Commentary: On Exodus

This passage from a lost Judeo-Arabic commentary on the Torah by Maymūn ha-Dayan, the father of Maimonides, was preserved in the commentary on Genesis and Exodus by Maimonides’ son, Abraham. Maymūn explains the details of Moses’ intercession with God after the sin of the golden calf (Exodus 32). His discussion of Moses’ lack of knowledge of the divine attributes alludes to a rabbinic midrash according to which it was only at this point that Moses learned of God’s nature. While it is difficult to generalize, given the meager quantity of surviving material from Maymūn, this passage indicates an approach to scripture that was oriented toward the peshat (plain meaning).