Despite the historical significance of Lincoln's speech, modern scholars disagree as to its exact wording, and contemporary transcriptions published in newspaper accounts of the event and even handwritten copies by Lincoln himself differ in their wording, punctuation, and structure.
Trods den historiske betydning af Lincolns tale er moderne lærde uenige om den præcise ordlyd, og samtidige afskrifter bragt i avisreportager om begivenheden, såvel som Lincolns egne håndskrevne kopier, afviger i formuleringer, tegnsætning og struktur.