring free will via hardening of hearts why not make Egypt's enemies peacefully surrender to Egypt?
I think this display would be more convincing then what the story says happened.
And, well, if Egyptians actually stopped worshipping Egyptian gods and worshipped Yahweh.
Right?! Its so frustrating to see the lack of imagination from theists. So content they are in believing this was the best and only way. Its an all powerful god! Ugg
Crazy how often god's 'goodness' becomes indistinguishable from cruelty.
This hardening of pharaoh's heart really seemed just stupid to me when I read it. I mean, imagine you're all powerful, your objective is to free your chosen people from slavers. What do you do?
- teleport them to a promised land for them to enjoy freedom, milk and honey? No, too easy.
- instantaneously convince all mankind that slavery is wrong and must be avoided? No, too easy.
- harden pharaoh's heart so that he will be forced to reject the Israelites' demands, so that you will feel justified in sending plagues killing and hurting many people to coerce them to eventually let your people go before they have a change of heart, pursue them, so that you can drown them in the sea after parting it to let your people through? Mmmm, sounds like a great scenario for a B movie, let's do this!!!
Ha! Love this. Great way to explain the ridiculousness!
Can we also just point out that if god allegedly hardened pharaoh's heart to be able to kill more people, god could have just softened pharaoh's heart and not murdered so many people...which act would have been more moral?
It's like in Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse, where YHVH's plan to cleanse the world in fire (as opposed to water, like previously) is to harden the hearts of the world's leaders to cause nuclear war, and then blame the whole thing on "free will".
As an omniscient omnipotent being there is never a Time where God is required to kill someone in order to achieve a goal ( for example freeing the Jews from slavery) even while totally respecting human free will. That's the beauty of being omnipotent-there are no limits to what you can achieve under any restrictions. If the Bible is accurate, then the responsibility for every single death that has ever occurred under God's supervision is laid directly at his feet. Either God doesn't exist, God is Not omnipotent, or God takes pleasure in killing humans.
Right on! Nailed it.
Oh you know vlad? Nice Can you open a debate with him speaking about real demons, either video proof, or like a real exorcism where you question the possessed person during or afterwards?
That would be neat
Loving your channel and I’m going through all of your old videos one by one so I’m a bit late here but: you mentioned that having a hard heart can be stubbornness and it got me thinking. Maybe it was God’s actions that made pharaoh stubborn and more stubborn as the actions escalated. so when it says that God hardened his heart, it is the equivalent of “ daddy took my Xbox so I’m mad and I’m not gonna listen” and the behavior didn’t change. Pharaoh did not give in and just doubled down. Not that God literally changed his will but was just doing things that made Pharaoh more defiant. I can imagine with my son if I instructed him to do something and just took more and more of his toys away and instead of relenting he just got more pissed and determined to win. Any who it’s all made up anyways but it was a thought.
Thanks so much for watching so much!
IDK to me the whole thing sounds crazy, and religious group thang is definitely sounds crazy to me😊
Q to Xtians: Why doesn't Jesus/Yahweh change the hearts of all the non-believers ?
A: Well, he wants you to choose him. He can't override your free will.
Q to Xtians: Didn't he harden the Pharoh's heart ?
A: That was different.
LOL
Lol!
I always thought that the phrase, "God hardened Pharaoh's heart." to mean that he somehow caused Pharaoh to want revenge against the Hebrews who just brought plagues upon his land. Like he needed any encouragement. The most interesting aspect of this story is that it is probably fiction.
Ha. Indeed. Yes. I just dont think theres any good explanation for it