Work...WORK?! (apologies to Maynard G Krebs) The spiritual imperative for earning a livelihood

(8) All the people answered as one, saying, “All that <HaShem> has spoken we will do!” ...

(7) Then he took the record of the covenant and read it aloud to the people. And they said, “All that <HaShem> has spoken we will do and we will listen!”

(28) God blessed them and God said to them, “Be fertile and increase, fill the earth and master it; and rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and all the living things that creep on earth.”

(5) No shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprung up; for <HaShem> God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground;

(15) <HaShem> God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden, to till it and tend it.

(17) To Adam He said, “Because you did as your wife said and ate of the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ Cursed be the ground because of you; By toil shall you eat of it All the days of your life: (18) Thorns and thistles shall it sprout for you. But your food shall be the grasses of the field; (19) By the sweat of your brow Shall you get bread to eat, Until you return to the ground— For from it you were taken. For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.”

(2) By the labor of your hands you shall eat; you shall be happy and it will be good for you

In the garden...The only interpretation of working in the garden he will have fruit to eat [is] after he has sinned, he returns to eat the grass of the field, which is the bread

(2) Rabban Gamliel the son of Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi said: Excellent is the study of the Torah together with a worldly occupation; for the exertion [expended] in both of them causes sin to be forgotten. And all [study of the] Torah in the absence of a worldly occupation comes to nothing in the end and leads to sin. And all who work for the community, let them work for the [sake of the] name of Heaven; for the merit of their ancestors sustains them, And their righteousness (tsidkatam) will endure forever. And as for you [who work for the community, God says:] I credit you with a great reward, as if you [yourselves] had done it [on your own].

(2) "Worldly occupation (derekh erets, literally the way of the world)": A craft or business. *

(3) "For the exertion [expended] in both of them causes sin to be forgotten": As Torah [study] dulls the strength of a man and work pulls apart and breaks the body, and as a result of this the evil impulse is rendered idle for him.

(4) "And all [study of the] Torah in the absence of a worldly occupation": And if one might ask, let him work in Torah [study] and its exertion will cause sin to be forgotten, therefore it is required to say, "all [study of the] Torah in the absence of a worldly occupation comes to nothing in the end." As it is impossible for him without food, and [so] he will rob the creatures and forget his study.

(5) "let them work for the [sake of the] name of Heaven": and not in order to take a crown [for themselves], to say, "I did such and such for the community."

(4) And all [study of the] Torah in the absence of a worldly occupation comes to nothing in the end: Like the matter that they said in our treatise (Avot 3 17), "If there is no flour, there is no Torah." The matter is like its simple understanding - when he neglects work, it brings him to poverty and it drags along several sins and its evil is great. As on account of it, he will 'love gifts and not live,' and flatter people even if they are evildoers, in order that they give to him. Also when the money from the gifts runs out, he will become a thief or a kidnapper (or gambler) and will bring 'home loot taken from the poor' so that he not die of hunger. And when a person reaches these traits, his spirit knows no restraint and he will not rest and not be still until he transgresses all of the commandments that are stated in the Torah, since 'one sin brings along [another] sin.' And about this, the sages said in Tractate Chullin 44b (see also Berakhot 8a), "Anyone who benefits from his toil, the verse states about him (Psalms 128:2), 'If you eat the toil of your hands you shall be happy and it will be good for you' - happy in this world, and good for you in the world (to come)." Therefore it is necessary for a sage to know a craft, as it is stated (Ecclesiastes 7:11), "Good is wisdom with an inheritance."

