15 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete:
Leviticus 23:15-16
16 Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the Lord.
Yehovah has laid out His feast days for us in Leviticus 23 and it all seems so straightforward. For most of the feasts, He gives explicit instructions and it is fairly easy to understand the how’s and why’s.
Then there’s the omer.
What is the omer and why do we count it? How do we count it? What is the significance? So many questions!
Of course, keeping it is important. It’s in our Bibles and Yehovah commanded it. But for most people, understanding the significance of something, what it means, and what it does for us, helps us go into that holy day with more reverence and passion.
When you’re in love with someone you want to know everything, right? You don’t just want to know their favorite song, but why it’s their favorite song. You want to know the intimate things about them and why is that? Because it deepens your relationship with them.
It is the same with Yehovah. The more intimately we know Him, the deeper our relationship with Him is.
So, let’s discover the growth and blessing of counting the omer.
What is an omer and what is counting the omer?
Counting the omer reminds us of the agricultural aspect of the Passover and Shavuot. In ancient Israel, the first barley harvested was brought to the Temple, presented in measures called omers. They were an offering of gratitude and thanksgiving.
An omer is a unit of measure that the ancient Israelites used for barley and other grains as well as other dry commodities. In the Torah it says that an omer is one-tenth of an ephah (Exodus 16:36). It is roughly 2 dry quarts.
The omer connects Pesach to Shavuot – the biblical feast of Passover to the Feast of Weeks (Day of Pentecost) – and is seven Sabbaths.
This means that you can’t count the omer on the Gregorian calendar that the world keeps. It won’t even tell you when the feast days are. You have to use Yehovah’s calendar, the biblical lunar calendar.
What does counting the omer mean?
The omer is the 50-day countdown to Shavuot which celebrates when Yehovah gave the Torah to Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 20). It begins after Passover which commemorates the Israelite’s salvation from Egypt. It is that particular span of time that they spent in the wilderness without the Word of Yehovah, without Torah – which is a wilderness in itself.
Yehovah commanded that His people remember these 50 days and the way He commanded that we do it is by counting the omer.
How is counting the omer timed?
You must use the biblical lunar calendar to count the omer. You also have to understand the biblical Sabbath and the feast days. If you aren’t doing these things you will be off on your days and miss these commanded holy days completely.
Yehovah gave us specific times for these days. This is the way He commands us to worship Him and He wants it done His way.
While many people in the modern church subscribe to a “have it your way” mentality when it comes to worshipping Yehovah, that is not and never has been biblical. In fact, Yehovah gave us very precise instructions in His word regarding how we are to worship Him – and how we are NOT to worship Him.
29 When the Lord thy God shall cut off the nations from before thee, whither thou goest to possess them, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their land;
Deuteronomy 12:29-31
30 Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
31 Thou shalt not do so unto the Lord thy God: for every abomination to the Lord, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.
He gives us His feast days and Sabbath. That is how He wants us to honor and worship Him.
How do you count the omer?
Now for the technical part. We’ll just break it down a little so you can see the specifics without wading through this whole article.
How long is the omer counted?
The omer is 50 days. It is 7 Sabbaths plus 1 day.
When does counting the omer start?
We begin counting the omer on the Sabbath after Passover (Leviticus 23:15–16). Rabbinic Jews begin counting on the first day of Passover.
At Torah Observant Apostolic, we choose to follow scripture over rabbinic traditions so we begin counting the omer on the Sabbath after Passover as scripture commands.
When does counting the omer end?
The omer ends on Shavuot, the day after the seventh Sabbath – the first day of the week seven weeks after Passover.
Explain it like I’m 5
Let’s say Passover is on Wednesday. The Sabbath after Passover is Saturday. On Saturday night you begin counting the omer. The next Saturday is the first Sabbath of the omer. Then you count 7 more Sabbaths.
Why do we count the omer?
Yehovah wanted His people to remember the time from Passover to Shavuot. He wanted them to reflect on the time the Israelites were in the wilderness with no real relationship with Him.
Sure, they had seen Him perform miracles. They had experienced His freedom and mercy. They had the intellectual knowledge that He was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Other than that, they really did not know Him, not in the intimate way that He desires us to be in relationship with Him.
They did not know how to please Him. They didn’t know what was coming or what He had planned for them. They did not have the faith that He calls for us to have in Him.
They did not know what touches His heart or how He could move in their lives.
They were a lot like new believers and even a lot of Christians who don’t know the real stuff, the intimate stuff, what makes Yehovah tick – they didn’t know His law.
They were just learning to walk in the liberty that He gave them, but if they hadn’t had Moses to lead them they would likely have been scattered and lost – or would have returned to Egypt.
It’s hard to walk in the wilderness without a compass or a map – or even directions.
So counting the omer brings us back to that season and reminds us of the expectancy and growing excitement. It builds our faith as we move forward not knowing what Yehovah has in store for us but trusting that He will lead us to where we need to be.
