וַיְדַבֵּר אֱלֹהִים אֶל מֹשֶׁה וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו אֲנִי ה'. יְלַמְּדֵנוּ רַבֵּנוּ, מַהוּ שֶׁיִּקְרָא אָדָם אֶת הַשֵּׁם בְּאוֹתִיּוֹתָיו. כָּךְ שָׁנוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ: אֵלּוּ שֶׁאֵין לָהֶן חֵלֶק לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא: הָאוֹמֵר אֵין תְּחִיַּת הַמֵּתִים מִן הַתּוֹרָה, וְאֵין תּוֹרָה מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם, וְהָאֶפִּיקוֹרוֹס, וְהַלּוֹחֵשׁ עַל הַמַּכָּה וְאוֹמֵר: כָּל הַמַּחֲלָה אֲשֶׁר שַׂמְתִּי בְמִצְרַיִם לֹא אָשִׂים עָלֶיךָ כִּי אֲנִי ה' רֹפְאֶךָ. אַבָּא שָׁאוּל אוֹמֵר: אַף הַהוֹגֶה אֶת הַשֵּׁם בְּאוֹתִיּוֹתָיו. And God spoke unto Moses, and said unto him: “I am the Lord; and I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob” (Exod. 6:2). May our masters teach us the punishment that is inflicted upon the man who speaks the Divine Name (i.e., the Tetragrammaton) as it is written? Thus do our masters teach us: The following have no share in the world-to-come: those who maintain that the concept of the resurrection of the dead is not derived from the Torah, that the law did not descend from heaven, the epicurean (heretic), and the one who utters (words of magic) over a wound while reciting the verse I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians; for I am the Lord that healeth thee (Exod. 15:26). And Abba Saul added: One who pronounces the Divine Name as it is written will likewise have no share in the world-to-come.
רְאֵה כַּמָּה קָשֶׁה חִלּוּל הַשֵּׁם. אָמַר בֶּן עַזַּאי: כִּבְיָכוֹל הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לֹא הִזְכִּיר שְׁמוֹ, עַד שֶׁאָמַר שְׁתֵּי תֵּבוֹת בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא וְאַחַר כָּךְ אָמַר אֱלֹהִים. רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן אֶלְעָזָר אוֹמֵר: אַף מֹשֶׁה לֹא הִזְכִּיר אֶת הַשֵּׁם, עַד שֶׁאָמַר עֶשְׂרִים וְאַחַת תֵּבוֹת, הַאֲזִינוּ הַשָּׁמַיִם וַאֲדַבֵּרָה וְגוֹ' (דברים לב, א), וְאַחַר כָּךְ, כִּי שֵׁם ה' אֶקְרָא. תֵּדַע לְךָ, שֶׁלֹּא גִּלָּה אוֹתוֹ לַאֲבוֹת הָעוֹלָם. וְלָמָּה גִּלָּה אוֹתוֹ לְמֹשֶׁה? עַל שֶׁהָלַךְ לִגְאֹל אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל. מַה כְּתִיב לְמַעְלָה מִן הָעִנְיָן וַיָּשָׁב מֹשֶׁה אֶל ה' וַיֹּאמַר, אֲדֹנָי לָמָה הֲרֵעֹתָה לָעָם הַזֶּה. Proof of the seriousness of the profanation of the Divine Name is contained in the following. Ben Azzai declared: The Holy One, blessed be He, did not mention His own name, as though that were possible, until He first spoke the words In the beginning He created (Gen. 1:1). Only then did He add the word God. And R. Simeon the son of Eleazar stated: Moses did not mention the Divine Name until he had spoken the twenty-one words Give ear, ye heavens, and I will speak, etc. (Deut. 32:1). Only then did he say: For I will proclaim the name of the Lord. Since, as you know, He did not reveal His name to the patriarchs, why did he disclose it to Moses? He did so because he had been chosen to redeem Israel, as it is written above in reference to this matter: And Moses returned unto the Lord and said: “Lord, wherefore hast thou dealt ill with this people?” (Exod. 5:22).
