MUIS, SIMÉON MAROTTE de. - Hebraist, b. at Orléans in 1587, d. at Paris in 1644. Archdeacon of Soissons, he held the chair of Hebrew at the "Collège de France" from 1614 until his death. Thoroughly versed in biblical and rabbinic Hebrew, he had a good knowledge of medieval Jewish exegetical literature.
He translated into Latin various rabbinic commentaries. His *Comment. litteralis et historicus in omnes Psalmos et selecta Vet. Test. cantica, cum versione nova ex hebreo* (Paris 1630, reprint Louvain 1770) enjoyed extraordinary success and became so dominant as to hinder scientific progress. M. vigorously intervened, from 1631 to 1639, in the controversy with the Oratorian Jean Morin (v.) over the respective value of the Hebrew, Samaritan, and Greek texts of the Old Testament; steeped in rabbinic learning, he strongly defended the superiority of the Masoretic Hebrew text. Most of M.'s works were collected and reprinted under the care of his successor, Claude d'Auvergne: *Simeonis de M. opera omnia in duos tomos distributa* (Paris 1650).