על הנטיעה כ״דConcerning Noah's Work as a Planter 24
א׳
1[104] In the tree of friendship there are outgrowths, such as I shall describe, to be pruned and cut off for the sake of preserving the better part. Such outgrowths are practices of courtesans for taking in their lovers, ways parasites have of deceiving their dupes.
ב׳
2[105] You may see women, who earn money by the prostitution of their bodily charms, clinging to those enamoured of them as though they intensely loved them. It is not these that they love; they love themselves and are greedy for their daily takings. You may note flatterers cherishing often enough hatred that words cannot express for those upon whom they fawn, in love with rich dishes and overeating, and induced by nothing else than these to court those who glut their measureless greed.
ג׳
3[106] The tree of genuine friendship will shake off and be quit of these things, and will bear fruit most beneficial to those who shall eat of it, namely honesty. For real goodwill is a desire that good should befall your neighbour for his own sake, whereas it is to further objects of their own that harlots and toadies take such pains to offer the things that will please, the former in their designs upon their lovers, the latter upon their patrons. So we must treat everything that smacks of sham and quackery as we treat hurtful ongrowths, and cut it away from the tree of friendship.