منحة في رسالة: Bodl. MS heb. b 11/33

For and on behalf of the notables and sages, by the order of old and young, upon the decision of the counsellors and advisors, I was moved to say words, utter praise, tell the glory of Moses, the great scribe of Israel. Behold by the wisdom he has in his heart and the spirit of the holy God which he has more than any living, his decree goes forth upon the whole of the earth, a law that is not to be changed; true is his law and enduring his decree, no false and corrupt word is found in him, but they are rays of light which come forth from before him, some of them are fountains of living water in the midst of light, some sparkles of burning fire for those that walk on the shore of the river; they increase the wisdom of the wise and the knowledge of those that possess intelligence. He uncovers deep and hidden things, announcing fundamental doctrine. He is a holy angel, in whom is found excessive spirit, wisdom and intelligence, to interpret dreams and tell enigmas and to untie knots. May his greatness reach the height of the sky, may his comfort be long, from God, King of heaven, Whose paths are all truth, Whose kingdom has no end; may he live before Him for ever, the chief of governors, sages, magicians, enchanters and sorcerers, chief of his nation, leader of his people; may his welfare and peace be great, even so as we require, pray for and beseech from the Lord of mercy, from Whom comes wisdom and might and to Whom belongs greatness and kingdom.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of our father, Who has inspired the king, I mean the king of wisdom, to glorify our Law and to restore the edifice of our Thora and to raise his canopy over us. We have earnestly striven, so far as God has given us the power, to collect his sapphire-valued volumes and treasured tomes, against which no precious things can be set and to whose value nothing comes up; all these perish, but his wisdom endures forever and his righteousness stands in all eternity—he, our lord, our pride, the tabernacle of our glory, the sanctuary of our renown, the altar of the Lord, the ark of God, the tables of the covenant, the throne of honour, the site of our sanctuary, Moses, the servant of the Lord, captain of the host of the Lord—the son of his saintly honour, our lord and master Maymun; wonder of wisdom, mine of mysteries, glory of Israel, our foundation-stone, by whose worth we stand, and not by ours, our exalted renown, who stands by our side! You renew your testimony before us and we learn of your ornaments, we have seen the Codex of the Mishne Thora, an interpreter of doubtful cases, and uncoverer of deep things; you have given before us life and goodness, and increased wisdom and goodness, by sending us the book Guide of the Perplexed. Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, but let him that glories glory in this that he knows it; its words are the words of the living God; who found it, found life, who turns away from it, turns away from life. It is like its name, a guide for the perplexed, if he is a learned man—for the crowd it is like a stone that no one heeds. For us, it was as a bag of gems in a heap of stones and a rose among the thorns, the book is delivered to him that is not learned to read it. But God sent us good speed, in the person of a wise son, who is well versed in all the sciences, whom the master, his father, had taught the learning and the tongue of the Arabians, the son of the admirable scholar and excellent physician, the master Rabbi Judah ibn Tibbon the Spaniard, who had benefited and enlightened us and taught us some of the books of the sciences, by translating for us the Book of the Beliefs, the Book of the Duties of the Hearts, the Book of the Characters of the Soul, the Choice of Pearls, the Book of the Khazar King, the books of the grammarians; the Book of the Roots by Ibn Janah, who also has Diverse Colours, each one of these books gives to its owner honour. [ . . . ]

Therefore, if it please our lord and master, our pride, and the thing seem right in his eyes, as his bread is rich and his dough fat, let him give us a full ration and grant us our portion, not like beggars whose way is to be satisfied with a slice of bread. Let him send us the rows of the shewbread, the rows of the living God, the complete rows of the book of the Guide of the Perplexed. Let him show mercy and compassion and let him listen with the ear of love and complaisance to the prayer of these our learned men, the inhabitants of Lunel.