It leads us to that tremendous day when Torah was given and the bridge to a deeper, more meaningful relationship with Yehovah was forged.
You cannot have the intimate relationship with Yehovah that He desires with you unless you know the Torah and keep the Torah. It is impossible.
You can’t even fully love Him because you can’t truly know Him without Torah.
How do you apply counting the omer to your own life and walk with Yehovah?
The 50 days of the omer is a season of growing excitement and expectancy. But it also calls you to reflect on the time when you did not know Him when you walked in rebellion. Remember that time before and when His word jumped off the page and was alive in you.
Before you knew Him you were in that wilderness with no direction, no real sense of where you were going. You may have seen Him working, even in your own life. You may have seen miracles, and healing, and felt His presence, but you didn’t know the innermost parts of Him and that is what He wanted. Remember when His Torah was revealed to you and His truth was unfolded before you.
Remember the excitement of deepening your walk and coming to know Yehovah in an intimate way instead of the superficial pattycake with Jesus Sunday morning meetings.
Remember the depth of relationship that you experienced when you began walking even as He walked (1 John 3:6).
When to count the omer
You count the omer beginning after sundown of the first Sabbath (the beginning of the Sabbath) after Passover.
You then count the omer every day after sundown.
How do you count the omer?
When you count the omer you stand and begin with a blessing.
Barukh ata Adonai Eloheinu Melekh ha’Olam asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tizivanu al sefirat ha’omer.
Or in English
Blessed are you, Adonai our God, Sovereign of the Universe, who has sanctified us with your commandments and commanded us to count the omer.
After the blessing, you say what day of the omer it is.
For example: Today is the first day of the omer.
After you have counted the first six days you include the number of weeks.
For example: Today is 12 days of the omer. It is one week and five days of the omer.
Some people begin with a reminder of the biblical command in the Torah to count the omer. They do this before the blessing and will typically follow this with a count reminder such as, “Yesterday was the third day of the omer.”
This is really personal preference.
Hineni muchan um’zuman l’kayem mitzvat aseh shel s’firat ha’omer k’mo shekatuv baTorah: Us’fartem lakhem mimaharat hashabbat miyom havi’echem et omer hat’nufa, sheva shabbatot t’mimot tihiyenah. Ad mimaharat hashabbat hash’vi’it tisp’ru chamishim yom.
Or in English
Behold, I am ready and prepared to fulfill the mitzvah of counting the omer, as it says in the Torah: You shall count from the eve of the second day of Pesach when an omer of grain is to be brought as an offering, seven complete weeks. The day after the seventh week of your counting will make fifty days.
If you forget to count the omer one night, you can count it during the day the following day, but omit the blessing. Then that evening you pick it back up with the blessing.
What is the scripture that you read when counting the omer?
Psalm 67 is the scripture that you read when counting the omer. It has exactly 7 verses and in Hebrew, it has 49 words (sadly, the English translation does not).
Each verse represents a branch of the menorah that was in the early sanctuary and later in the Temple.
It is a prayer asking Yehovah to bless the Israelites so that they can teach others about Him so they can come to know Him and receive His blessings.
1 God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.
Psalm 67
2 That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.
3 Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
4 O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Selah.
5 Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
6 Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
7 God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.
I encourage you to explore this Psalm in Hebrew and look at the words as well as the meanings. There’s so much more there than meets the eye! It is so rich, so powerful, so deep. You will be blessed by studying this out, I promise.
What are the steps for counting the omer?
This is how you count the omer, step by step.
Step 1: Reflect on why you are counting the omer and the significance of it. Remember where you were before you knew Yehovah. Remember the Israelites as they fled Egypt and took their first steps into liberation but did not yet truly know Yehovah because they did not have Torah.
Step 2: Recite the blessing (Bracha)
Step 3: Count the days
- Say what day of the omer it is
- Say how many days total have been counted so far
Step 4: Recite or read Psalm 67
Step 5: Close with prayer for those who are still prisoners, for their well-being and liberation, for peace, for your walk with Yehovah, and for growth during this season. Thank Yehovah for His guidance and hand in your life. Thank Him for the Torah and for giving us His word so that we can know it and live it. Thank Him for His blessings, protection, and provision, and however the Holy Spirit leads you.
There are blessings in counting the omer!
Yehovah blesses those who are faithful to Him. The promises that are in His word are for those who are obedient and always striving to be holy as He is holy.
Counting the omer is one of the prescribed feast days of the Bible and we are commanded to keep it.
Obeying Him and keeping His commandments will deepen your walk. After faithfully counting the omer you will find that your walk is deeper and your relationship with Yehovah is much more intimate.
It will change you.
The world is waking up to Torah and the Sabbath and the Moedim. We, like so many others, are learning to live these things out for the first time. Any sincere attempt to follow the direction of Yehovah is honorable. We welcome you to this journey of learning.
Shalom
Subscribe to the Torah Observant Apostolic Newsletter! It’s free!
Torah Observant Apostolics 
One thought on “What is the Omer and How to Count the Omer 2024”