Parshat Bo - Kiddush Hashem - Sanctifying G-d's Name
by Rabbi Lobel

(Chapter 11, Verses 4-5) And Moses declares (to Pharaoh), behold, G-d says, "at approximately midnight I will enter Egypt . And all firstborn shall die in the land of Egypt , from the firstborn at Pharaoh's throne to the firstborn of slaves and captives, continuing with the firstborn of all animals".

Rashi (11:4) explains that when Moses spoke the word of G-d to Pharaoh he varied from G-d's exact statement. G-d proclaimed that "at exactly midnight I will enter Egypt ", Moses said "at approximately midnight I will enter Egypt." The reason for the variance is that no one, but G-d, knows the exact time. If the Egyptians calculated that G-d was a few seconds early or a few seconds late, they could have declared Moses a false prophet. It was therefore necessary that Moses change the precise word of G-d.

After nine awesome plagues, each one occurring exactly as Moses had predicted, Moses was still afraid the Egyptians would use any deviation to deny G-d's provenance. Moses needed to ensure that every Egyptian, including Pharaoh, come to a complete recognition of G-d's sovereignty, even if it meant slightly altering G-d's word. This would ultimately create a sanctification of G-d's name (kiddush Hashem).

But is it possible some Egyptians would not have realized G-d was causing the tenth plague? The Egyptian magicians already recognized G-d's total control after the third plague. During the plague of lice, they realized that Moses was using a higher power than black magic when they declared "it's the finger of G-d." Moses had already proven himself as a messenger of G-d numerous times. Is it absolutely necessary to change the word of G-d to insure that a few lowlife sinners will have complete recognition of G-d?

Once we understand how much one needs to strive and sacrifice to sanctify G-d's name to the utmost degree, there is no question. Moses understood the importance of sanctifying G-d's name to the highest level and, to that end, took the liberty of changing G-d's declaration.

When Abraham defeated the four kings, he refused the spoils of war, property that was rightfully his to seize, so that the King of Sodom would not say "I made Abraham rich." Abraham relinquished mounds of treasure simply to prevent anyone from denying that his wealth came from G-d.

If we work to understand and ingrain within ourselves what our forefathers sacrificed to not only preserve G-d's name but to ensure its sanctity, our attitudes and behavior as Jews in all settings, especially public settings, would better reflect G-d's will.

It is our duty to remain forever vigilant, in our actions, our behavior, and our speech, to sanctify, never desecrate, G-d's name.