(א) וארא. אֶל הָאָבוֹת: (ב) באל שדי. הִבְטַחְתִּים הַבְטָחוֹת וּבְכֻלָּן אָמַרְתִּי לָהֶם אֲנִי אֵל שַׁדַּי: (ג) ושמי ה' לא נודעתי להם. לֹא הוֹדַעְתִּי אֵין כְּתִיב כָּאן אֶלָּא לֹא נוֹדַעְתִּי, לֹא נִכַּרְתִּי לָהֶם בְּמִדַת אֲמִתּוּת שֶׁלִּי, שֶׁעָלֶיהָ נִקְרָא שְׁמִי ה', נֶאֱמָן לְאַמֵּת דְּבָרַי, שֶׁהֲרֵי הִבְטַחְתִּים וְלֹא קִיַּמְתִּי:
זה הדבר. מֹשֶׁה נִתְנַבֵּא בְּ"כֹה אָמַר ה' כַּחֲצֹת הַלַּיְלָה" (שמות י"א) וְהַנְּבִיאִים נִתְנַבְּאוּ בְּ"כֹה אָמַר ה'", מוּסָף עֲלֵיהֶם מֹשֶׁה שֶׁנִּתְנַבֵּא בִּלְשׁוֹן "זֶה הַדָּבָר"
זה הדבר THIS IS THE WORD — Moses prophesied with the words (introduced his message by the statement), “Thus saith the Lord, About midnight [will I go into the midst of Egypt]” (Exodus 11:4), and other prophets also prophesied with “Thus saith the Lord”, Moses, however, had an additional superiority in that he prophesied also with the expression “This is the actual word [that God hath spoken]” (Sifrei Bamidbar 153:2).
[translation by Kaeren Fish, https://www.etzion.org.il/en/parashat-vaera-lo-our-god]
"And I appeared to Avraham… but by My name, the Lord, I was not known to them" (Shemot 6:3). Rashi explains: "I was not recognized by them in My attribute of 'keeping faith.'" This is what he means: For it is written: "You are the Lord in this world [be-olam], and You are the Lord in the world [le-olam]-to-come." The change from a bet to a lamed – for it is known that the world-to-come involves the soul's communion with and effacement to God, blessed be He. Thus, the Holy One, blessed be He, is the essence of the world-to-come. This is not the case in this world. Understand this. Know that the word Shaddai indicates that He is faithful to fulfill His promise, but not with His exalted essence. This is like someone who owes another person money and pays him. The payment is something external to him, as we have explained above regarding this world. Here, however, God, blessed be He, revealed to them that He would fulfill all his promises by way of His essence, as we have explained regarding the world-to-come. Understand this well. This is the meaning of: I am the Lord – faithful to pay back," i.e., I Myself will pay back. And this is what Rashi, of blessed memory, explains: "I was not recognized by them in My attribute of 'keeping faith.'" For regarding the Holy One, blessed be He – His true faith is itself the payment. Understand this well, for I cannot explain more.
[translation by Kaeren Fish, https://www.etzion.org.il/en/parashat-vaera-lo-our-god]
" This brings us to the third element discussed by R. Simcha Bunim – fulfillment of the promise.... From the perspective of the Tetragrammaton, Israel is redeemed not only because God is faithful to fulfill the promise that He had made to their forefathers, for from the perspective of God's obligation to the truth, there is also an obligation to nature and its laws, and Israel's redemption in this manner may have to come in a natural way.... The ten plagues, the splitting of the sea and the pillar of fire are not surprising in the Divine governance of the Tetragrammaton; they do not express the "fulfillment of a promise," but only the Divine will to appear and once again bring to the unity of God and His people. This aspect is the aspect of the world-to-come, and it is Moshe's level, but it is relevant even in this world, and it wishes to sharpen the unmediated experience of God's presence among us, both from our side and from His side.
וָאֵרָא אֶל אַבְרָהָם, אָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְמשֶׁה חֲבָל עַל דְּאָבְדִין וְלָא מִשְׁתַּכְּחִין, הַרְבֵּה פְּעָמִים נִגְלֵיתִי עַל אַבְרָהָם יִצְחָק וְיַעֲקֹב בְּאֵל שַׁדַּי וְלֹא הוֹדַעְתִּי לָהֶם כִּי שְׁמִי ה' כְּשֵׁם שֶׁאָמַרְתִּי לְךָ וְלֹא הִרְהֲרוּ אַחַר מִדּוֹתָי, אָמַרְתִּי לְאַבְרָהָם (בראשית יג, יז): קוּם הִתְהַלֵּךְ בָּאָרֶץ לְאָרְכָּהּ וּלְרָחְבָּהּ וגו', בִּקֵּשׁ לִקְבֹּר שָׂרָה וְלֹא מָצָא עַד שֶׁקָּנָה בְּדָמִים וְלֹא הִרְהֵר אַחַר מִדּוֹתָי, אָמַרְתִּי לְיִצְחָק (בראשית כו, ג): גּוּר בָּאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת כִּי לְךָ וּלְזַרְעֲךָ וגו', בִּקֵּשׁ לִשְׁתּוֹת מַיִם וְלֹא מָצָא אֶלָּא (בראשית כו, כ): וַיָּרִיבוּ רֹעֵי גְרָר עִם רֹעֵי יִצְחָק, וְלֹא הִרְהֵר אַחַר מִדּוֹתָי. אָמַרְתִּי לְיַעֲקֹב (בראשית כח, יג): הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה שֹׁכֵב עָלֶיהָ וגו', בִּקֵּשׁ מָקוֹם לִנְטוֹת אָהֳלוֹ וְלֹא מָצָא עַד שֶׁקָּנָה בְּמֵאָה קְשִׂיטָה, וְלֹא הִרְהֵר אַחַר מִדּוֹתַי וְלֹא שְׁאָלַנִי מַה שְּׁמִי כְּשֵׁם שֶׁשָּׁאַלְתָּ אַתָּה, וְאַתָּה תְּחִלַּת שְׁלִיחוּתִי אָמַרְתָּ לִי מַה שְּׁמִי, וּלְבַסּוֹף אָמַרְתָּ (שמות ה, כג): וּמֵאָז בָּאתִי אֶל פַּרְעֹה. וְעַל זֶה נֶאֱמַר: וְגַם הֲקִמֹתִי אֶת בְּרִיתִי, שֶׁנִּתְּנָה לָהֶם כְּמוֹ שֶׁאָמַרְתִּי לָהֶם שֶׁאֶתֵּן לָהֶם אֶת הָאָרֶץ וְלֹא הִרְהֲרוּ אַחֲרָי. וְגַם אֲנִי שָׁמַעְתִּי אֶת נַאֲקַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, לְפִי שֶׁהֵן לֹא הִרְהֲרוּ אַחֲרָי, וְגַם אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁיִּשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁבְּאוֹתוֹ הַדּוֹר לֹא הָיוּ נוֹהֲגִין כַּשּׁוּרָה, שָׁמַעְתִּי נַאֲקָתָם בַּעֲבוּר הַבְּרִית שֶׁכָּרַתִּי עִם אֲבוֹתֵיהֶם...וְלָכֵן נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי לְבֵית עֵלִי, נִשְׁבַּע הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא שֶׁיִּגְאָלֵם, שֶׁלֹא יִירָא משֶׁה שֶׁמָּא מִדַּת הַדִּין יְעַכֵּב גְּאֻלָּתָן.