קָרָ֤אתִי שִׁמְךָ֙ יְהוָ֔ה מִבּ֖וֹר תַּחְתִּיּֽוֹת׃
Tinawag ko ang Iyong Pangalan, O Walang-Hanggan, mula sa kailaliman ng hukay.
Sforno
כי שם ה' אקרא, If this is as I said, then you Israel who have received these words of wisdom, will appreciate that the thrust of my address is a prayer, a prayer that all of us, including myself, will experience the ultimate redemption after the last exile. [Moses includes this in his preamble in order to make sure that his listeners will not fail to see the forest by concentrating too much on the individual trees. Ed.] Our author first proceeds to quote examples of such formulations as Moses uses here meaning prayer. We find in Lamentations 3,55 קראתי שמך ה' מבור תחתיות, ”I have called on Your Name from the depths of the Pit.” Clearly, Jeremiah refers to his prayer. We read in Psalms 99,6 concerning the trio of Moses, Aaron, and Samuel, that they were known as קוראי שמו והוא יענם, “that whenever they prayed to G’d He would respond to them favourably.”
Moses therefore tells the people: “when I pray for the ingathering of the exiles I want G’d to orchestrate this so that it is like the eagle rousing his young and carrying them to a new destination on the back of his wings.” (verse 11) Moses continues, focusing in his prayer on the arrival of the Messiah by saying ה' בדד ינחנו, G’d will do this all on His own, without anyone’s assistance (verse 23). At the very end of his shirah, (verse 43) he exclaims הרנינו גויים עמו, which is equivalent to the instruction in our verse here of הבו גודל לאלוקינו, render glory to our G’d.
Moses therefore tells the people: “when I pray for the ingathering of the exiles I want G’d to orchestrate this so that it is like the eagle rousing his young and carrying them to a new destination on the back of his wings.” (verse 11) Moses continues, focusing in his prayer on the arrival of the Messiah by saying ה' בדד ינחנו, G’d will do this all on His own, without anyone’s assistance (verse 23). At the very end of his shirah, (verse 43) he exclaims הרנינו גויים עמו, which is equivalent to the instruction in our verse here of הבו גודל לאלוקינו, render glory to our G’d.
Ramban
AND HE CALLED UPON THE NAME OF THE ETERNAL. Onkelos explained it as meaning that he prayed there, just as in the verse, I called upon Thy name, O Eternal, out of the lowest dungeon.61Lamentations 3:55.
The correct interpretation is that Abraham loudly proclaimed the name of the Eternal there before the altar, informing people of Him and of His Divine essence. In Ur of the Chaldees he taught people but they refused to listen. Now, however, that he had come to the land concerning which he had been promised, And I will bless them that bless thee,62Verse 3 here. he became accustomed to teach and to proclaim the Deity. Scripture likewise tells of Isaac — when he went to the valley of Gerar where he was promised, Fear not, for I am with thee63Further, 26:24. — that he built an altar there and invoked the name of the Eternal64Ibid., Verse 25. since he had come to a new place where they had not heard of His fame or seen His glory, and he proclaimed His glory among these nations.65See Isaiah 66:19. Now a similar statement is not made concerning Jacob, [i.e., that he proclaimed the name of the Eternal before the peoples of the land of Canaan], for since he begot many children — all of whom were worshippers of G-d — and he had a great community, which was called “the congregation of Israel,”66Exodus 12:3, et al. it was through them that the Faith was proclaimed and became known to all people. Besides, the Faith had been proclaimed throughout the entire land of Canaan since the days of his ancestors. In Bereshith Rabbah6739:24. the Rabbis similarly say, “And he called upon the name of the Eternal. This teaches us that he caused the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, to be in the mouth of all people.”
The correct interpretation is that Abraham loudly proclaimed the name of the Eternal there before the altar, informing people of Him and of His Divine essence. In Ur of the Chaldees he taught people but they refused to listen. Now, however, that he had come to the land concerning which he had been promised, And I will bless them that bless thee,62Verse 3 here. he became accustomed to teach and to proclaim the Deity. Scripture likewise tells of Isaac — when he went to the valley of Gerar where he was promised, Fear not, for I am with thee63Further, 26:24. — that he built an altar there and invoked the name of the Eternal64Ibid., Verse 25. since he had come to a new place where they had not heard of His fame or seen His glory, and he proclaimed His glory among these nations.65See Isaiah 66:19. Now a similar statement is not made concerning Jacob, [i.e., that he proclaimed the name of the Eternal before the peoples of the land of Canaan], for since he begot many children — all of whom were worshippers of G-d — and he had a great community, which was called “the congregation of Israel,”66Exodus 12:3, et al. it was through them that the Faith was proclaimed and became known to all people. Besides, the Faith had been proclaimed throughout the entire land of Canaan since the days of his ancestors. In Bereshith Rabbah6739:24. the Rabbis similarly say, “And he called upon the name of the Eternal. This teaches us that he caused the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, to be in the mouth of all people.”
Sforno
ותקרא שם ה, the meaning of the words ותקרא שם ה', is prayer. It refers to the kind of prayer in which one praises the Lord, or thanks Him. This prayer may be offered silently, in one's mind or with words. The source for this definition is found in Berachot 32: "as a rule a person should first address G'd by praising Him, before beginning to pray." [to tell G'd of his requests from Hi. Ed.] This thought is reflected in the inscription in most synagogues on the Holy Ark שויתי ה' לנגדי תמיד, "I am ever mindful of the Lord's presence" (Psalms 16,8) The word קרא for prayer is also found in Lamentations 3,55 קראתי שמך ה', "I have prayed to You o Lord," as well as in Psalms 79,6 ושמואל בקוראי שמו, "as well as the prophet Samuel who would pray (successfully) to Him." Also the well-known line כי שם ה' אקרא, (Deut. 32,3) is best translated as "for I will pray to the Lord," rather than as "I will proclaim the name of the Lord." Hagar's new insight, expressed by her saying אתה א-ל ראי, meant that whereas up until now she had assumed that revelations from G'd are confined to the house of Avram, she had now learned that G'd may reveal Himself in any location. This is in line with Baba Metzia 59 כל השערים ננעלו חוץ משערי דמעות, that although the gates of prayer have largely remained shut since the destruction of the Temple, the prayer of people complaining (shedding tears) of being dealt with unfairly by their fellow human beings have not been closed.