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We say that the above-mentioned things in which necessity obligates do not belong in the category of “skilled labor” (melakha) at all, since sleep and urination and defecation and none of these are “skilled labor.” Conversely, “skilled labor” does not fall under the category of “necessity” since construction and carpentry are not obligated by necessity as sleep and defecation and sitting and standing and what is similar to this. However, the second category of the exceptions does include some “skilled labors”, such as what we described with sacrificial offerings which does include some kinds of “skilled labor” such as slaughtering which is the profession of a slaughterer, and flaying the animal which is the profession of a flayer and roasting the animal which is the profession of a roaster and butchering and other similar professions.
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And the third topic of saving life is similar, such as the profession of midwifery that delivers from women, and one who cuts the umbilical cord, and there is no doubt that all of these are necessary. And wet-nursing and the foster mother are also the profession of midwifery, according to what we will describe subsequently. And the Torah mentions these in several places such as (Genesis 35:8) “And Deborah Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried below Beth-el under the oak; and the name of it was called Allon-bacuth” and (2 Samuel 4:4) “ Now Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled; and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.” And similarly, rescuing a drowning person which is an action of a diver. And thusly, other arts which are the work of a doctor such as an enema for one who we fear may die from colic sickness, and bloodletting one who fell from high and it is known that he will die without bloodletting, and like one who was bit by a viper and it is known that if the infected organ is not cut off he will die, and like one who consumed poison if he does not take the remedies to remove the poison will die.
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However, the fifth topic of active custom that is accepted by all creation, some of these include “skilled labor” in some respects, such as protecting homes from thieves which is from the profession of guarding according to the verse (Song of Songs 5:7) “The watchmen that go about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my mantle from me” and like this guarding vineyards and fields which is the profession of guarding as in the verse (Song of Songs 8:11) “Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon; he gave over the vineyard unto keepers; every one for the fruit thereof brought in a thousand pieces of silver.” And similarly making the bed for sleep and the chair and carpet for sitting which is the profession of an attendant, even while it is hard to find one who does this labor as a general profession, but is usually done by an honorable person’s servants and attendants who work for him alone and not others. And sometimes people create things that are not skilled labor but turn them into a profession and source of sustenance. And this is like those who cool water and store it in a [cooler] and serve water for a price and we call such a person “a seller of cool water.” And similarly, one whose body is very strong and wrestles, we call him a wrestler.
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And things of this nature which are accepted by tradition and accepted as custom, we do not forbid upon people because some have created a profession out of them. And this is like not forbidding a person from guarding their house and vineyard and field from thieves on the Sabbath because these actions are performed by a professional guard and watcher. And even another guarding another person’s house because this is assistance and help, however these actions are forbidden for a person for whom it is their profession and receives a salary from it. And additionally, we see the ruler who established guards for the gates of Jerusalem to prevent the entry of gentiles carrying goods on the Sabbath according to the verse (Nehemiah 13:19) “And it came to pass that, when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut, and commanded that they should not be opened till after the sabbath; and some of my servants set I over the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day.” And similarly it is not forbidden to give water to his friend on the Sabbath, since this is the profession of the “water seller” and it is not forbidden to make his or another’s bed since this is the work of an attendant. Rather, the analogy applies to each of these topics.
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And if “skilled labor,” which is the strictest prohibition on the Sabbath, is permitted in these aspects, all the more so the “actions” are permitted in the same manner and similarly what we will say subsequently concerning carrying items and walking and exiting the designated area. And all of the “skilled labors” and their components, small and large, are forbidden on the Sabbath as long as they do not include one of the five things we mentioned. However, there are things that are similar to a certain profession or part of a profession and these are not forbidden, such as striking a [metal cast] with a hammer which is part of the labor of construction, and similarly striking iron with a hammer is an aspect of welding, and similarly striking laundry with a wooden hammer is an aspect of laundering, and these are similar to striking an almond and hazelnut to remove and eat what is inside and these are not forbidden since they are not “skilled labor” in full or in part. And similarly slicing strips of meat is an aspect of the profession of butchery, and slicing roasted and cooked meat for eating is similar to slicing cucumbers and melon and other fruits and zamaward and this is not prohibited since it is not a “skilled labor” in full or in part. And similarly it is not forbidden to squeeze a boil or wound since it is similar to squeezing sesame which is the occupation of a [sesame extractor] and similarly it is not forbidden to squeeze a pomegranate for drinking.
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However, what is forbidden which is similar to this, is like the case of a stained garment in which it is forbidden to wash the stained area since this is a kind of the “skilled labor” of the launder. And similarly a lock that is difficult to open, it is forbidden to strike it with a hammer since this is a kind of the “skilled labor” of an ironsmith. And regarding “completing labor” this is like the launderer drying clothes and it is not permitted for one whose clothes got wet during the Sabbath to dry them. And similarly a shoemaker tying the straps of a sandal is the completion of the labor of shoemaking and therefore one who tore the strap of his sandal on the Sabbath is forbidden from tying it since this is a type of the labor of the shoemaker. And this is similar to tying and undoing a waistband and belt but these are not forbidden. And thus untying a knot of a bundle of food and untying a knot of a kerchief in order to read a codex and re-tying it afterwards are not forbidden. And gathering as well has an aspect of “skilled labor” since it is like the profession of gatherers during the harvest, and this is similar to gathering fruit that has been dispersed in one’s home and this is not prohibited. And this is a summary of “skilled labor” and “actions” in which we will subsequently discuss their details in which there is disagreement after we complete our discussion of the five prohibitions.
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However, the Rabbanites argue that it is permitted for one to complete part of a “skilled labor” and not complete it, according to the verse (Leviticus 4:24) “And if any one of the common people sin through error, in doing any of the things which the LORD hath commanded not to be done, and be guilty” meaning to do an action completely and not partially. They say if two people complete a skilled activity together, and each completed half of it, thus both are innocent. Come and see how many kinds of sins are involved in this notion, if it would thus be the case that one who stabs another, and the victim does not die but is close to death, and subsequently if another comes and mercifully kills him, both are innocent since neither of them committed the action of killing completely. And similarly for theft and profaning the Sabbath and holidays and using impure objects and what is similar to this. And their view in this contradicts the verse in Scripture (Leviticus 4:2) “I Speak unto the children of Israel, saying: If any one shall sin through error, in any of the things which the LORD hath commanded not to be done, and shall do any one of them” meaning some of a melakha or part of it, just as they contradicted this verse in their teaching on the “Avot Melakhot” for they constitute “any one of them” a complete melakha and we will discuss this at the end of the discourse.