וַיַּ֤עַן מֹשֶׁה֙ וַיֹּ֔אמֶר וְהֵן֙ לֹֽא־יַאֲמִ֣ינוּ לִ֔י וְלֹ֥א יִשְׁמְע֖וּ בְּקֹלִ֑י כִּ֣י יֹֽאמְר֔וּ לֹֽא־נִרְאָ֥ה אֵלֶ֖יךָ יי׃
Moses spoke up and said, “What if they do not believe me and do not listen to me, but say: "Adonai did not appear to you"?
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֣ה אֶל־יי בִּ֣י אדושם לֹא֩ אִ֨ישׁ דְּבָרִ֜ים אָנֹ֗כִי גַּ֤ם מִתְּמוֹל֙ גַּ֣ם מִשִּׁלְשֹׁ֔ם גַּ֛ם מֵאָ֥ז דַּבֶּרְךָ֖ אֶל־עַבְדֶּ֑ךָ כִּ֧י כְבַד־פֶּ֛ה וּכְבַ֥ד לָשׁ֖וֹן אָנֹֽכִי׃
Moses said to Adonai, “Please, O God, I have never been a man of words, neither in times past, nor now that You have spoken to me; I am slow [lit. "heavy," "thick"] of speech and slow of tongue.”
וַיְדַבֵּ֣ר מֹשֶׁ֔ה לִפְנֵ֥י יי לֵאמֹ֑ר הֵ֤ן בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ לֹֽא־שָׁמְע֣וּ אֵלַ֔י וְאֵיךְ֙ יִשְׁמָעֵ֣נִי פַרְעֹ֔ה וַאֲנִ֖י עֲרַ֥ל שְׂפָתָֽיִם׃ {פ}
Moses again appealed to God, saying, “The Israelites would not listen to me; how then should Pharaoh heed me, a man of impeded speech [lit. "uncircumcised lips"]!?"
כבד פה. בִּכְבֵדוּת אֲנִי מְדַבֵּר. וּבִלְשׁוֹן לַעַז בלב"ו:
"SLOW OF SPEECH" — I speak heavily (i.e. with difficulty); see old French balbus.
הָיְתָה בַת פַּרְעֹה מְנַשֶּׁקֶת וּמְחַבֶּקֶת וּמְחַבֶּבֶת אוֹתוֹ כְּאִלּוּ הוּא בְּנָהּ, וְלֹא הָיְתָה מוֹצִיאַתּוּ מִפַּלְטֵרִין שֶׁל מֶלֶךְ, וּלְפִי שֶׁהָיָה יָפֶה הַכֹּל מִתְאַוִּים לִרְאוֹתוֹ, מִי שֶׁהָיָה רוֹאֵהוּ לֹא הָיָה מַעֲבִיר עַצְמוֹ מֵעָלָיו. וְהָיָה פַּרְעֹה מְנַשְׁקוֹ וּמְחַבְּקוֹ, וְהוּא נוֹטֵל כִּתְרוֹ שֶׁל פַּרְעֹה וּמְשִׂימוֹ עַל רֹאשׁוֹ, כְּמוֹ שֶׁעָתִיד לַעֲשׂוֹת לוֹ כְּשֶׁהָיָה גָּדוֹל. ... וְהָיוּ שָׁם יוֹשְׁבִין חַרְטֻמֵּי מִצְרַיִם, וְאָמְרוּ, מִתְיָרְאִין אָנוּ מִזֶּה שֶׁנּוֹטֵל כִּתְרְךָ וְנוֹתְנוֹ עַל רֹאשׁוֹ, שֶׁלֹא יִהְיֶה זֶה אוֹתוֹ שֶׁאָנוּ אוֹמְרִים שֶׁעָתִיד לִטֹּל מַלְכוּת מִמְּךָ. מֵהֶם אוֹמְרִים לְהָרְגוֹ, מֵהֶם אוֹמְרִים לְשָׂרְפוֹ, וְהָיָה יִתְרוֹ יוֹשֵׁב בֵּינֵיהֶן וְאוֹמֵר לָהֶם, הַנַּעַר הַזֶּה אֵין בּוֹ דַּעַת, אֶלָּא בַּחֲנוּ אוֹתוֹ, וְהָבִיאוּ לְפָנָיו בִּקְעָרָה זָהָב וְגַחֶלֶת, אִם יוֹשִׁיט יָדוֹ לַזָּהָב יֵשׁ בּוֹ דַּעַת וְהִרְגוּ אוֹתוֹ, וְאִם יוֹשִׁיט יָדוֹ לַגַּחֶלֶת אֵין בּוֹ דַּעַת וְאֵין עָלָיו מִשְׁפַּט מָוֶת. מִיָּד הֵבִיאוּ לְפָנָיו וְשָׁלַח יָדוֹ לִקַּח הַזָּהָב, וּבָא גַּבְרִיאֵל וְדָחָה אֶת יָדוֹ וְתָפַשׂ אֶת הַגַּחֶלֶת וְהִכְנִיס יָדוֹ עִם הַגַּחֶלֶת לְתוֹךְ פִּיו וְנִכְוָה לְשׁוֹנוֹ, וּמִמֶּנּוּ נַעֲשָׂה (שמות ד, י): כְּבַד פֶּה וּכְבַד לָשׁוֹן.
