Exodus 14:17 (ASV)

Passage

And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall go in after them: and I will get me honor upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.

Nearby Context

Exodus 14:15 And Jehovah said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward.

Exodus 14:16 And lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thy hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go into the midst of the sea on dry ground.

Exodus 14:17 And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall go in after them: and I will get me honor upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.

Exodus 14:18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am Jehovah, when I have gotten me honor upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen.

Exodus 14:19 And the angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud removed from before them, and stood behind them:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "behold", "harden", "hearts", "egyptians", "shall", "after", "honor", and "upon". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "behold" and "harden", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "And lift thou up thy rod and..." into verse 18's "And the Egyptians shall know that I...", so "behold" and "harden" belong inside that flow. In Exodus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "behold" and "harden" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.