A Moshe made man

Are leaders born or made? Nature or nurture? Curiously, this question arises among the sages when they approach the beginning of Sefer Devarim (Deuteronomy), the fifth book of the Torah, and the one written in Moshe’s voice. In it, Moshe addresses the children of Israel, reminding them of their mission and admonishing them concerning the record of their behavior in the desert and the anticipated challenges in their future. The book opens with an introductory sentence to this, Moshe’s great religious and literary legacy:

These are the words (d’varim) that Moshe addressed to all Israel in the other side of the Jordan… (Deuteronomy 1:10)

Moshe’s legacy is defined by words. And this is not short of ironic, considering the fact that Moshe was not born a man of words. He described himself variously as “arel sfatayim – a man of uncircumcised lips” (Exodus 6:12), “kvad peh v’kvad lashon – heavy tongued and heavy mouthed” (Exodus 4:10) and “lo ish d’varim – not a man of words” (Exodus 4:10). A huge part of his story is how he overcame this impediment to become the religious and political leader of a people in formation. Of course, any retelling (as midrash is wont to do) of this transformation will reflect the vision and imagination of its author and so we find this fascinating picture of the “making of Moshe” in this relatively late rabbinic midrash (7^th-8^th century):

 “These are the words that Moses spoke….” (Deuteronomy 1:1) [The people of] Israel said: “Yesterday you said, ‘I am not a man of words.’ But now, you have a lot to say?” [How does one explain this?] Said Rabbi Yitzhak: “If a person is incapable of speaking, recite the Torah and you will be healed, [and so,] Moshe had already studied the entire Torah.” “Through the wilderness, in the Arabah near Suf.” (Ibid.) This text is related to the following verse: “Then the lame shall leap like a hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall shout for joy.” (Isaiah 35:6) Come and see. When the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moshe: “Go, that I may send you to Pharaoh” (Exodus 3:10) Moshe said to Him: “You are doing me an injustice, [for] ‘I am not a man of words.’ (Exodus 4:10)” Moshe said to Him (God): “Seventy languages are spoken in Pharaoh’s palace, for if a man comes from another place, they speak with him in his own language. And when I go on Your (God’s) mission, they will examine me, saying, he is God’s representative, it will be revealed to them that I do not know how to speak with them. And will they not laugh at me, saying, ‘Look at the agent of the One who created the world and all its languages, and he does not know how to listen and reply? Truly, [you (God) will be doing me] an injustice!’

‘I am not a man of words’ (Exodus 4:10); ‘For I have uncircumcised lips’ (Exodus 6:12) The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: “But look at the first Adam, whom no one taught, how did he [come to] know seventy languages? It is so stated: ‘And he gave names to (them).’ (Genesis 2:20) – ‘name (singular) for every beast’ is not written here but rather ‘names’ (plural – a name for each and every beast in seventy languages).

And you say: ‘I am not a man of words!?’” (Exodus 4:10) At the end of forty years [from] when Israel left Egypt, [Moses] began to explain the Torah in seventy languages, as it says: “he undertook to expound the Torah.” (Deuteronomy 1:5) The mouth that said: “I am not a man of words,” [then] said: “These are the words.” (Deuteronomy 1:1) The prophet [thus] cries out and says (in Is. 35:6), “Then the lame shall leap like a hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall shout for joy.” Why? (Ibid., cont.:) “Because waters shall break forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.” It is therefore stated: “These are the words.” (Adapted from Tanhuma Devarim 2)

This didactic midrash retells the story of the evolution of Moshe as a leader as a means of inspiration to remind people that no one is stuck in one place, unable to improve one’s lot. Moshe, when called upon by God for his auspicious mission, felt ill-prepared to accomplish his God-given lot. With time, effort, and God-given inspiration, the Moshe at the beginning of his tenure was not the same person at the end. In the end, he was both learned and articulate (in true rabbinic style!) – a worthy reminder and model to all of us of what we can accomplish (with God’s help), if we put forth the effort.