Page:Sacred Books of the East - Volume 9.djvu/38

22 Then they found a servant of our servants, to whom we had given mercy from ourselves, and had taught him knowledge from before us. Said Moses to him, ‘ Shall I follow thee, so that thou mayest teach me, from what thou hast been taught, the right way?’ said he, ‘ Verily, thou canst never have patience with me. How canst thou be patient in what thou comprehendest no knowledge of ?’ He said, ‘ Thou wilt find me, if God will, patient ; nor will I rebel against thy bidding.’ He said, ‘ Then, if thou followest me, ask me not about anything until I begin for them the mention of it.’

So they set out until when they rode in the bark, he scuttled it.

Said he, ‘ Hast thou scuttled it to drown its crew ? Thou hast produced a strange thing.’

Said he, ‘ Did I not tell thee, verily, thou canst never have patience with me ?’

Said he, ‘ Rebuke me not for forgetting, and impose not on me a difficult command.’ So they set out until they met a boy, and he killed him. And he (Moses) said, ‘ Hast thou killed a pure person without (his killing) a person ? thou hast produced an unheard-of thing.’

Said he, ‘ Did I not tell thee, verily, thou canst not have patience with me ?’

Said he, ‘ If I ask thee about anything after it, then do not accompany me. Now hast thou arrived at my excuse.’ So they set out until when they came to the people of a city ; and they asked