Sforno on Deuteronomy 10:17/ספורנו על דברים י׳:י״ז

1Once you removed this “foreskin,” you will recognize that כי ה' אלוקיכם הוא אלוקי האלוקים, the eternal One Who will outlast anything as He is not made of any physical raw material so that He can outlast even materials that are not composites of other elements. [It is an axiom among philosophers of the author’s time that amalgams, phenomena which combine within them several elements, are by definition not durable, as just as these elements had to be fused to bring the final product into existence, this process will reverse itself in due cause, something we know as “dying.” Ed.]

2ואדוני האדונים, the supreme leader; the “leaders” referred to are the celestial bodies, especially those that even to the naked eye appear as performing a recognisable orbit. The “leaders” are the ones perceived as guiding and dictating the respective orbits of these celestial bodies. They are performing like different parts of a clockwork, so that when each performs its assigned function, the whole, i.e. the clock, becomes a reliable instrument telling time. [my metaphor. Ed.]

3הא-ל הגדול, the like of whom in greatness is not found among any creatures claiming greatness.

4הגבור, the One Who, single-handedly, ensures the continued existence of everything, as per Nechemyah 9,6 ואתה מחיה את כולם, “and You keep all of them alive.”

5והנורא, supervising His creatures’ activities in order to mete out reward and punishment. Seeing that this is so, it behooves us to be in constant awe of Him.

6אשר לא ישא פנים, does not treat a deviant with leniency just because his father was righteous. This is so in spite of the fact that He confers benefits on the descendants of a righteous father for many generations to his descendants.

7ולא יקח שוחד, He does not offset a merit against a demerit, a sin; or in the words of our sages: “a good deed performed does not extinguish the sin committed.” (Nachmanides Moses tells the people all this so that they should not reassure themselves that they can wipe the slate clean by performing good deeds after having committed sins and thus escape the retribution they deserve for the sins committed. The only way the slate can be wiped clean is by genuine repentance.