Proud and disobedient resistance to God's will and rejection of his commands.
Stubbornness is an attitude of heart
Jeremiah 7:24 See also Deuteronomy 9:27; Judges 2:19; Psalm 78:8; Isaiah 48:4; Jeremiah 3:17, Jeremiah 5:3, Jeremiah 9:14, Jeremiah 16:12, Jeremiah 18:12; Hosea 4:16; Zechariah 7:11
Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but they followed the stubborn inclinations of their own evil hearts. They went backward and not forward.
The practical consequences of stubbornness
Ephesians 4:18 See also Exodus 13:15, Exodus 33:3; Leviticus 26:19; 2 Chronicles 26:16; Nehemiah 9:16–17; Job 20:6–7; Psalm 10:4; Proverbs 1:24–31, Proverbs 28:14, Proverbs 29:1 sudden destruction for the unrepentant; Isaiah 2:11 a humbling on judgment day; Jeremiah 5:3, Jeremiah 11:8, Jeremiah 13:10; Daniel 5:20 King Nebuchadnezzar deposed; Hosea 13:6 The people of Israel forget their God; Zephaniah 3:11; Mark 6:51–52 Jesus Christ's disciples amazed; Matthew 18:15–17; Romans 2:5 The self-righteous store up wrath for the day of judgment.
They are darkened in their understanding and alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.
Commands not to be stubborn
Nehemiah 9:29 See also Exodus 33:5; 2 Chronicles 30:8; Psalm 95:8; Mark 16:14
You admonished them to turn back to Your law, but they were arrogant and disobeyed Your commandments. They sinned against Your ordinances, by which a man will live if he practices them. They turned a stubborn shoulder; they stiffened their necks and would not obey.
Stubbornness can be God's judgment on sin
Isaiah 63:17 When people persistently refuse to obey God, he brings about a condition where they cannot obey him, and consequently cannot receive his blessing. See also Exodus 4:21, Exodus 14:17; Deuteronomy 2:30; Joshua 11:20; Psalm 81:11–12; Romans 9:18, Romans 11:7–8
Why, O LORD, do You make us stray from Your ways and harden our hearts from fearing You? Return, for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your heritage.
God's appeal to stubborn people
Isaiah 65:2 See also Romans 10:21; 2 Chronicles 32:24–25; Job 33:16–18; Isaiah 46:12; Jeremiah 7:22–24; Ezekiel 2:4–5; Zechariah 7:11–12; Acts 19:8–9
All day long I have held out My hands to an obstinate people who walk in the wrong path, who follow their own imaginations,
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.