Rambam's 13 Principles of Faith

Based on Moses’ prayers, Rabbi Simlai taught: One should always set forth praise of the Holy One, Blessed be He, and then pray for his own needs. From where do we derive that one should conduct himself in this manner? From Moses, as it is written in his prayer: “And I beseeched the Lord at that time” (Deuteronomy 3:23). And immediately afterward in his prayer, it is written: “Lord, God, You have begun to show Your servant Your greatness and Your strong hand, for what God is there in the heavens or on earth who can perform deeds such as Yours and Your might” (Deuteronomy 3:24)? Here, Moses began with praise of God, and it is only thereafter that it is written: “Please, let me pass over and see the good land that is beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and the Lebanon” (Deuteronomy 3:25). Only after his praise did Moses make his personal request.

Keep your mouth from being rash, and let not your throat be quick to bring forth speech before God. For God is in heaven and you are on earth; that is why your words should be few.

It is difficult, because in the multitude of learned works dealing with the principles of laws we find no treatment that is adequate. They agree neither in the nature of the principles nor in their number. On the contrary, they differ very widely, especially so in relation to the principles of the law of Moses. For while they all agree that it is divine, they differ not a little concerning the number of its basic principles, some saying they are thirteen, some that they are twenty-six, and some that they are only six. But there is not one of these learned men who made any effort to explain those principles which pertain to a divine law generally, principles without which a divine law can not be conceived. Nor did they take the trouble to investigate whether there can be only one divine law, or whether there may be more than one; and if there may be more than one, whether every one of these must have principles peculiar to it as being a particular divine law or not. There can be no doubt, however, that a divine law must have general principles pertaining to it in its character as a divine law generally, without which principles its divine character would disappear, and special and particular principles, the removal of any one of which would destroy this particular law, though divine law in general would not be destroyed.