Read Exodus 6:10-12 at Bible Gateway.
Hebrew paragraph division
Exo 6:10-12 {p} YHVH: speak to Pharaoh/ Moses: how shall he heed me?
Exo 6:10-12 chiastic structure
Original Hebrew
circumcised
Strong’s H5243 נמל namal, a primitive root meaning, “to circumcise.” The pictographs are nun + mem + lamed.
nun נ, ן = the seed, thus continue, heir, son
mem מ, ם = the water, thus chaos, mighty, blood
lamed ל = the shepherd’s staff, thus teach, yoke, to, bind
The waters of rain or sea can either be life-giving when gentle, or life-destroying when mighty or chaotic, thus mem sometimes takes the connotation of destruction.
Cognate words help us find the story. One is to speak, in the sense of words put together to form the whole; another is an ear of corn, in the sense of the corn seeds individually joined together to make the whole. Thus the story being told is of a part or segment (nun, as a seed of corn is a segment of the ear) cut off (mem) from the whole (lamed).
uncircumcised
Strong’s H6189 ערל arel, a concrete noun meaning, “uncircumcised,” from Strong’s H6188 ערל arel, a primitive root meaning, “to expose or remove the foreskin,” but used exclusively to mean, “to remain uncircumcised.” The pictographs are ayin + resh + lamed.
ayin ע = the eye, thus watch, know, shade
resh ר = the head of man, thus head, first, top, beginning, man
lamed ל = the shepherd’s staff, thus teach, yoke, to, bind
To see (ayin) the head (resh) of the staff (lamed).
The phrase “uncircumcised lips” is a Hebrew idiom. Lips cannot be circumcised, so what is Moses talking about? Circumcision is a natural picture representing or prophesying of a spiritual reality, the cutting off of the flesh, that is, the lusts of the flesh, which are at war with the fruits of the Spirit:
romans 8, walking in the flesh vs. walking in the Spirit
galatians 3, the flesh opposed to the Spirit
galatians 4, not obedience vs. faith but the flesh vs. the Spirit
galatians 5, lusts of the flesh opposed to the fruits of the Spirit
Given that the Biblical understanding of fruits and gifts of the Spirit is that they are graces, often translated from the Greek charis, “that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, charm;” and where we get the English word charisma to describe someone who is received favorably, and the English word charismatic to describe the branch of Christians who believe the gifts of the Spirit have not ceased, we can see that Moses was saying that he was of graceless lips and speech devoid of charm.
Now what does it tell you that in the Hebraic worldview, to be uncircumcised means to be graceless? It makes sense though, because if you are circumcised, you have entered into the covenant with Almighty God, which is the covenant of grace! One of the greatest lies the enemy has ever lied to God’s people is that obedience nullifies grace, when in reality obedience covers with grace! ♥
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