Bass's introduction to his work is most characteristic of the spirit prevailing among German Jews at that time: he cites ten "religious reasons" for the usefulness of his work. Not only was Bass's undertaking new to the German Jews, but it also appeared strange to them; only the Portuguese Jews of Amsterdam, who had a leaning toward methods and systems, knew how to appreciate him. Christian scholars, however, were at once impressed by the scholarship, style, usefulness, and reliability of the bibliography. Latin as well as German translations, some of which are still extant in manuscript, were undertaken by Christian Orientalists. The greatest proof of Bass's merit lies in the fact that Wolf's "Bibliotheca Hebræa" is based chiefly on the "Siftei Yeshenim."