A more serious objection is that God is occasionally represented as if He Himself _caused_ men to do wrong, such as His _hardening Pharaoh's heart_.[154] But, as we shall see later on, the Bible often speaks of everything that occurs, whether good or evil, as being, in a certain sense, God's doing. And since the writer asserts more than once that Pharaoh hardened his own heart, there can be little doubt that he intended the two expressions to mean the same. Indeed the whole narrative represents Pharaoh as extremely obstinate in the matter, refusing to listen even to his own people.[155] [Footnote 154: _E.g._, Exod. 14. 4.] [Footnote 155: Exod. 8. 15, 32; 9. 34; 10. 3, 7.] Thirdly, as to God's _sanctioning wicked customs_. The most important is that of _human sacrifice_; but it is very doubtful whether the passages relied on do sanction this custom;[156] since it is clearly laid down elsewhere that the firstborn of _men_ are never to be sacrificed, but are always to be redeemed.[157] Moreover human sacrifices among other nations are strongly condemned, in one passage Jehovah expressly saying that they were not to be offered to Him.[158] It is, however, further urged that we have two actual instances of such sacrifices in regard to _Isaac_ and _Jephthah_.[159] But Jephthah had evidently no idea when he made his vow that it would involve the sacrifice of his daughter; and there is nothing to show that it was in any way acceptable to God. [Footnote 156: Exod. 22. 29, 30; Lev. 27. 28, 29.] [Footnote 157: Exod. 13. 13; 34. 20; Num. 18. 15.] [Footnote 158: Deut. 12. 31.] [Footnote 159: Gen. 22; Judg. 11. 39.] In the case of _Isaac_ we have the one instance in which God did order a human sacrifice; but then He specially intervened to prevent the order from being carried out. And the whole affair, the command and the counter-command, must of course be taken together. It was required to test Abraham's faith to the utmost, therefore as he most valued his son, he was told to offer him. And since children were then universally regarded as property, and at the absolute disposal of their parents, human sacrifices being by no means uncommon, the command, however distressing to his heart, would have formed no difficulty to his conscience. But when his faith was found equal to the trial, God intervened, as He had of course intended doing all along, to prevent Isaac from being actually slain.