Page:Eight chapters of Maimonides on ethics.djvu/104

84 two classes of vices, that is, the mental and the moral, separated man from God, and that according to them the rank of the prophets varied, they (the Rabbis) said of some of their own number, with whose wisdom and morality they were acquainted, "It is fitting that the spirit of God should rest upon them as it did upon Moses, our teacher". Do not, however, mistake the intention of the comparison. They did, indeed, compare them with Moses, for they were far (God forbid!) from giving them equal rank. In the same way they speak of others, characterizing them as being "like Joshua".

This is what we intended to explain in this chapter.