Noticing Jewish involvement in the pornography industry is making the rounds again. Some take this as proof of a worldwide Jewish cabal working to corrupt Christian society—imagining that all Jews receive dividend checks from Solomon Friedman, the owner of PornHub. But there’s a better, biblical explanation.
Scripture speaks of a unique hardness of heart among the Jews, one that leads to deeper rebellion against God. This doesn’t mean every Jew is equally hardened or that all conspire against Christians. But it does explain why some of the worst societal rot is filled with those furthest from God. Sin darkens the heart, and rebellion entrenches it.
Ahaziah’s Hardened Heart
During my normal exposition of 1 & 2 Kings for my congregation, something about Ahaziah’s heart condition struck me. The kind of man he was—the kind of rebellion he embodied—made me think of the kind of men who profit from corruption today.
If he lived today, he might not run a pornography empire, but he would be the kind of man who profits off rebellion. His life shows the generational effect of rejecting God.
He did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who misled Israel into sin. (1 Kings 22:52)
The evidence of his hardened heart is clear in 2 Kings 1. After falling from his window and becoming sick, he never considered seeking the God of Israel. When Elijah confronted him with God’s Word, his response wasn’t repentance—it was resistance. He sent soldiers to seize the prophet as if capturing God’s messenger could silence the truth. When fire from heaven consumed two waves of fifty men, he still didn’t turn. Instead, he sent a third group, stubbornly persisting in his rebellion despite overwhelming warnings.
Ahaziah did not seek the Lord in crisis, nor when confronted, nor when experiencing consequences. His heart was hardened beyond common foolishness—he was spiritually blind and unrepentant.
The Universal Condition of the Human Heart
Of course, hardness of heart isn’t unique to Ahaziah. Scripture says it is the universal condition of fallen man.”The LORD has looked down from heaven upon the sons of mankind To see if there are any who understand, Who seek God. They have all turned aside, together they are corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one.”(Psalm 14:2-3)
Paul reinforces this in Romans 1, describing the process by which rebellion deepens:
- Their hearts are darkened (v. 21).
- God gives them over to impurity (v. 24).
- They are handed over to a depraved mind (v. 28).
This progressive corruption leads to worse and worse sins:
They are filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, and evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also approve of those who practice them. (Romans 1:29-32)
This is true of all men, apart from grace. When people persist in sin, God gives them over to greater depravity. Those who hate God will naturally embrace and promote what God hates.
The Unique Hardness of Jewish Hearts
Yet Scripture also speaks of a specific hardness concerning the Jewish people. It is not racial but spiritual—a veil over their understanding, a blindness that only Christ can remove.
Paul describes it:
But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. (2 Corinthians 3:14)
And again in Romans:
For I do not want you, brothers and sisters, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. (Romans 11:25)
This explains why the Jewish people, despite being entrusted with the oracles of God (Romans 3:2), have often been among the most hardened against Christ. Jesus Himself condemned their resistance:
Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that occurred in you had occurred in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. (Matthew 11:21)
Stephen called them “stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart” (Acts 7:51), and Paul spoke of his deep grief over their unbelief (Romans 9:3-5). Their rejection of Christ did not make them unique in their sinfulness—Gentiles are equally depraved—but it did result in a distinct kind of blindness.
The Real Enemy Behind It All
So, Christian, who is out to get you? The Jews? Or the one who blinds them?
Scripture is clear:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:12)
A Jewish pornographer is not the mastermind. He is a pawn. The real enemy is Satan, who enslaves and blinds (2 Corinthians 4:4).
Conspiracies thrive because they offer simple answers to complex problems. But the reality is more sobering: dark souls find their way to dark places. When a people persist in rebellion for generations, it should be no surprise when they champion perversion. The same can be said of any culture that rejects God, whether Jewish, Gentile, American, or otherwise.
Hope for Hardened Hearts
Yet, this hardness is not the final word.
Paul speaks of a remnant chosen by grace (Romans 11:5). He declares that in the end, “all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26), showing that God’s redemptive plan is not yet complete.
Some believe this large outpouring of grace has already happened—that the fullness of Jewish salvation occurred in the first century and that no future mass turning of Jews to Christ should be expected. I am optimistic that this is not the case. I hold out hope that God will yet bring about a significant turning of Jewish hearts to Christ in the future. But regardless of one’s eschatology, the principle remains the same: no heart is beyond the reach of God’s mercy.
Conclusion
Ahaziah’s life is a warning of where hardened rebellion leads. His heart was seared to the truth, even in the face of divine judgment. His downfall was not due to his ancestry but his refusal to repent.
Likewise, those who promote evil today do so because their hearts are darkened. The Jewish people, like all people, need the gospel. Their hardness does not make them beyond hope—only further from it. But God is not done. He will redeem His elect, Jew and Gentile alike.
So, Christian, fight the right fight. Hate the real enemy. And never lose sight of the fact that no heart—no matter how hardened—is beyond the power of God’s grace.
