The Mekhilta continues its analysis of the legal hierarchy between the Sabbath, the sacrificial service, murder, and burial of the dead. The argument now approaches from the opposite direction, testing whether the same conclusion holds when the logical chain is reversed.
The sacrificial service is overridden by murder. A convicted murderer must be executed even if it means interrupting the Temple service. Since the Temple service yields to murder, and the burial of a meth mitzvah overrides the Temple service, one might argue that the Sabbath, which is not overridden by murder, should not be overridden by burial either.
The Mekhilta supports this with a verse from Deuteronomy: "His body shall not remain all the day upon the tree" (Deuteronomy 21:23). This verse commands that an executed criminal's body must be buried on the same day. But the Sages read a limitation into this verse. "On the day that you are permitted to execute him, you are permitted to bury him." Execution does not take place on the Sabbath. Therefore, burial of the executed also does not take place on the Sabbath.
The principle that emerges is consistent with the previous passage. The Sabbath stands firm against obligations that override other sacred duties. Even the burial of the dead, which is considered one of the most important commandments in Judaism, does not push aside the Sabbath. The practical consequence is that a meth mitzvah discovered on the Sabbath must wait until the Sabbath concludes before burial can take place. The dignity of the dead is immense, but the sanctity of the Sabbath is greater. In the hierarchy of Jewish obligations, the Sabbath occupies a nearly unassailable position.