Bible Dictionary
STAMMERER
A stammerer is one whose speech is inarticulate or difficult to understand. In prophetic passages, related language may also describe speech that sounds foreign, strange, or mocking.
Definition
A stammerer is a person whose speech is inarticulate, difficult to understand, or seemingly broken. Related biblical language may also describe speech that sounds strange, foreign, or mocking to those who hear it.
Biblical Usage
Isaiah uses the term for inarticulate speaking and for speech perceived as strange. The passages connect the expression with the difficulty of understanding the speaker’s words.
Historical Background
The supplied material notes that primitive peoples commonly regard their own language as clearly pronounced and other languages as stammering. The underlying word may therefore mean strange speech or mocking speech.
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>stam'-er-er: Isa 32:4, `illegh, "inarticulate speaking." In Isa 28:11; 33:19, l`g (pointing uncertain) is rendered "strange" by the Revised Version (British and American), with "stammering" in the King James Version, the Revised Version margin. Probably the word means both, as primitive people always think that their own language alone is clearly pronounced. Or the word may mean "mocking."</p>