And G‑d (Elokim) spoke to Moshe and told him: “I am G‑d (Havayah).1 I appeared to Avraham, to Yitzchak, and to Yaakov by the name of G‑d Almighty (E-l Shaddai), but I did not make My name Havayah known to them…. Therefore say to the children of Israel: ‘I am Havayah, and I will bring you out,… and I will deliver you,… I will redeem you,… and I will take you (uttering the four promises of redemption)2 ,… and you will know that I am Havayah.’”3

Implied is that it is expressly through the redemption from Egypt that the name Havayah was able to be revealed. There is a well-known question concerning this point:4 [In previous eras,] the name Havayah had been revealed to the Patriarchs as well, as it is written:5 “And Havayah appeared to Avraham,” “And Havayah appeared to him,”6 and the like.7 Why then does [this passage] state: “I did not make My name Havayah known to them”?

It is also necessary to understand: Why is it that the exodus and redemption from Egypt made it possible [for there to be a revelation of G‑d’s name Havayah]? It was not the mere fact that, after the exodus from Egypt, they were no longer in exile that caused the Jewish people to be found worthy of the revelation of the name Havayah. For the Patriarchs also had not lived in exile and yet, “I did not make My name Havayah known to them.” Instead, the intent is that the experience of exile in Egypt and the subsequent redemption had made them fit to receive [a higher] revelation: “You will know that I am Havayah.” It is therefore necessary to understand: What is the positive quality contributed by the Egyptian exile and the [subsequent] redemption that made it possible for [the Jews to] “know that I am Havayah”?

Summary

The maamar cites a passage from the book of Shmos which states, “I did not make My name Havayah known to [the Patriarchs],” and questions it, noting that there are verses which appear to be saying that the Patriarchs did experience a revelation of the name Havayah.

Also, this passage from Shmos associates the revelation of the name Havayah with the exodus from Egypt. The maamar questions the basis for that association.