Most people will never come close to the formal halachic category of בִּרְכַּת הַשֵּׁם — blasphemy. Yet the mitzvah still shapes daily life. It trains a Jew to feel that speech about Hashem is never casual, cheap, or careless.

A person’s words reveal what he considers real. When Hashem’s Name is spoken with care, the mouth becomes a vessel for יִרְאַת שָׁמַיִם — awe of Heaven. When holy things are mocked, dismissed, or treated lightly, the soul becomes less sensitive to kedushah — holiness.

This mitzvah builds a strong boundary around speech. Frustration, anger, pain, or confusion do not permit a person to speak against Hashem. A Jew may cry, ask, struggle, and daven. But even pain must remain within reverence.

Not to blaspheme teaches that emunah — faith is guarded not only in the mind, but also on the tongue. The way a person speaks about Hashem shapes the way he stands before Hashem.

Rambam

• Source: Rambam, Sefer HaMitzvos, Negative Mitzvah 60; Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Avodas Kochavim 2:7–10.
• Rambam defines this mitzvah as the prohibition against cursing Hashem. In Mishneh Torah, he gives the precise halachic framework: the liability applies only in the specific form defined by Chazal, and the court procedure uses euphemistic language until the exact testimony must be heard. Rambam’s presentation shows the severity of the sin and the Torah’s care not to repeat blasphemous words unnecessarily.

Sefer HaChinuch

• Source: Sefer HaChinuch, Mitzvah 70.
• Sefer HaChinuch explains that this mitzvah protects the honor of Hashem in the human heart. A person who speaks against Hashem damages his own soul, because speech shapes inner belief. The mitzvah trains a Jew to remember that Hashem is the source of all existence, and the mouth must never be used to deny that reverence.

Gemara

• Source: Gemara Sanhedrin 56a–60a.
• The Gemara establishes the laws of בִּרְכַּת הַשֵּׁם — blasphemy. It teaches that the Torah uses exact legal boundaries for this severe sin, including the way testimony is heard and the way the judges respond. Chazal treat the words themselves with fear, showing that the honor of Hashem’s Name must be protected even in the courtroom.

Gemara

• Source: Gemara Sanhedrin 60a.
• The Gemara describes the tearing of garments when the judges hear the explicit testimony. This tearing is not ordinary mourning. It is a response to the wound caused by hearing Hashem’s Name attacked. The halacha teaches that blasphemy damages the spiritual fabric of the world.

Gemara

• Source: Gemara Shevuos 35a.
• The Gemara discusses which Divine Names have halachic sanctity and may not be erased. This background strengthens the seriousness of blasphemy. A Name that carries kedushah — holiness in writing must certainly be guarded in speech. The mouth must treat Hashem’s Name with at least the reverence given to sacred text.

Sifra

• Source: Sifra, Emor, Parashah 14.
• Sifra discusses the Torah’s account of the מְגַדֵּף — blasphemer in Vayikra 24. The Midrash shows that blasphemy is not merely a failure of language. It is a rupture in one’s relationship to Hashem and to the holiness of Klal Yisrael. Speech that attacks Hashem’s Name separates a person from the very source of covenantal life.

Tanchuma

• Source: Midrash Tanchuma, Emor 24.
• Tanchuma connects the story of the blasphemer with disorder in identity, belonging, and speech. The blasphemer’s words reveal an inner collapse before they become a public sin. This teaches that guarded speech depends on a guarded soul. When a person loses reverence inside, the mouth eventually exposes that loss.

Rashi

• Source: Rashi on Shemos 22:27.
• Rashi explains that the word “אֱלֹקִים” in the pasuk can refer both to Hashem and to judges, and Chazal understand the pasuk as warning against cursing Hashem and against cursing a judge. His comment shows that Torah speech must honor both Divine authority and the earthly structures that represent justice.

Rashi

• Source: Rashi on Vayikra 24:10–11.
• Rashi explains the background of the blasphemer and the dispute that led to his sin. The blasphemy did not begin as an isolated word. It emerged from anger, exclusion, and conflict. Rashi’s reading teaches that dangerous speech often begins when frustration is not held within reverence.

