This continues, day by day, until we reach the 49th day, when we say, "Haiyom tishah v'arba'im yom, shehem shivah shavu'ot ba'omer" (today is forty-nine days, which are seven weeks of the omer).Īfter the blessing is recited and the count has been declared, it is customary to say this short prayer: For example, on the first day we say, "Haiyom yom echad ba'omer" (today is one day of the omer), on the second day we say, "Haiyom yom sheni ba'omer" (today is two days of the omer), but on the seventh day we say, "Haiyom shivah yamim, shehem shavuah echad ba'omer" (today is seven days, which are one week of the omer), and on the eighth day we say, "Haiyom shemonah yamim, shehem shavuah echad v'yom echad ba'omer" (today is eight days, which is one week and one day of the omer). The people were so eager for this revelation that after their deliverance they began counting the days: "Now we have one day less to wait for the giving of the Torah!" This midrash attempts to explain why the Torah commands that the days from Passover to Shavuot are to be counted by claiming that the it commemorates the eagerness with which the Torah was received by the Israelites.Īfter reciting the blessing (above), we then declare the count of the omer in both days and weeks. Jewish legend says that the Israelites were foretold that the Torah would be given to them exactly 50 days after their Exodus from Egypt. Psalm 67 is often recited because it is composed of 49 Hebrew words which correspond to the 49 days of the Omer count.Įvery evening, from the second night of Passover to the night before Shavuot, the following blessing is recited before stating the count of the omer: Every day during this season a special blessing is recited naming exactly how many more days are left before the "seven weeks of days" are complete. This period of time is called Sefirat HaOmer ( סְפִירַת הָעוֹמֶר), or the "counting the sheaves" ( Lev. The Torah instructs us to count forty nine days – seven weeks of days – from the day following Passover until Shavuot (i.e., Weeks or "Pentecost"). Then you shall present a grain offering of new grain to the LORD" ( Lev. You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath. Now I’ll have seven children reminding me."You shall count seven full weeks from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf (omer) of the wave offering. However, some days we just forgot to do it! That’s why I decided to do candy this year. Last year, we did a sticker chart, gluing little pieces of barley on each spot. (On Day 50, we’ll have Big Gifts.)įinally, we hung the chart on the wall with thumb tacks. □įinally, I put a lid on each cup, then numbered the cups from 1-49. Then I wrapped little pieces of candy in tissue paper, so the kids wouldn’t be able to see what kinds were in each cup. We folded the little verse papers and put them into each cup. Next I printed out some verses that we can read each day when we do our “counting.” ( You can download the print-out I made by clicking here.) I used Elmer’s Glue to attach the cups, but I’m probably going to have to do them all over again, because the cups have been popping off over the last 24 hours. I had many curious helpers stopping by to help me! It never ceases to amaze me how easy it is to tell my kids about God when we do the “craft projects” included in His Word. Then I started gluing the cups onto the chart. I very lightly marked squares (2 1/2-inches by 2 1/2 inches) onto the poster board, 7 rows by 7 days in each row. An “omer” is a Hebrew measurement used for barley, and it refers to the offerings brought to God in thankfulness for the harvest He had provided. I bought some plastic mini cups with lids, plus a 50-cent piece of poster board. I got the idea on Pinterest to make a “Counting the Omer” chart. I am still learning all the ways this feast is significant, but since the Scriptures say to “count,” well then, count we will! Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to YHWH” (Leviticus 23:15-16). “From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. Today is the Feast of First Fruits (Leviticus 23:9-13), which also means that today we start counting up to Pentecost, or Shavuot, the “Feast of Weeks.” It’s called that because there are seven weeks (50 days) between these two feasts.
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