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And God spoke unto Moses and said unto him: I am the Lord." (Shmot 6:2)
"I am the Lord" Who maintains all existence - not only creating it but maintaining it as well. Nothing in the world has any identity or sustenance without my influence upon it. As it is said (Nehemia 9.6): "And You sustain everything." And from this it follows that nothing has existence against His will. (S'forno)
The Torah commentaries dwell on the significance of God's opening declaration to Moses, "I am the Lord." What is the intention of this greeting, one not found in God's interactions with any of the forefathers?
Among world philosophers there are those who contend that after God created the world He disengaged Himself from it, allowing it to be governed by the laws and forces of nature. According to what has been known as the transce
ndental view, God is likened to a watchmaker who designs and builds the systems of his creation, but who, upon completing his work, has no ongoing influence over, or involvement with, his product. Just as the watch functions on its own, subject to the forces surrounding it, so the world continues to function on its own.
To this, S'forno responds, "I am the Lord" Who maintains all existence not only creating it but maintaining it as well." S'forno learns this from the fact, that for the first time, God addresses Moses with His name, "YHVH," the name that alludes to God's eternalness - past present, and future. Thus, not only dud God design and create all that exists but He has also had a direct hand in maintaining worldly affairs throughout time.
The forefathers recognizes God as the Creator and Master over all existence, and turned to Him with requests concerning their own personal lives. Abraham asks, "Lord Almighty, what will you give me?" Jacob says, "If God will be with me" Yet the foregathers, despite their greatness, never merited God's full revelation: "[By] My name YHVH I did not make Myself known to them." (Shmot 6.3). But Moses, who was destined to lead the nation and teach them to recognize God's eternal involvement in world affairs, merited knowing God by His eternal name, "YHVH." In S'forno's words, "For nothing in the world has any identity or sustenance without My influence upon it."
We have something to learn from God's ongoing relationship with His creation. Many people develop worthy theories or speak of noble ideas but these are not expressed in their daily lives. To this, King David responded (psalms 24.3): "Who will ascend God's mountain, and who will rise in His place of holiness?" "Who will ascend" refers to the inventor/creator. "Who will rise" refers to him who reflects in his own actions the theories and values he espouses. The act of creation is not a one-time affair. As we learn by Godly example, creation is complete only if it is applied in an ongoing fashion.
