We started looking at the two Exodus stories that Paul told to substantiate his main point that God was faithful to his word. The first story was the golden calf incident and God’s mercy. The second story is about God showing his power in the plagues against a hard-hearted Pharaoh. We find Paul’s reference to it in Romans 9:17-18. This time, Paul used a different kind of character. So far, he had talked about Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, Esau, Sarah, Rebekah, Moses, and Israel. Now, Paul interjected a new main character, someone different, the most powerful man on earth, a pagan, someone who did not know the Lord, and someone who was proud and stubborn – the Pharaoh of Egypt.