Ramban

• Source: Ramban on Vayikra 24:10–16.
• Ramban explains that the Torah records the episode of the blasphemer to reveal the severity of attacking Hashem’s Name. The sin is treated as an assault on the highest kedushah — holiness. His approach shows that the issue is not only offensive language, but rebellion against the honor of Heaven.

Ibn Ezra

• Source: Ibn Ezra on Shemos 22:27.
• Ibn Ezra reads the prohibition as a direct warning against degrading authority through speech. When directed toward Hashem, the sin becomes infinitely more severe. Speech that curses its source is a distortion of the very power that makes a person human.

Sforno

• Source: Sforno on Vayikra 24:11.
• Sforno explains that the blasphemer’s act reflected a break from proper recognition of Hashem’s greatness. The sin shows what happens when speech is detached from daas — spiritual awareness. A mouth without awareness can turn against the holiness it was created to serve.

Rabbeinu Bachya

• Source: Rabbeinu Bachya on Vayikra 24:10–16.
• Rabbeinu Bachya emphasizes the sanctity of Hashem’s Name and the danger of speaking about it without awe. The episode teaches that Divine Names are not ordinary words. They point to Hashem’s revealed presence, and therefore the tongue must approach them with trembling care.

Kuzari

• Source: Kuzari 4:1–3.
• The Kuzari explains that Divine Names are not empty labels. They express the ways Hashem becomes known to human beings. This gives the prohibition of blasphemy deep meaning. To misuse Hashem’s Name is to distort the bridge through which a person recognizes and relates to the Divine.

Maharal

• Source: Maharal, Tiferes Yisrael, Chapter 13.
• Maharal teaches that speech reveals the inner form of the human being. A person is called a מְדַבֵּר — speaking being, because speech expresses the soul. Blasphemy is therefore not only a verbal sin. It is the corruption of the very power that should reveal human dignity and attachment to Hashem.

Ran

• Source: Ran, Derashos HaRan, Derush 5.
• Ran explains that proper speech reflects proper recognition of authority and truth. When speech breaks away from reverence, it damages the order that binds a person to Hashem. Blasphemy is the most extreme form of that disorder, because it uses words to deny the honor of the One who gives words their power.

Rambam

• Source: Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Avodas Kochavim 2:7–10.
• Rambam rules that the formal liability of the blasphemer applies only under precise conditions, including use of a Divine Name in the legally defined form. He also rules that one who hears such blasphemy from a Jew must tear his garment, and that the tear is not repaired. This shows that halacha treats the dishonor of Hashem’s Name as a wound that must be visibly mourned.

Shulchan Aruch

• Source: Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh De’ah 340:37.
• Shulchan Aruch rules that one who hears blasphemy of Hashem’s Name tears his garment, following the halachic model of mourning for a severe breach of kedushah — holiness. This law does not make blasphemy only a court matter. It teaches every Jew to feel pain when Hashem’s honor is attacked.

Shach

• Source: Shach, Yoreh De’ah 340:56.
• Shach explains that the tearing is connected to mourning the desecration of Hashem’s Name. His comment clarifies the emotional halacha. The garment is torn because the listener must not remain whole and untouched when the honor of Heaven has been publicly wounded.

Chasam Sofer

• Source: Chasam Sofer, Responsa, Orach Chaim 1:208.
• Chasam Sofer treats reverence for Hashem’s Name as part of the foundation of Torah life. Speech about Hashem is not only personal expression. It shapes the public dignity of emunah — faith. The prohibition against blasphemy therefore protects the atmosphere in which Torah belief can remain clear and honored.

Netziv

• Source: Netziv, HaEmek Davar on Vayikra 24:11.
• Netziv reads the blasphemer’s act as a collapse of proper boundaries within Klal Yisrael. The sin comes through speech, but it reflects a deeper failure to stand within the order of kedushah — holiness. His approach shows that blasphemy is never only between the speaker and his words. It damages the sacred structure of the community.

