gs are to be observed in the hallowing of the
Sabbath. One of these is the end: and this is that man occupy himself
with Divine things, and is signified in the words: "Remember that
thou keep holy the Sabbath day." For in the Law those things are said
to be holy which are applied to the Divine worship. The other thing
is cessation from work, and is signified in the words (Ex. 20:11),
"On the seventh day . . . thou shalt do no work." The kind of work
meant appears from Lev. 23:3, "You shall do no servile work on that
day [*Vulg.: 'You shall do no work on that day']." Now servile work
is so called from servitude: and servitude is threefold. One, whereby
man is the servant of sin, according to John 8:34, "Whosoever
committeth sin is the servant of sin," and in this sense all sinful
acts are servile. Another servitude is whereby one man serves
another. Now one man serves another not with his mind but with his
body, as stated above (Q. 104, AA. 5, 6, ad 1). Wherefore in this
respect those works are called servile whereby one man serves
another. The third is the servitude of God; and in this way the work
of worship, which pertains to the service of God, may be called a
servile work. In this sense servile work is not forbidden on the
Sabbath day, because that would be contrary to the end of the Sabbath
observance: since man abstains from other works on the Sabbath day in
order that he may occupy himself with works connected with God's
service. For this reason, according to John 7:23, "a man [*Vulg.: 'If
a man,' etc.] receives circumcision on the Sabbath day, that the law
of Moses may not be broken": and for this reason too we read (Matt.
12:5), that "on the Sabbath days the priests in the temple break the
Sabbath," i.e. do corporal works on the Sabbath, "and are without
blame." Accordingly, the priests in carrying the ark on the Sabbath
did not break the precept of the Sabbath observance. In like manner
it is not contrary to the observance of the Sabbath to exercise any
spiritual act, such as teaching by word or writing. Wherefore a gloss
on Num 28 says that "smiths and like craftsmen rest on the Sabbath
day, but the reader or teacher of the Divine law does not cease from
his work. Yet he profanes not the Sabbath, even as the priests in the
temple break the Sabbath, and are without blame." On the other hand,
those works that are called servile in the first or second way are
contrary to the observance of the Sabbath, in so far a