“Now Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married (for he had married a Cushite woman); and they said, ‘Has the Lord really spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken also through us?’ And the Lord heard it” (Num. 12:1-2, AMP).
A murmur is a half-suppressed or muttered complaint, according to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary. People don’t murmur compliments; they murmur complaints. In fact, the Bible groups murmured with complaining and grumbling.
Murmuring is voicing a grievance or a gripe. Murmuring is akin to bellyaching and crabbing. It’s essentially whining and moaning about something you don’t like—and usually not to the person who has any authority to do anything about it. It’s an “under your breath behind someone’s back” complaint.
A murmuring spirit then influences people to complain in disapproval. Instead of praying for a leader, they protest against them. Instead of lifting up the leader’s arms in the midst of the battle, they burden them with more warfare because of the witchcraft their devilish wisdom releases against their minds.