A frequent misinterpretation portrays God as arbitrarily hardening hearts to provoke sin and destruction, depicting Him as cruel or manipulative without cause; in reality, this judicial hardening followed centuries of Canaanite depravity, including child sacrifice and rejection of God's patience, akin to Pharaoh's case. Another error applies it universally to endorse modern violence or rigid predestination debates, overlooking its specific covenantal context of holy war against irredeemable nations to purify the land for Israel's obedience.
Joshua 11:20
King James Version (1769)
20 For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts, that they should come against Israel in battle, that he might destroy them utterly, and that they might have no favour, but that he might destroy them, as the Lord commanded Moses.
This passage reveals God's sovereign orchestration of events in the conquest of Canaan, where He hardened the hearts of the enemy kings and their people, compelling them to fight Israel instead of seeking peace, thus ensuring their complete destruction as previously commanded to Moses. It underscores divine justice against long-entrenched wickedness and idolatry, facilitating Israel's secure inheritance of the Promised Land without compromise or lingering threats.