Sforno on Genesis 17:1/ספורנו על בראשית י״ז:א׳

1וירא ה, a מראה is always a vision one level lower than true prophecy. This is why G'd said to Moses in Exodus 6,3 ושמי ה' לא נודעתי להם, "but I had not revealed to them My true name Hashem."

2 אני א-ל שדי, "I am the One Who is sufficient unto Himself by My very existence to carry out My special function the creation of the universe all by Myself without assistance by anyone else. [The word די expresses this self-sufficiency of the Lord/Creator. Ed.] The very opposite is true of all created phenomena other than the Creator. [the difference between G'd and creatures is that G'd is a "self-starter," whereas all other phenomena require something to activate them even when performing the functions for which they have been created. Ed.] This all means that the recipient of a visual image, מראה, a vision, becomes aware of the existence of the Creator and His power, without him however becoming aware of underlying causes of such. The patriarchs became witnesses to G'd performing "invisible" miracles, as distinct from the "visible" miracles performed by Moses and other prophets after him to some extent. [an "invisible" miracle maybe recognized as such because the time and place has been foretold to the beneficiary, as in the case where the angels told Avram that Sarah would give birth to a son within the year. "Visible" miracles, are for instance, water turning into blood, or all the firstborn of one nation dying at the same time [after this event having been announced.] the latter type of miracle says more about G'd as the originator of all that occurs in the universe than does the former kind of miracle. This latter kind of insight was not revealed by G'd before Moses, as we quoted form Exodus 6,3.

3 התהלך, an instruction to conduct himself in this manner in all his activities.

4 לפני, as if you were looking for guidance Me in all your undertakings and trying to emulate Me. We have adopted this concept when we inscribe our synagogues with the verse שויתי ה' לנגדי תמיד, "I am ever mindful of the Lord's presence." (Psalms 16,8)

5 והיה תמים, "acquire the maximum degree of perfection human being are capable of attaining. Be intelligent so that you can acquire more intimate knowledge of Me through recognising the way I operate in the universe. As a result you will be emulate My attributes to the degree that this is possible for humans." The deeds of man reflect his having emulated G'd when he tried to do so. This is what Moses had in mind when he asked G'd: הודיעני נא את דרכיך ואדעך, "make know to me Your ways so that by this means I will get to know You." (Exodus 33,13) This is the ultimate perfection that the human species is able to achieve. This was G'd's objective for man when He created him, when he added the word בצלמנו, "in our image," when announcing that He was about to create man with the words נעשה אדם בצלמנו כדמותנו, "let us make man in our image" (Genesis 1,26).