(17) Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah says: If there is no Torah, there is no worldly occupation; if there is no worldly occupation, there is no Torah. If there is no wisdom, there is no fear; if there is no fear, there is no wisdom. If there is no understanding, there is no knowledge; if there is no knowledge, there is no understanding. If there is no flour, there is no Torah; if there is no Torah, there is no flour. He would say: Anyone whose wisdom exceeds his deeds, to what is he compared? To a tree whose branches are many but whose roots are few; and the wind comes and uproots it and turns it upside down; as it is said; "And he shall be like a lonely juniper tree in the wasteland and shall not see when good comes, but shall inhabit the parched places of the wilderness, a salty land that is uninhabitable." (Jeremiah 17:6). But one whose deeds exceed his wisdom, what is he like? Like a tree whose branches are few but whose roots are many; since even if all the winds of the world come and blow upon it, they do not move it from its place, as it is said; "He shall be like a tree planted by the waters, and spreads out its roots by the river, and shall not perceive when heat comes, but its leaf shall remain fresh; and it will not be troubled in the year of drought, nor will it cease to bear fruit." (Jeremiah 17:8).

(17) "If there is no Torah, etc.": [then] his give and take is not well with the creatures.

(18) "if there is no worldly occupation, etc.": in the end, his Torah will be forgotten from him.

(19) "if there is no knowledge, etc.": Knowledge is the finding of the reason for a thing and understanding is to figure out one thing from [another] thing, but without seeing its reason. And if there is no knowledge to give the reason for a thing, there is no understanding, since if he does not know the reason of a thing, it is as if he doesn't know it. But nevertheless, understanding is first, hence "if there is no understanding, there is no knowledge."

(20) "If there is no flour, there is no Torah": How will one who does not have what to eat, inolve himself in Torah [study]?

(21) "if there is no Torah, there is no flour": Of what good to him is the flour that is in his hand; since he does not have Torah, it would have been better for him that he did not have flour and that would have died from starvation.

And Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Ami said in the name of Ulla: One who benefits from his hard labor is greater than a God-fearing person, i.e., one who is so enthralled by his fear of God that he sits idly by and does not work. As with regard to a God-fearing person, it is written: “Happy is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly desires His mitzvot” (Psalms 112:1), while with regard to one who benefits from his hard work, it is written: “By the labor of your hands you will live; you are happy and it is good for you” (Psalms 128:2). The Gemara explains this verse to mean that you are happy in this world, and it is good for you in the World-to-Come. And regarding a God-fearing person, happy is the man, is written about him but and it is good for you, is not written about him.

...The Sages taught: What is the meaning of that which the verse states: “And you shall gather your grain”? Because it is stated: “This Torah shall not depart from your mouths, and you shall contemplate in it day and night” (Joshua 1:8), I might have thought that these matters are to be understood as they are written; one is to literally spend his days immersed exclusively in Torah study. Therefore, the verse states: “And you shall gather your grain, your wine and your oil,” assume in their regard, the way of the world; set aside time not only for Torah, but also for work. This is the statement of Rabbi Yishmael. Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai says: Is it possible that a person plows in the plowing season and sows in the sowing season and harvests in the harvest season and threshes in the threshing season and winnows in the windy season, as grain is separated from the chaff by means of the wind, and is constantly busy; what will become of Torah? Rather, one must dedicate himself exclusively to Torah at the expense of other endeavors; as when Israel performs God’s will, their work is performed by others, as it is stated: “And strangers will stand and feed your flocks, and foreigners will be your plowmen and your vinedressers” (Isaiah 61:5). When Israel does not perform God’s will, their work is performed by them themselves, as it is stated: “And you shall gather your grain.” Moreover, if Israel fails to perform God’s will, others’ work will be performed by them, as it is stated: “You shall serve your enemy whom God shall send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness and in want of all things” (Deuteronomy 28:48). Summing up this dispute, Abaye said: Although there is room for both opinions, many have acted in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yishmael, and combined working for a living and learning Torah, and although they engaged in activities other than the study of Torah, were successful in their Torah study. Many have acted in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai and were not successful in their Torah study. They were ultimately forced to abandon their Torah study altogether. Similarly, Rava said to the Sages who would attend his study hall: I implore you; during the months of Nisan and Tishrei, the crucial agricultural periods, do not appear before me. Engage in your agricultural work then so that you will not be preoccupied with your sustenance all year.

