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cause," &c. "Walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path," &c. Surely, at the present age, we stand greatly in need of all such precepts, to engraft them within the heart of every human being, to guide us against the deluding arguments of Sophists or Epicureans, whose only endeavours are directed to mislead and their polluted writings, which do not contian a single substantial thing, strive to deceive us.

Here I will state a passage in Genesis, xlix. 10. which they avail themselves of to confirm their falsehoods. Jacob said to his sons-" The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his seed, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people." The Cavillers explain this, and say—Jacob, your Patriarch, made known to you, that the kingdom of Judah should be extinct when the Messiah comes now, since the kingdom of Judah has really been abolished, and has no law-giver, for the Hebrew word Mehokek derives from the root hok, which signifies statutes and judgment; and the dependence of Judah having actually become extinct, therefore you cannot deny that the Messiah is come. Thus far extends their reasoning.

Do they not labour under shameful errors? They believe that Jesus descended from the seed of David; and, according to their own words,

חנם וכו": טוי בני - תלך בדרך אתם מנע רגלך מנתיבתם וכו': ככל הדברים האה צריכים

אנחנו בדורות הללו: להזהיר ולדבר על לב

האדם שלא ישכיחו לדברי האנשים החומדים להסית ולהדיח אותנו מדרך החיים: ע"י דבריהם שהם רק דברי שוא ושקר שאין בם שום ממש : כמו שאומרים ומראים הראייה לשקריהם ולפחזותם מבראשית מט י באמור יעקב שלא יסור שבט מיהודה ומחוקק מבין רגליו עד כי יבא שילה ולו יקהת עמים: המה מפרשים ואומרים הנה יעקב אביכם בישר לכם על הסרת המלכות מיהודה בעת שיבוא שילה שהוא משיח : ומעתה שסר המלכות מיהודה: ולא לו המחוקק שהיא מלשון חק ומשפט ע"כ תדעו שמשיח בא כי ביאתו היה נתלה בהסרת המלכות מיהודה : לכן בין

תבין שישו הנוצרי הוא משיח ע"כ"ל :

אכן אפילו כפי דעתם טעות גדול בידם כי

מאשר שהם מאמינים שישו היה מזרעו של דוד

have published the Talmud, which is the foundation of the Law, Commandments, Statutes, and Ordinances of the LORD, that his Law may be in their mouth, and transmitted as a memorial to their children for ever.

"And it shall come to pass, when many evils and troubles are befalen them, that this song shall testify against them as a witness; for it shall not be forgotten out of the mouths of their seed," &c. Deut. xxxi. 21. And thus says Isaiah, lix. 21. "As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD.” "Shall not depart out of thy mouth," &c. "Saith the LORD, from henceforth and for ever," &c. Raschi gives the following interpretation : "For this sake have I made a covenant with them, and will keep it; even during their captivity, shall my Law at no time depart from their mouth."

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KING SOLOMON cautioned his contemporaries, and likewise the future generations, in his text, (Prov. i. 10, 11.) "My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. If they say, Come with us, let us lurk privily for the innocent without

I

ולפי שהיו יודעים שעתידה לבוא עלינו צרות וגלות וכדי שלא תשכח התורה מהדורות אחריהם חברו

את הגמרא והיא יסוד התורה ומצות חקים ומשפטים למען שתהי תורת ה' בפיהם ולזכרון לבניהם ולבני בניהם עד עולם: כהבטחת ה' שהבטיחנו ע"י נאמן ביתו דברים לא" כא" והיה כי תמצאן אותו צרות רבות ורעות וכו' כי לא תשכח מפי זרעו וכו' : וכן נאמר ישעיה נט" כאי ואני זאת בריתי אותם אמר ה' וכו : ולא ימושו מפיך וכו" אמר ה' מעתה ועד עולם וכו': פי' רש"י בדבר זה כרתי בריתי להם ואקיים כי בגלותם לא תשכח תורתי מפיהם לעולם

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פרק שני :

שלמה המלך הזהיר לבני דורו ולדורות אחריו באמרו משלי אי י בני אם יפתוך חטאים - תובא ב" אם יאמרו לכה אתנו נארבה לדם נצפנה לנקי

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for you are as yet unworthy of it; but if you repent," Then the LORD will hasten it in his time.") Therefore give ear to my advice," and water the sheep," (i. e. awaken their hearts to repentance, and with the tears of their eyes let them wash away their guilt: then will you be enabled and entitled to pasture as before. "And they answered, we cannot," (bécause our hearts are too hard to circumcise them), “until all the flocks shall be gathered together," (from the four corners of the earth); and then for their sake will God take away the strong heart from our flesh, utterly destroy the evil imagination from amongst us, and give us a heart of flesh, for we are assured that we shall then drink from the well of springing water in Jerusalem.

Know, therefore, my brethren, that all the words of our Rabbies are founded on truth, for they studied the LORD and his Laws. Therefore, listen not to the words of Sophists and Epicureans, for I have seen their writings, in which through ignorance and presumption they incessantly deride and profane the words of our wise men, which they do not understand; for as I have proved above, all the words of our Rabbies are evidently just and true to men of understanding; and as they knew we should be afflicted with troubles and captivities, and that the Laws might be perpetuated to posterity, they

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