of Mercy when the door was open to them for the Mercy will then be distributed according to the Election of Grace which with the Believers is the Promised Elect which will be called in at his coming And whereas St. Paul saith Rom. 9.17,18 For the Scripture saith Vnto Pharaoh even for this same purpose have I raised thee up that I might shew my Power in thee and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy and whom he will he hardneth Now as I before told you St. Paul hath here his reference to the time to come And the Scripture makes mention that as the Children of Israel was at first delivered by Signs and Wonders so will their deliverance again be with Signs and Wonders The which Signs and Wonders will be before the coming of the Lord who will be their great deliverer And therefore what God said to Moses I will here set down as touching the hardning of Pharaohs heart The which is in Exodus 4.21 Where God saith I will harden Pharaohs heart that he shall not let the People go Not that then God had hardned the heart of Phaaaoh but that it was then to do as from the Lord. For his Cruelty to the Children of Israel proceeded from his own wicked Nature being stirred up thereto by the Devil who is always an Enemy to the Children of God And in the fifth chap. it does appear that God would further prove Pharoah as touching his Cruelty to the Children of Israel before it is said he hardned his heart For in the fifth Chapter of Exodus ver 1,2,6,7,8,9,12,13,14,15,16,17,18 Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharoah Thus saith the Lord God of Israel let my people go that they may hold a feast unto me in the Wilderness Verse 2. And Pharoah said who is the Lord that I should obey his voice to let Israel go I know not the Lord neither will I let Israel go Verse 6. And Pharaoh commanded the same day the Taskmasters of the people and their Officers saying Verse 7. Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick as heretofore let them go and gather straw for themselves Verse 8. And the tale of the bricks which they did make heretofore you shall lay upon them you shall not diminish ought thereof for they be idle therefore they cry saying Let us go and sacrifice to our God Verse 9. Let there be more work laid upon the men that they may labour therein and let them not regard vain Words Verse 12. So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the Land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw Verse 13. And the Taskmasters hasted them saying Fullfil your Works your daily Task as when there was straw Verse 14. And the Officers of the children of Israel which Pharaohs Taskmasters had set over them were beaten and demanded Wherefore have ye not fullfilled your Task both yesterday and to day as heretofore Verse 15. Then the Officers of the children of Israel came and cryed to Pharaoh saying Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy Servants Verse 16. There is no straw given to thy Servants and they say to us make brick and behold thy Servants are beaten but the fault is in thine own people Verse 17. But he said Ye are idle ye are idle therefere ye say let us go and do sacrifice to the Lord. Verse 18. Go therefore now and work for there shall no straw be given you yet shall you deliver the Tale if your Bricks This horrible Cruelty and inhuman Slavery was he stirred up to by his own evil Heart and the Devils and not by God For that which God did harden him in was in his unbelief by reason of his Cruelty therefore God hardened him in unbelief that he might accomplish his fierce Anger upon him which unbelief was That he regarded not the Miracles done by Moses And the Lord is not said to harden him till the 13th verse of the 7th chap. For in the 3d verse of the same chap. The Lord again repeateth the words and saith he will harden him by which we may plainly see that his hardning was not then by his blessed Majesty for in the 2d verse of the 7th chap. the Lord said unto Moses Thou shalt speak all that I command thee and Aaron thy Brother shall speak unto Pharoah that he send the Children of Israel out of his Land V. 3. And I will harden Pharoah's Heart and multiply my signs and my wonders in the Land of Egypt V. 4. But Pharoah shall not hearken unto you that I may lay my hand upon Egypt and bring forth mine Armies and my People the Children of Israel out of the Land of Egypt by great Judgments Now in the 10th v. Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh and they did as the Lord had commanded In shewing the signs and wonders that he had appointed them And Aaron cast down his Rod before Pharaoh and before his Servants and it became a Serpent V. 11. Then Pharaoh also called the wise Men and the Sorcerers Now the Magicians of Egypt they also did in like manner with their inchantments V. 12. For they cast down every man his Rod and they became Serpents but Aaron's Rod swallowed up their Rods. And then it is in the 13th v. And he hardened Pharaoh's Heart that he hearkned not unto them as the Lord had said V. 14. And the Lord said unto Moses Pharaoh's Heart is hardned he refuseth to let the People go Here is the first time wherein it is said that God hardned Pharaoh's Heart The which we may plainly see That as to what God hardned him in was in his unbelief that he should not believe the Miracles done by Moses and Aaron And also that God did suffer the Magicians to go so far was to carry on the Council of God in that they should be a means to help on the delusion of Pharoah That these Conjurations and Inchantments whereto he trusted should be a means to help forward the accomplishment of his destruction the which for his sin and cruelty was determined of God for him For when Man is wicked God chuseth his delusions by that which he is most prone unto As for Example When God would make good his wordby the Prophet Elijah 1 Kings 22.20,21,22 against Ahab for his Cruelty and Abominable Idolatry the Will of God was That he should be deluded to his Destruction by those Prophets in whom he trusted for they were the Men that perswaded him to go up to Ramoth Gilead to Battle where he was slain and the word of the Lord fulfilled on him Now as to what God said unto Moses concerning the utter Destruction of Pharaoh is in the 9th chap. begining at the 13th verse And the Lord said unto Moses rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh and say unto him thus saith the Lord God of the Hebrews let my people go that