Moses Had a Stutter?

The Myth That Moses Had a Stutter

There's a myth that Moses had a stutter. Yeah, the same Moses that led Israel out of Egypt and wrote the first five books of the Bible. That myth has been perpetuated by what appears on this poster and the various forms of it floating around on the internet.

Moses’ Excuses Before Pharaoh

But the myth comes from a misunderstanding regarding words Moses said about himself. When God commanded Moses to go to Egypt and tell Pharaoh, let my people go, Moses said he couldn't do it because he was ineloquent, slow of speech, had uncircumcised lips.

But Moses was just making excuses because he didn't want to do it. Oh Lord, please send someone else. And how did God respond? By getting angry at him for his whining. So God let Moses' brother Aaron be his mouthpiece.

Stephen’s Interpretation of Moses in Acts 7

And eventually Moses did address Pharaoh and the Israelites himself. One of the ways that we can interpret the Old Testament is by how the New Testament writers interpret it. For example, the speech of Stephen in Acts 7 reveals things about Moses upheld by Jewish tradition.

Like how old he was when he killed an Egyptian. He was 40. And how old he was when God appeared to him in the burning bush. He was 80. Yeah, that's much older than he looks here, here, and here. Stephen also says that even before Moses was called, he was well-educated, mighty in words and in deeds.

Moses Was Not Ineloquent, but Rebuked by God

He was one of the greatest orators Israel ever had. Moses didn't have a stutter, he was just making excuses to the point that God rebuked him. Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute or deaf? Or seeing or blind?

Is it not I the Lord? Now therefore go and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak. Indeed, Moses spoke the very words of God, clearly, when we understand the text.