Rav Shimshon Raphael Hirsch

• Source: Rav Shimshon Raphael Hirsch on Shemos 22:27.
• Rav Hirsch explains that the prohibition against cursing Hashem appears together with the prohibition against cursing judges because both protect reverence for authority. Hashem’s authority is absolute, and human justice is meant to reflect His order. Blasphemy destroys reverence at its root.

Malbim

• Source: Malbim on Vayikra 24:11.
• Malbim emphasizes the Torah’s precise language in describing the blasphemer. The sin is not ordinary anger. It is speech that pierces the boundary of reverence and directs itself against Hashem’s Name. Malbim shows that the Torah records the act carefully because the language itself must be treated with fear.

Meshech Chochmah

• Source: Meshech Chochmah on Vayikra 24:10–16.
• Meshech Chochmah frames the episode within the Torah’s concern for public holiness. The blasphemer’s speech is punished because it tears at the public recognition of Hashem. A society that carries Torah must guard not only belief, but the spoken honor of Heaven.

Rav Kook

• Source: Rav Avraham Yitzchok HaCohen Kook, Orot HaKodesh III, p. 285.
• Rav Kook teaches that speech can reveal the soul’s holiness when it is purified and elevated. Blasphemy is the opposite movement. It darkens speech and turns expression away from its Divine purpose. The repair is not silence alone, but speech returned to emunah — faith, reverence, and praise.

Tanya

• Source: Tanya, Likutei Amarim, Chapter 20.
• Tanya explains that the first two dibros contain the root of all mitzvos: accepting Hashem’s unity and rejecting anything that denies it. Blasphemy strikes at that root because it uses speech to oppose the truth of Hashem’s oneness. The inner avodah — spiritual work is to make the mouth serve emunah — faith, not separation.

Sfas Emes

• Source: Sfas Emes, Emor 5635.
• Sfas Emes teaches that holiness must enter the words of a Jew. Speech can reveal the hidden point of kedushah — holiness within the soul. Blasphemy is the opposite: words become detached from their source. The mitzvah calls a person back to speech that carries inner holiness.

Kedushas Levi

• Source: Kedushas Levi, Emor, s.v. “וַיִּקֹּב”.
• Kedushas Levi reads the episode of the blasphemer as a warning about what happens when anger and distance overpower love of Hashem. The mouth can become dangerous when the heart loses tenderness toward Heaven. Guarding against blasphemy begins with keeping the heart warm, humble, and attached.

Ramchal

• Source: Ramchal, Mesillas Yesharim, Chapter 11.
• Ramchal teaches that cleanliness of speech is part of spiritual cleanliness. A person who wants closeness to Hashem must guard not only actions, but words. Blasphemy is the most severe opposite of clean speech, because it turns the mouth against the honor of its Creator.

Shem MiShmuel

• Source: Shem MiShmuel, Emor 5672.
• Shem MiShmuel explains that speech draws hidden inner forces into the open. When speech is holy, it reveals the soul’s bond with Hashem. When speech is corrupted, it exposes inner separation. This mitzvah teaches that a Jew must guard the point where inner life becomes spoken reality.

This mitzvah appears in the Torah through the command “אֱלֹקִים לֹא תְקַלֵּל” — “You shall not curse G-d” (Shemos 22:27), and its full severity is developed in the episode of the blasphemer in Vayikra 24. Rambam identifies Shemos 22:27 as the warning and Vayikra 24:16 as the punishment.

Its placement in the early section of Rambam’s mitzvos is significant. The first mitzvos build the foundation of emunah — faith: knowing Hashem, rejecting other powers, knowing His unity, loving Him, fearing Him, sanctifying His Name, and not profaning His Name. Mitzvah 26 returns to that same foundation through speech. A person who recognizes Hashem must not use the mouth against His honor.

The Torah’s language also teaches sensitivity. Chazal often refer to blasphemy as בִּרְכַּת הַשֵּׁם — “blessing the Name,” using a euphemism because the sin itself is too terrible to speak plainly. Even when discussing the prohibition, Torah language trains the Jew in reverence.