Villains - Pharaoh / Par'oh

...Even as for his own nation, he decreed it. R. Tankhuma expounded: On the day when Moshe was born, his astrologers said: Today is born the saviour of Israel, and we do not know whether he is an Egyptian or Jew. So he stood up and gathered all his nation and asked of them to give him all those [boys] born that day, and he decreed this even on his nation.

...And Pharaoh commanded for his whole nation... R. Yose ben R. Khanina said: He decreed even on his own nation. And why did he do so? Because his astrologers told him: The mother of the saviour of Israel is now pregnant with him, and we do not know if he is an Israelite or an Egyptian. At that hour Pharaoh gathered together all the Egyptians and said to them: "Lend me your sons for 9 months, so that I can throw them into the river." This is why it is written: Every son - throw him into the river and it is not written here "every son of Israel", but rather "every son", whether Jewish or Egyptian. And they did not want to accept this from him, for they said: No Egyptian son will ever save them, but rather [they will be saved] from among the Hebrew women's [offspring]...And what need was there for Pharaoh to allow the females to survive? But rather, they were saying: Let us kill the males and we can take the females as wives, for the Egyptians were steeped in sexual license.

(1) One can ask , if Hashem hardened his heart what was his sin? The answer is that Hashem gave wisdom to man, and placed insight into his heart to be able to draw additional power to increase good, or to detract from his evil...But the reason for the hardening of his heart is to increase My miracles. Rabbi Yeshua states the reason was to allow him to suffer the plagues, and he speaks incorrectly.

(3) And, it is possible that a man should commit either one grievous iniquity or a multitude of sins so that the Judge of Truth will decree against him that, whereas this sinner committed those sins of his own free will and consciously, repentance should be withheld from him altogether, and grant him no leave to repent, so that he might die and perish in the iniquity he committed. Even this is what the Holy One, blessed is He! said through Isaiah: "Make the heart of this people fat, and make their eyes heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they, seeing with their eyes, and hearing with their ears, and understanding with their heart will return and be healed" (Is. 6.10). It is, moreover, said: "But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people till there was no remedy". (II Chro. 36.16)—as if saying: "They sinned of their own free will and they have multiplied iniquities, until their guilt carried the punishment to withhold repentance from them, which is the remedy". It is, therefore, written in the Torah; "And I will harden Pharaoh's heart" (Ex. 14.4), because at the beginning he sinned of his own free will, and meted out evil to Israel who sojourned in his land, even as it is said: "Come, let us deal wisely with them" (Ibid. 1.10). Thereat justice demanded to withhold repentance from him, so that due punishment might be visited upon him. Wherefor, the Holy One, blessed is He! hardened his heart. If it be so, then why did He delegate Moses to him, charging him to let Israel go forth and turn to repentance seeing that the Holy One, blessed is He! long since told him thou wilt not let them go forth, saying: "But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the Lord God" (Ibid. 9.30), and again saying: "But in very deed for this cause have I made thee to stand, to show thee My power, and that My name be declared throughout all the earth"(Ibid. –16)? To demonstrate to the future generations whenever the Holy One, blessed is He! withholds repentance from a sinner he can not repent, but must die in the original evil which he perpetrated of his own free will. ...Thus, as a consequence hereof, we must say: God's predestination prompted not Pharaoh to wrong Israel, for [he] all sinned of [his] own free will and accord, and, therefore, was guilty of an offence which carries along the punishment to withhold repentance from [him].

(8) ...For I have made his heart heavy [Shmot 10] R. Yokhanan said: This offers an opening for the wicked to say that he had no way to do teshuvah. Said Reish Laqish: Let the mouths of the wicked be closed...He warned him one time, and a second, and a third, and he would not return from his conduct. So He locked the door from repentance, in order to settle accounts with him for what he had sinned. Just so Pharaoh the wicked, once the Holy One (blessed be He) had cast His eye upon him five times and he did not pay attention to His words, the Holy One (blessed be He) said to him: You have stiffened your neck and made your heart haughty. See, I will add tumah to your tumah. [Shmot Rabbah Ch. 13] And the Rav Z"L wrote of this: that the second explanation is that half the plagues were upon him in his own wrongdoing, for it says of them only "And Pharaoh's heart was strengthened" and "His heart was made heavy". And he didn't want to send [the Israelites] away for the honour of the Creator, but when the plagues overcame him and he wearied of suffering them, then He lengthened his spirit and fortified his heart...And as for telling him before the plagues that "I will strengthen the heart of Pharaoh, etc." He informed Moshe of the future for the latter plagues... And the intent of this is the reverse of the first [reason]. And this is that it should not be said from any aspect that Ha-Shem, may He be blessed, would harden the heart of a person to close off true repentance from him but they may say that He hardens His hand against the wicked who cry out with their mouths "We have sinned" but their heart is perverse and twisted...

...And he called...He said, "I have sinned" from his great fear lest he would deny it, as He had said to him.