Scholars continue to compare and contrast Paul’s understanding of divine agency with that of other Second Temple Jewish thinkers. In this paper, I aim to contribute to this discussion by focusing on Paul’s treatment of the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart. Specifically, by comparing Paul’s description of the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart in Rom 9:17–18 with the description of the same episode found in other Second Temple Jewish texts, I will argue that the apostle held to a more elevated view of divine agency than did many of his contemporaries. I attempt to make my case in three stages. First, I study the hardening motif within the exodus story, examining in particular the author’s description of God’s influence on Pharaoh’s heart. Here I conclude that the original author conceived of divine hardening as a form of non-retributive divine reprobating activity. In other words, I argue that God’s negative influence on Pharaoh is not described as an act of retribution; on the contrary, the episode portrays Pharaoh’s actions as simultaneously volitional and yet contingent upon YHWH’s influence and activity. As such, the author prioritizes God’s agency without eliminating Pharaoh’s responsibility. Second, I provide an overview of early Jewish treatments of the exodus story in order to show that, through a number of different strategies, early Jewish authors emphasized Pharaoh’s responsibility over his moral condition while minimizing the role of divine agency in the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart. Lastly, I contend that, unlike his contemporaries, Paul asserted that the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart was an act of non-retributive divine reprobating activity, thereby retaining the emphasis on divine agency that was present in Exod 4–14. In addition, I argue that Paul went even further than Exodus in emphasizing the role of divine agency by escalating the consequences of Pharaoh’s actions from mortal death to eternal punishment. Thus, I conclude that Paul’s use of the hardening motif reveals that he embraced a very heightened view of divine agency when compared with the views of other Second Temple authors.