אִם אָמַר אָדָם לְגָדוֹל הֵימֶנּוּ לָמָה הֲרֵעֹתָה, דָּבָר קָשֶׁה הוּא אוֹמֵר. וְלֹא עוֹד אֶלָּא אָמַר, וּמֵאָז בָּאתִי אֶל פַּרְעֹה לְדַבֵּר בִּשְׁמֶךָ הֵרַע לָעָם הַזֶּה. אָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: חֲבָל עַל דְאָבְדִין וְלָא מִשְׁתַּכְּחִין, הֲרֵי כַּמָּה פְּעָמִים נִגְלֵיתִי עַל אַבְרָהָם יִצְחָק וְיַעֲקֹב בְּאֵל שַׁדַּי, וְלֹא אָמַרְתִּי לָהֶם שֶׁשְּׁמִי ה' כְּשֵׁם שֶׁאָמַרְתִּי לְךָ, וְלֹא הִרְהֲרוּ אַחַר מִדּוֹתַי. אָמַרְתִּי לְאַבְרָהָם, קוּם הִתְהַלֵּךְ בָּאָרֶץ לְאָרְכָּהּ וְגוֹ' (בראשית יג, יז). בִּקֵּשׁ מָקוֹם לִקְבֹּר שָׂרָה וְלֹא מָצָא, עַד שֶׁקָּנָה בְּאַרְבַּע מֵאוֹת שֶׁקֶל כֶּסֶף, וְלֹא הִרְהֵר אַחַר מִדּוֹתַי. אָמַרְתִּי לְיִצְחָק גּוּר בָּאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת כִּי לְךָ וּלְזַרְעֲךָ אֶתֵּן אֶת כָּל הָאֲרָצוֹת הָאֵל (בראשית כו, ג). בִּקֵּשׁ מַיִם לִשְׁתּוֹת וְלֹא מָצָא, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיָּרִיבוּ רֹעֵי גְרָר עִם רֹעֵי יִצְחָק לֵאמֹר לָנוּ הַמָּיִם וְגוֹ' (בראשית כו, כ). וְלֹא הִרְהֵר אַחַר מִדּוֹתַי. אָמַרְתִּי לְיַעֲקֹב: הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה שֹׁכֵב עָלֶיהָ לְךָ אֶתְּנֶנָּה (בראשית כח, יג). בִּקֵּשׁ מָקוֹם לִנְטֹעַ אָהֳלוֹ וְלֹא מָצָא, עַד שֶׁקָּנָה בְּמֵאָה קְשִׁיטָה, וְלֹא הִרְהֵר אַחַר מִדּוֹתַי. If a man should dare say to a person more important than himself, “Why did you treat me so badly?” he would be held guilty of a serious offense, yet Moses said: For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Thy name, he hath dealt ill with this people (ibid., v. 23).1Moses expresses doubt as to God’s ability to save the people from further anguish and is rebuked. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses: Alas for those who have perished but are not to be found! I revealed myself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as the Lord Almighty, but I never disclosed to them that My name is YHWH,2The name employed when speaking of God’s merciful aspect. as I did to you, yet they never criticized My ways. To Abraham I said: Arise, walk through the land in the length thereof (Gen. 13:17), yet though he searched for a burial place for Sarah, and was unable to obtain one until he paid four hundred shekels of silver for it, he did not disparage My ways. I told Isaac: Sojourn in this land …for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these lands (ibid. 26:3), but even when he sought water to drink and was unable to find any, And the herdsman of Gerar strove with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying: “The water is ours” (ibid., v. 20), he did not criticize My ways. I told Jacob: The land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed (ibid. 28:13), yet when he sought a place to pitch his tent, and could not obtain any land until he purchased it with a hundred lambs, he found no fault with My words.
וְאַתָּה תְּחִלַּת שְׁלִיחוּתִי אָמַרְתָּ לִי מַה שִּׁמְךָ, וְעַכְשָׁו אַתָּה אוֹמֵר: וּמֵאָז בָּאתִי אֶל פַּרְעֹה לְדַבֵּר בִּשְׁמֶךָ וְגוֹ', לְפִיכָךְ עַתָּה תִרְאֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶעֱשֶׂה לְפַרְעֹה וְגוֹ'. בְּמִלְחֶמֶת פַּרְעֹה תִּרְאֶה, וְאֵין אַתָּה רוֹאֶה בְּמִלְחֶמֶת שְׁלֹשִים וְאֶחָד מְלָכִים שֶׁיַּעֲשֶׂה בָּהֶן נְקָמָה יְהוֹשֻׁעַ תַּלְמִידֶךָ. מִכָּאן אַתְּ לָמֵד, שֶׁנָּטַל מֹשֶׁה אֶת הַדִּין, שֶׁלֹּא לִכָּנֵס לָאָרֶץ. לְפִיכָךְ כְּתִיב: וַיְדַבֵּר אֱלֹהִים אֶל מֹשֶׁה, שֶׁיָּשַׁב עָלָיו בְּמִדַּת הַדִּין. וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו אֲנִי ה', מִדַּת רַחֲמִים, שֶׁאֶגְאַל אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאַכְנִיסֵם לָאָרֶץ. לְכָךְ כְּתִיב: וָאֵרָא אֶל אַבְרָהָם אֶל יִצְחָק וְאֶל יַעֲקֹב בְּאֵל שַׁדָּי. However, on the very first mission I assigned to you, you asked Me, “What is your name?” and now you say: For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Thy name, He hath dealt ill, etc. Therefore, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh (Exod. 6:1). That is, you will participate in the struggle with Pharaoh, but you will not witness the war against the thirty-one kings, that Joshua, your disciple, will wage in vengeance against them.3Since the wars would be fought in the land of Israel, Moses would not participate in them. From this verse you may learn that Moses was punished by being forbidden to enter the land. Hence it is written: And God said unto Moses that He would requite him with Divine Justice. But He said unto him: “I am the Lord” (ibid., v. 2), thereby indicating that Divine Mercy demands that I redeem the Israelites and bring them into the land. Hence it is written: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob as God Almighty (ibid., v. 3).