Tucked away in Parshat Emor’s discussion of the biblical festivals, between the mitzvot relating to Pesah and those concerning Shavuot, are two less “glamorous” commandments: one involving the ceremonial offering of an omer of barley, the earliest-ripening grain, on the second night and day of Pesah; and the other, the counting of the omer for forty-nine days, culminating in the festival of Shavuot, when bread made from wheat is offered:

When you enter the land that I am giving to you and you reap its harvest, you shall bring the first sheaf (omer) of your harvest to the priest. He shall elevate the sheaf before the Lord… (Leviticus 23:9–11)

And from the day on which you bring the sheaf of elevation offering—the day after the Shabbat—you shall count off seven weeks. They must be complete: you must count until the day after the seventh week—fifty days; then you shall bring an offering of new grain to the Lord. (Leviticus 23:15–16)

With the destruction of the Temple, we were no longer able to offer the omer on the altar. We were left, however, with the mitzvah of counting the omer, which we perform each evening between Pesah and Shavuot. It has, in part, been transformed into a “countdown” from the celebration of redemption from Egypt to the great event at Sinai—the receiving of the Torah.

Yet we still retain an element of the agricultural significance of this countdown – from the barley harvest to that of the more precious wheat harvest, and even though most of us buy our barley and wheat pre-packaged and are far removed from the rhythms of planting and harvesting, we should be more mindful of them!

Be that as it may, the following midrash draws from this countdown a valuable life lesson worthy of our attention:

Rabbi Elazar said: It is written: “They did not say in their heart: Let us now fear the Lord our God, [who gives rain, the early rain and the late rain at its appointed time; the set weeks of the harvest, He will maintain for us]” (Jeremiah 5:24). He has given you everything; do you not need Him now? “The set weeks of the harvest, He will maintain for us”—He will protect us from harmful winds and harmful dew. When? It is during the seven weeks between Passover and Shavuot. Rabbi Ḥiyya taught: “‘Seven weeks, they shall be complete’ (Leviticus 23:15). When are they complete? When Israel performs the will of the Omnipresent.”

Rabbi Yehoshua said: “‘I am your watchman; will you not give Me payment for My watching?’” Rabbi Berekhya said: “‘I am your cook; will you not allow Me to taste your cooked items, to know what they need—whether dew or rain?’”

“You release rain abundantly, God” (Psalm 68:10). David said before the Holy One, blessed be He: “Master of the universe, if it needs rain, give it abundantly; if it needs dew, release it, God.” (Adapted from Vayikra Rabbah 28:2, Margulies ed. pp. 752-766)

Rabbi Elazar quotes a verse from the prophet Yirmiyahu, who castigates his people for failing to appreciate what God does for them. He adds another element to the equation: the human tendency to show appreciation only so long as we perceive a need, only to sink into complacency once that need seems met. The other sages remind us, as it were, that God acts as our “watchman” and our “cook,” constantly attending to our well-being and ensuring that our needs are met. The counting of the omer, then, serves as a panacea for our forgetfulness, reminding us that God’s providence is a constant gift in our lives.

Thus, the counting of the omer is far more than just a bridge between Pesah and Shavuot or a countdown to Sinai. It is a daily discipline of gratitude, training us to recognize that redemption is not only found in dramatic miracles of the past, but also in the quiet, sustaining gifts of the present: the rain, the dew, the harvest, and the unseen care that makes life itself possible. To count the omer, then, is to learn not only how to number our days, but how to bless them as well.

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)