**(32) “And you shall not profane My holy name, but I will be sanctified among the children of Israel.”**
The profanation of Hashem’s name is the most severe sin. We find that the Holy One, blessed be He, forgave idolatry but did not forgive the profanation of His name, as the prophet said: (Ezekiel 20:39) “As for you, O house of Israel… go serve every one his idols, but My holy name you shall no longer profane.” And our sages of blessed memory said (Yoma 86a) regarding this sin that the Day of Atonement has no power to atone, repentance cannot suspend it, and sufferings cannot purge it—rather, all of them suspend it, and death purges it.
Yet we do find a remedy for the sin of profaning the Name: when one sanctifies the Name in counterbalance to what he profaned. This is why the verse adjoins: **“but I will be sanctified.”** Similarly, Scripture states: (Proverbs 16:6) **“Through kindness and truth iniquity is expiated,”** meaning the iniquity of wickedness and falsehood, which are the opposite of kindness and truth—just as an illness is cured only by its opposite.
Our sages explicitly stated: If a person sinned with evil speech, let him engage in Torah study; if he sinned with his eyes, let him pour forth tears. Thus David said: (Psalms 119:136) **“Streams of water run down my eyes because they did not keep Your Torah”**—it does not say “I did not keep” but **“they did not keep.”**
They further said (Vayikra Rabbah 21:4): If you have made bundles of transgressions, make bundles of commandments against them. Feet that hasten to run to evil—let them run to perform a commandment; hands that shed innocent blood—let him bind tefillin on his arm and give charity to the poor.
In this midrash is the positive commandment of the Torah to sanctify the Name in public. Thus our sages expounded (Sifra 9:4): **“But I will be sanctified among the children of Israel”**—surrender yourself to sanctify My name. One might think even in private; therefore it states **“among the children of Israel.”** And when he surrenders himself, he must do so intending to die, for whoever surrenders himself expecting a miracle will not be granted one. Thus we find with Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, who did not surrender themselves expecting a miracle, as it is said: (Daniel 3:18) **“Be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods nor worship the golden image you have set up”**—whether He saves or does not save, be it known to you, etc.
Furthermore, our sages proved from this verse that any matter of sanctity requires ten, as they said in Berakhot (21b): No matter of sanctity may be performed with fewer than ten, for it is stated: **“But I will be sanctified among the children of Israel,”** and elsewhere: (Numbers 16:21) **“Separate yourselves from among this congregation.”** Just as there it refers to ten, so here too ten.
Rabbi Yaakov explained that this wording is imprecise, for one should not derive proof for matters of sanctity from the ten spies. Rather, the correct wording is: It is derived by the gezerah shavah “among… among.” Here it is written **“I will be sanctified among,”** and there: (Genesis 42:5) **“to buy grain among those who came.”** Just as there it refers to ten, so here ten. Now he brings proof from the ten brothers of Joseph, who were righteous, for a matter of sanctity.
Appendix: What is a gezeira shava? By Rabbi Jack Abramowitz https://outorah.org/p/6490/
A gezeira shava is a tradition of a known rule applying to a new case based upon an identical word or phrase in both cases. For example, the Torah uses the word “b’moado” (“in its proper time”) when referring to the korban Pesach (Numbers 9:2) and when referring to the daily korban Tamid (Numbers 28:2). Just as the korban Tamid was brought “in its proper time” – even on Shabbos – so, too, the korban Pesach was to be offered “in its proper time” – that is, even on Shabbos. (This gezeira shava is put forth by the Talmud in tractate Pesachim on page 66a.)
Another example: We are told that a paid watchman who has had an object in his care stolen must take an oath that he didn’t lay his hands on what he was given to watch. The Talmud (Shevuos 47a) clarifies that the oath is only between the two parties, not between their heirs if one of the parties should die before the case is settled. The details of the oath are not told to us regarding an unpaid watchman but the Talmud applies them in that case as well, based upon a gezeira shava of the phrase “im lo shalach yado b’meleches r’eihu” (“that he did not lay hands on his fellow’s property”), which is found regarding a paid guardian in Exodus 22:10 and regarding an unpaid guardian in Exodus 22:7.
Unlike a kal v’chomer, which is a strictly logical argument that anyone can propose, a gezeira shava can only be put forth based upon a received tradition.