(י) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֣ה אֶל־יְהֹוָה֮ בִּ֣י אֲדֹנָי֒ לֹא֩ אִ֨ישׁ דְּבָרִ֜ים אָנֹ֗כִי גַּ֤ם מִתְּמוֹל֙ גַּ֣ם מִשִּׁלְשֹׁ֔ם גַּ֛ם מֵאָ֥ז דַּבֶּרְךָ֖ אֶל־עַבְדֶּ֑ךָ כִּ֧י כְבַד־פֶּ֛ה וּכְבַ֥ד לָשׁ֖וֹן אָנֹֽכִי׃
(10) But Moses said to יהוה, “Please, O my lord, I have never been a man of words, either in times past or now that You have spoken to Your servant; I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
(א) אֵ֣לֶּה הַדְּבָרִ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֨ר דִּבֶּ֤ר מֹשֶׁה֙ אֶל־כׇּל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל. . .
(1) These are the words that Moses addressed to all Israel on the other side of the Jordan. .
The Question:
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks: The phrase “These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel . . .” at the end of his career as leader of the Jewish people take us back to another instance of devarim (speech/words) at the very beginning:
Moses said to the Holy One , “O God, I have never been a person of words [ish devarim], neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”
How is it that he who said “I am not a man of words” becomes, at the end of his life, the most eloquent spokesman of God in all of history?
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks: The phrase “These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel . . .” at the end of his career as leader of the Jewish people take us back to another instance of devarim (speech/words) at the very beginning:
Moses said to the Holy One , “O God, I have never been a person of words [ish devarim], neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”
How is it that he who said “I am not a man of words” becomes, at the end of his life, the most eloquent spokesman of God in all of history?
Possibility 1: Self-Perception is Not Necessarily Reality
Eric Lyons: First, it is possible that Moses was not as ineloquent and “slow of speech” as one might initially think. The Torah student must keep in mind who made the statements about Moses’ speech in the book of Exodus. God did not say that Moses was incapable of speaking effectively—Moses did. Moses made these statements about himself.
That is extremely telling. You may think you are coming across as nervous or that people can hear your voice shaking or see your hands trembling but in reality this is not the case. Take control of your fear by not overthinking how you are being perceived.
Possibility 2: Practice, Practice, Practice
Midrash Tanchuma: These are the words that Moses spoke….” The people noted, “Yesterday you said, ‘I am not a man of words.’ And now you are speaking so much?” Rabbi Isaac said, “If you are impeded in your speech, recite the Torah and you will be healed.”
Ola Olajuri: How does someone go from being ineloquent to mighty in words? Practice and perseverance. It may sound cliché but the more you do it, the better you will become, the greater the opportunity to hone and fine tune your skills.
Possibility 3: Learning from a Master
Moses spent a considerable amount of time with God asking questions and preparing for whatever plagues he would have to reign down on the Egyptians. He knew that he would be met with some resistance and God equipped him for this kind of response.
Possibility 4: Embracing Vulnerability
Exodus 3:11: Moses said unto God, aWho am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
Brene Brown:
... This is what I have found: To let ourselves be seen, deeply seen, vulnerably seen ...just to be able to stop and, instead of catastrophizing what might happen, to say, "I'm just so grateful, because to feel this vulnerable means I'm alive." And the last, which I think is probably the most important, is to believe that we're enough. To me, vulnerability is courage. It’s about the willingness to show up and be seen in our lives. And in those moments when we show up, I think those are the most powerful, meaning-making moments of our lives even if they don’t go well. I think they define who we are."
Eric Lyons: First, it is possible that Moses was not as ineloquent and “slow of speech” as one might initially think. The Torah student must keep in mind who made the statements about Moses’ speech in the book of Exodus. God did not say that Moses was incapable of speaking effectively—Moses did. Moses made these statements about himself.
That is extremely telling. You may think you are coming across as nervous or that people can hear your voice shaking or see your hands trembling but in reality this is not the case. Take control of your fear by not overthinking how you are being perceived.
Possibility 2: Practice, Practice, Practice
Midrash Tanchuma: These are the words that Moses spoke….” The people noted, “Yesterday you said, ‘I am not a man of words.’ And now you are speaking so much?” Rabbi Isaac said, “If you are impeded in your speech, recite the Torah and you will be healed.”
Ola Olajuri: How does someone go from being ineloquent to mighty in words? Practice and perseverance. It may sound cliché but the more you do it, the better you will become, the greater the opportunity to hone and fine tune your skills.
Possibility 3: Learning from a Master
Moses spent a considerable amount of time with God asking questions and preparing for whatever plagues he would have to reign down on the Egyptians. He knew that he would be met with some resistance and God equipped him for this kind of response.
Possibility 4: Embracing Vulnerability
Exodus 3:11: Moses said unto God, aWho am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
Brene Brown:
... This is what I have found: To let ourselves be seen, deeply seen, vulnerably seen ...just to be able to stop and, instead of catastrophizing what might happen, to say, "I'm just so grateful, because to feel this vulnerable means I'm alive." And the last, which I think is probably the most important, is to believe that we're enough. To me, vulnerability is courage. It’s about the willingness to show up and be seen in our lives. And in those moments when we show up, I think those are the most powerful, meaning-making moments of our lives even if they don’t go well. I think they define who we are."
Weaknesses Into Strengths:
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks: The mystery at the heart of Judaism is not our faith in God. It is God's faith in us. This, then, is the life-changing idea: what we think of as our greatest weaknesses can become, if we wrestle with it, our greatest strength
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks: The mystery at the heart of Judaism is not our faith in God. It is God's faith in us. This, then, is the life-changing idea: what we think of as our greatest weaknesses can become, if we wrestle with it, our greatest strength