English Standard Version
Exodus 4:11
11Then the Lord said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?
Exodus 4:11 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the Lord said unto him, Who hath made man’s mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord?
- New International Version (NIV)The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord?
- New King James Version (NKJV)So the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord?
- New Living Translation (NLT)Then the Lord asked Moses, “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the Lord?
Context of Exodus 4:11
9If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground." 10But Moses said to the Lord, "Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue." Then the Lord said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak." 13But he said, "Oh, my Lord, please send someone else."
Read all of Exodus 4Exodus 4:11 word by word
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוָ֜ה אֵלָ֗יו מִ֣י שָׂ֣ם פֶּה֮ לָֽאָדָם֒ א֚וֹ מִֽי־יָשׂ֣וּם אִלֵּ֔ם א֣וֹ חֵרֵ֔שׁ א֥וֹ פִקֵּ֖חַ א֣וֹ עִוֵּ֑ר הֲלֹ֥א אָנֹכִ֖י יְהוָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- unto him, Who hath madeשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: makeH7760
- man’sאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
- mouthפֶּהpeh · lipH6310
- the dumbאִלֵּם'illêm · muteH483
- or deafחֵרֵשׁchêrêsh · deafH2795
- or the seeingפִּקֵּחַpiqqêach · seeingH6493
- or the blindעִוֵּר‛ivvêr · blindH5787
Cross-references for Exodus 4:11
- Genesis 18:14Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son."
- Psalms 51:15O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.
- Psalms 94:9He who planted the ear, does he not hear? He who formed the eye, does he not see?
- Psalms 146:8the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.
- Isaiah 6:7And he touched my mouth and said: "Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for."
- Isaiah 35:5Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
- Isaiah 42:7to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness.
- Jeremiah 1:6Then I said, "Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth."
- Ezekiel 3:26And I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that you shall be mute and unable to reprove them, for they are a rebellious house.
- Ezekiel 33:22Now the hand of the Lord had been upon me the evening before the fugitive came; and he had opened my mouth by the time the man came to me in the morning, so my mouth was opened, and I was no longer mute.
- Amos 3:6Is a trumpet blown in a city, and the people are not afraid? Does disaster come to a city, unless the Lord has done it?
Commentaries on Exodus 4:11
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 11Who hath made man's mouth? etc. - Cannot he who formed the mouth, the whole organs of speech, and hath given the gift of speech also, cannot he give utterance? God can take away those gifts and restore them again. Do not provoke him: he who created the eye, the ear, and the mouth, hath also made the blind, the deaf, and the dumb.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-17Verses 10-17 Moses continued backward to the work God designed him for; there was much of cowardice, slothfulness, and unbelief in him. We must not judge of men by the readiness of their discourse. A great deal of wisdom and true worth may be with a slow tongue. God sometimes makes choice of those as his messengers, who have the least of the advantages of art or nature, that his grace in them may appear the more glorious. Christ's disciples were no…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11God created the organs of speech. These include the mouth, tongue, and lips. He has also decided each person’s abilities in speaking. God can use the abilities he has given. He is able to work through what he has created and chosen.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 10-1310-13. I am not eloquent--It is supposed that Moses labored under a natural defect of utterance or had a difficulty in the free and fluent expression of his ideas in the Egyptian language, which he had long disused. This new objection was also overruled, but still Moses, who foresaw the manifold difficulties of the undertaking, was anxious to be freed from the responsibility.Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 4:11
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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