The daughter of Pharaoh would kiss and hug and adore [Moses] as if he were her own son, and she would not take him out of the king’s palace. And because he was so beautiful, everyone yearned to see him. Anyone that saw him would not leave his presence. And Pharaoh would kiss him and hug him, and Moses would remove Pharaoh’s crown and place it on his own head, as he would do to him in the future when he was grown. ... And some of the observers sitting among them said, “We are wary that he is taking your crown and placing it on his head; perhaps he will take the kingship from you.” Some said to kill him, and some said to burn him. And Jethro was sitting among them and said to them, “This child has no intent to take the throne. Rather, test him by bringing in a bowl [a piece of] gold and a coal. If he outstretches his hand towards the gold, you may know that he intends to take the throne, and you should kill him. And if he outstretches his hand towards the coal, you may know that he has no intent to take the throne, and he may live.” They immediately brought the bowl before Moses, and he stretched out his hand to take the gold, and the angel Gabriel came and pushed his hand toward the coal. He then brought the coal into his mouth and burned his tongue, and thus he was made “slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
ערל שפתים. אֲטוּם שְׂפָתַיִם;
וְכֵן כָּל לְשׁוֹן עָרְלָה אֲנִי אוֹמֵר שֶׁהוּא אָטוּם, "עֲרֵלָה אָזְנָם" (ירמיהו ו') – אֲטוּמָה מִשְּׁמֹעַ, "עַרְלֵי לֵב" (שם ט') – אֲטוּמִים מֵהָבִין...
"UNCIRCUMCISED LIPS" — It really means "obstructed" in his lips.
So, too, that all forms derived from ערל signify "obstructed," e.g., “their ears are stopped up so that they will not hear" [Jer. 6:10]; “their hearts are closed so that they will not understand" [Jer. 9:25], etc.
(א) כי כבד פה וערל לשון אנכי - איני בקי בלשון מצרים בחיתוך לשון, כי בקטנותי ברחתי משם ועתה אני בן שמונים. ... מי שאינו בקי בלשון המלכות קרוי כן. ... וכי אפשר נביא אשר ידוע השם פנים אל פנים וקיבל תורה מידו לידו היה מגמגם בלשונו?!
"I am not fluent in the Egyptian spoken by the upper classes of the aristocracy. I fled Egypt before I had completed my education there..."
A prophet must address everyday people, rather than the aristocracy, who speak with unintelligible speech and using difficult language...
Is it possible that a prophet who could communicate with God “face to face,” and who received the Torah from God and communicated it to the Israelite people should have been afflicted with a stutter!?
בי אדושם לא איש דברים אנכי.
כל שכן עתה שאני זקן ואתה לא רפאתני מאז דברך אל עבדך ותצוה אותי בשליחות זאת, ומה שלא רפאו הש"י ולא הסיר כובד פיו מפני שלא התפלל ומה שלא התפלל מפני שלא היה רוצה ללכת.
“Please, O God, I have never been a man of words.” [Ex. 4:10] ...
Moses implies that the fact that God had not cured his speech affliction was proof that he was not the right man to be sent on the mission to Pharaoh. However, the only reason God had not cured him was that Moses had never formally asked to be cured. And why had he never prayed to be cured? Because he wanted to have a good excuse to refuse this mission.