MISHNA: Anyone who is engaged in the study of Bible, and in the study of Mishna, and in דרך ארץ, will not be quick to sin, as it is stated: “And a threefold cord is not quickly broken” (Ecclesiastes 4:12). One who is involved in all three of these activities will not sin easily. And anyone who does not engage in the study of Bible, nor the study of Mishna, nor in דרך ארץ - the desired mode of behavior, is not part of society, i.e., he is not considered a civilized person at all.

Jonathan said to them: This is the tradition that I received from the house of my father’s father: A person should always hire himself out to idol worship and not require the help of people by receiving charity, and I took this position in order to avoid having to take charity.

...

The Gemara comments: And he, Jonathan, thought that this referred to actual idol worship, but that is not so, that was not the intent of the tradition. Rather, here the term idol worship, literally: Strange service, is referring to service, i.e., labor, that is strange, i.e., unsuitable, for him. In other words, one should be willing to perform labor that is difficult and humiliating in his eyes rather than become a recipient of charity. As Rav said to Rav Kahana, his student: Skin a carcass in the market and take payment, but do not say: I am a great man and this matter is beneath me.

(18) A person should always push himself and live in misery and not require help from others and not thrust himself upon the community. And so [too], did the Sages command and say (Pesachim 112a), "make your Shabbat to be like a weekday and do not require help from others." And even if he was a sage and an honored man and became poor, he should engage in crafts - and even in abject crafts - and not require help from others. It is better to flay the skins of animal carcasses than that he should say to the people, "I am a great sage, I am a priest (Kohen), support me;" and this is what the Sages commanded. There were from the greatest of the Sages wood-choppers (1), beam carriers (2), water bearers [who would bring it] to the gardens (3) and iron and coal makers (4); and they would not ask [for help] from the community and would not take it from them when they [offered to] give it to them.

(9) Among the great ones of the sages of Israel, there were wood-choppers (1) and water-drawers (3), and blind men, and despite this, they engaged in Torah study during the day and night, and are included among the transmitters of the tradition from person to person from Moses, our teacher.

(10) Shemayah and Avtalyon received from them. Shemayah says, "Love work, hate authority and do not become [too] familiar with the government."

...Love Work: What is that? This teaches that a man should love work and that no man should hate work. For even as the Torah was given as a covenant, so was work given as a covenant; as it is said "Six days &tc" (Shemot 20:9)

...

Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar says: Even Adam tasted nothing before he worked, as it is said: "And he put him in the Garden to till it and tend it; [only then] Of every tree of the garden you may eat." (B'reishit 2:15)

Rabbi Tarfon says: Ha KBH, likewise did not cause His Shekhinah to rest upon Israel before they did work as it is said "And let them make Me a sanctuary, then I shall dwell among them" (Shemot 25:8)

Rabbi Judah ben Bathyra says: If a man has no work to do, what should he do? If he has a run-down yard or field, let him go and occupy himself with it, for it is said "Six days &tc" Now why does the verse day "And do all they work?" To include him who has rundown yards and fields, let him go occupy himself with them.

§ The baraita further teaches that Rabbi Yehuda says: Any father who does not teach his son a trade teaches him banditry. The Gemara asks: Can it enter your mind that he actually teaches him banditry? Rather, the baraita means that it is as though he taught him banditry.

...

The Gemara asks: What is the difference between the opinion of the first tanna and that of Rabbi Yehuda? Both state that a father must teach his son a trade. The Gemara answers: There is a difference between them in a case where the father teaches him to engage in business. According to the first tanna this is sufficient, whereas Rabbi Yehuda maintains that he must teach him an actual trade.

...Rav Hamnuna said: Anyone who prays on Shabbat evening and recites the passage of vaykhullu, the verse ascribed him credit as if he became a partner with the Holy One, Blessed be He, in the act of Creation. As it is stated: “And the heavens and the earth were finished [vaykhullu].” Do not read it as: Were finished [vaykhullu]; rather, as: They finished [vaykhallu]. It is considered as though the Holy One, Blessed be He, and the individual who says this become partners and completed the work together.