וסבר רבי יהודה קצירה שלא ברצון חכמים היא והתנן אנשי יריחו קוצרין לפני העומר ברצון חכמים וגודשין לפני העומר שלא ברצון חכמים ולא מיחו בידם חכמים
And it is these which they did not forbid them: They grafted palm trees the whole day, and they 'wrapped up' the shema', and they stacked [the corn] before the 'omer. And it is these which they forbade them to do: They permitted [for use] branches of hekdesh of carob and sycamore trees, and they made breaches in their garden and orchards to permit the poor to eat the fallen fruit in famine years on Sabbaths and Festivals; they gave pe'ah from vegetables; and the Sages forbade them. Yet does R'Judah hold that the reaping was not with the consent of the Sages? Surely we learned: The inhabitants of Jericho reaped before the 'omer with the consent of the Sages and stacked before the 'omer without the consent of the Sages, but the Sages did not forbid them to do it.
Orchot Tzadikim
The seventh thought which leads to rejoicing is that he should know that the Creator, Blessed is He, created man for many labors and provided food for him to obtain through much exertion and work and that if all these things like food and clothes were prepared for man without any trouble at all on his part there would be a number of commandments that would not exist — for instance Charity — laws prohibiting robbery, theft, covetousness, and many similar commandments. Then too, if all were provided, man would have no need to trust in God. And for this reason, Hezekiah the King of Judea hid the Book of Healings (Berakoth 10b) in order that the sick person should trust in God, may He be Exalted, and not merely in drugs. Moreover, if a man were freed from the necessity of work and did not have to trouble himself about his sustenance, he would kick out against all restraint and pursue wrongdoing as it is written : "When Jeshurun prospered, he kicked" (Deut. 32:15). And our Sages said : "The study of the Torah is good when combined with making a living, for the exertion necessary for both activities causes one to forget all thought of sinning" (Aboth 2:2).
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