Rizpah's Vigil and the Sanctification of God's Name

"And the king took the two sons of Rizpah, etc., and delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them, etc." (2 Samuel 21:8–9). This teaches that they hung seven months, from the close of the first festival day of Passover until the last festival day of the Feast [of Tabernacles]. "And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself upon the rock" (ibid., v. 10). What is "upon the rock" (el ha-tzur)? Rav Hoshaya said: She was reciting over them, "He is the Rock (ha-Tzur), His work is perfect, etc." (Deuteronomy 32:4). [Rabbi Abba bar Zemina] in the name of Rabbi Hoshaya: Greater is the sanctification of the Name than the desecration of the Name. Concerning the desecration of the Name it is written, "His body shall not remain all night upon the tree" (ibid. 21:23); but concerning the sanctification of the Name, "from the beginning of harvest until water dropped upon them" (2 Samuel 21:6) — from the sixteenth of Nisan until the seventeenth of Marcheshvan, "until water dropped upon them out of heaven, etc." And the nations of the world would see them and say: The Torah of these people is a forgery! It is written in their Torah, "His body shall not remain all night upon the tree" — yet these hang seven months! It is written in the Torah that two are not judged on one day — yet these were the seven of them together (2 Samuel 21:9) — this [word] lacks a yod; this is Mephibosheth. It is written in the Torah, "Fathers shall not be put to death for the children" — yet these die for the iniquity of their fathers! Israel said to them: The fathers of these men put these others to death. They said to them: And what was their character? They said to them: These are the proselytes who converted in the days of Joshua. They said to them: And on account of these cursed, dragged-along proselytes the Holy One, blessed be He, did this? They said: There is no god like your God, and there is no nation like this nation; we have none to cleave to but this nation, for their God is greater than all gods. This is what is written, "For the LORD is greater than all gods" (Exodus 18:11). Immediately a hundred and fifty thousand of the nations of the world converted. This is what is written, "And Solomon numbered all the proselytes who were in the land of Israel, after the numbering wherewith David his father had numbered them, and they were found a hundred and fifty thousand [and three thousand and six hundred]. [Of these Solomon made] seventy thousand bearers of burdens and eighty thousand hewers in the mountain" (2 Chronicles 16:17). And all this — why? To make known the praise of Him who spoke and the world came into being, that He brings near those who are far off and rejoices over the far ones as over the near ones, and offers peace to the far one even before the near one. This is what is written, "He creates the speech of the lips: Peace, peace to him that is far off and to him that is near, etc." (Isaiah 57:19).