Hard Headed or Hard Hearted

The Bible differentiates between commitment and meanness.
We call someone a hard-head if they tend not to listen to advice, or even to learn from the evidence which beats them upside the head. They aren’t evil, just don’t appear to possess full competence in reasoning. Then there are people who are hard-hearted. In our English figures of speech, that’s someone untouched by empathy or sympathy. That’s evil.
Some folks exhibit a pre-disposition for backing themselves into a corner and refusing to discuss the possibilities. When it’s a matter of emotional damage, there are ways around it, but it takes superior grade patience and some training. This would be someone who takes all suggestions as a personal attack. When it’s more fundamental to their character, it becomes the bad side of something we could wish more people had — commitment.
Most things we find annoying in other humans is merely a symptom of something deeper. Depending on the context and prior conditioning, the same basic trait can manifest for good and for bad. One man’s hard-head is another man’s faithful servant. But the context can surely include a bad motive on the part of those trying to change their behavior. It’s an understatement to note not everyone wielding authority has benign motives, much less benign effects.
We could wisely wish more folks would stiffly resist evil, even while we debate what is evil. A strong character means unyielding about commitments. Commitment is another word for faith. It means so completely invested in some particular thing you are willing to pay a high price to avoid betraying that thing. It’s bigger than you, more important than you. Thus, it’s not petty, regardless of how it seems to manifest to the person forced to deal with it as a problem.
If you know well enough what it is you are committed to that you can say something intelligible about it, wise minds tend to give you more room. Fools aren’t going to understand anything they can’t use for themselves.
In the final analysis, the observer is half the equation. It is virtually impossible to be utterly objective when there is a conflict. While the fighting is on, it’s pretty hard to do a detailed analysis, and any history you may know is only what others are willing to let you learn. Sometimes it’s pretty obvious, but evil often puts on a good mask.
In Scripture, a hard head is a clear minded commitment to something precious to you. A hard heart is an evil commitment, as measured against revealed morality.