So Moses took the city by his wisdom, and the children of Cush set him on the throne of the kingdom, instead of Kikanus king of Cush. And they set the royal crown on his head, and gave him queen Adonijah the Cushite, the wife of Kikanus, to wife. But Moses feared the Lord, the God of his fathers, and he went not in unto her, nor did he turn his eyes to her. For Moses remembered how Abraham had made Eliezer his servant swear, saying: ‘Take not a wife for my son Isaac of the daughters of Canaan’[132]; and also that which Isaac had done, when Jacob fled from before his brother, how he commanded him, saying: ‘Take not a wife of the daughters of Canaan, nor shalt thou make marriages with any of the children of Ham; for the Lord our God gave Ham the son of Noah and all his seed as servants unto the children of Shem and unto the children of Japheth, and unto their seed after them for ever.’[133] Therefore Moses turned not his heart nor his eyes to the wife of Kikanus all the days that he reigned over Cush. And Moses feared the Lord, the God of his fathers, all his days. And Moses walked before the Lord in truth, with all his heart, and with all his soul; Moses departed not from the good way all the days of his life; he turned not to the right hand nor to the left from the way in which Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had walked. And Moses strengthened himself in the kingdom of the children of Cush, and he guided the children of Cush in justice by his wisdom. And Moses prospered in his kingdom. XXIII. JUDAH B. SAUL IBN TIBBON [A famous translator of Arabic books into Hebrew. He was born at Granada in 1120, and died towards the end of the twelfth century. He did a great deal for the development of the Hebrew language, having practically created or at least systematized the philosophic terms. It is due to his efforts and to those of his fellow-workers, the best of whom were his descendants, that the philosophic literature of the Jews has reached the readers for whom it was intended. He translated the works of Sa’adya, Ibn Janah, Ibn Gebirol, and Judah ha-Levi.] Why the Jewish Religion Does Not Especially Encourage Asceticism[134] Said the Khazarite: Thou hast explained, O Rabbi, and drawn a comparison; indeed thou wast skilful in thy explanation and comparison. But we should expect to see more hermits and ascetics among you than among other nations. Said the Rabbi: I regret very much that thou hast forgotten the principles which I previously expounded to thee and the truth of which thou didst admit. Did we not agree that it is impossible for any man to draw near to God except by means of deeds commanded by God? Dost thou think that this drawing near to God is only to be meek and humble, and the like?