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without attribution was considered wrong, though not a crime; it was dishonorable and to be avoided, but there was no punishment. The rabbinic literature constantly quoted statements of earlier sages, either in agreement or disagreement. Those shedding new light on some aspect of knowledge were lauded and the individual creator praised. but nothing beyond that occurred. Few efforts to ban ideas were undertaken and usually were unsuccessful.
As we have seen in both the biblical and rabbinic period no need to protect ideas was felt. Whether anonymous or attributed to an individual. the ideas were never considered personal property. Inspiration came from God and could not be personally claimed.
Most of the ideas in these rabbinic discussions had no economic value, although they provided a different intellectual understanding of Judaism . Much of our current concern with intellectual property is due to its financial value and that was not entirely absent in the past. The best known example is the prosbul attributed to Hillel (30 B.C.E.-20 C.E.). His idea reinterpreted a biblical law intended to help the peasant, but it had become an obstacle to all commerce. The new interpretation removed a threatened credit crunch which threatened all commerce and especially affected the poor. The Bible had mandated the cancellation of all debts through the sabbatical year. As that year approached, lenders became unwilling to extend credit. The situation became critical if a bad harvest threatened and timely repayment before the sabbatical year became extremely unlikely. This, had undoubtedly always been a problem, but in the more commercial society of the first century it threatened the Jewish economy. Commerce large and small was in danger; it affected the livelihood of poor peasants as well as the wealthy trader. Hillel ’s invention of the prosbul, a new financial tool, turned the court into an artificial person and loans deposited there were not cancelled by the sabbatical year(Git. 36a; Shulhan Arukh Hoshen Mishpat 67), so commerce could continue. This radical move contradicted the literal meaning 0!