puted that a Gentile could engage in his own creative labor on the Sab-
bath, and no demand was made requiring him to observe the Sabbath
in his own residence or in the public domain. This was true even when
and where Jewish law prevailed. ³ It was not the Gentile involved in his
own labor that was viewed as a desecration of the Sabbath but rather
the Gentile engaged in creative labor for the benefit of Jews. This pro-
hibition was adopted some time during the early Second Common-
wealth, at which time the basic guidelines of Sabbath observance crys-
tallized and thus determined the character of the Sabbath for future
generations. To the best of my knowledge, modern research has no ad-
equate answers to the question as to why these specific features evolved.
In this particular matter, however, regarding the labors of a Gentile for
the needs of a Jew, the explanation seems to be analogous to that of the
reaction of recent generations at the relaxation of a prohibition even
where formal permission has been obtained. Such relaxation is termed
a "desecration of God's Name" or a "source of ridicule." ⁴ The idea of
a Jew observing the Sabbath while a Gentile performs labor for him is
viewed as evading the divine precept and holding it up to ridicule. Feel-
ings of this kind were apparently the original source of the prohibition,
which, like all other prohibitions that contributed to the formulation
of the character of the Sabbath, was felt to derive from the Torah com-
mandment to observe the Sabbath in its entirety. ⁵ A literary expression
of this idea may be found in the homily brought by the Mekhilta to
Exodus 12:17: "'No work at all shall be done on them': 'You may not
do any, your fellow Jew may not do any, and neither may a Gentile do
your labor.'" ⁶

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