Interpretation and reception
Epistle to Yemen (Iggeret Teiman)
Moses Maimonides
Rejects precise messianic dates and astrology while transmitting a family calculation for restoration of prophecy; also describes wonders as messianic evidence, a tension with Mishneh Torah requiring contextual analysis.
Read on Rainbow Watch
Maimonides’ tradition of prophecy returning in 4970 →
The letter’s warning before its discussion of dates · commentary →
Failed forecasts and the expected approach of redemption · commentary →
Calculating redemption and trusting the stars · commentary →
How Maimonides tests the Yemeni claimant · commentary →
The claimant’s powers and the danger to the community · commentary →
Edition and location
Boaz Cohen English translation, American Academy for Jewish Research 1952; Abraham S. Halkin edition/introduction; Wikisource transcription
Sections xii–xiii and xv–xviii, especially date computation and claimant criteria