שמות, פרק ז׳, פסוק י״ג

The confrontation over the staff that transformed into a serpent ends with the Egyptian king refusing to free the Israelites. This outright rejection sets the stage for the pre-planned series of plagues that will soon strike the land [צאינה וראינה, קאסוטו].

There are differing views on exactly why the king remained so stubborn. One approach suggests that his attitude simply stayed in its natural, unchanged state. The moment the spectacular event ended, it left no lasting impression on him [ביאור יש״ר, בכור שור, קאסוטו]. This indifference stemmed directly from the fact that his own magicians were able to copy the act. Seeing this, the king felt confident that Aaron was merely using standard sorcery, perhaps just with slightly stronger magic than his own advisors possessed. Consequently, his resolve hardened naturally, and he dismissed their demands entirely [אבן עזרא, רשב״ם, העמק דבר, ביאור שטיינזלץ, חזקוני].

In contrast, another perspective argues that the miracle actually took a firm hold on his heart. It left a massive impression that should have logically compelled him to listen. Yet, even with this overwhelming realization, he deliberately made the choice to ignore them [הכתב והקבלה].

Ultimately, this stubborn reaction unfolded exactly as God had predicted. He had warned in advance that the king would not surrender easily and would refuse to listen [ביאור שטיינזלץ, חזקוני, קאסוטו]. The narrative specifically uses a pronoun to describe who the king ignored, rather than explicitly naming Moses and Aaron, to perfectly mirror the exact words God used when He first gave them this prophecy [קאסוטו].