SEFIRAT HA'OMER - COUNTING THE OMER Iyar 13, 5783/May 4, 2023

TODAY IS TWENTY-EIGHT DAYS WHICH ARE FOUR WEEKS OF THE OMER
היום שמונה ועשרים יום שהם ארבעה שבועות לעומר
Attribute: Malchut sh'be'netzach /מלכות שבנצח
The Sovereignty of Endurance

The period of 49 days between the Festival of Passover and the Festival of Shavuot is a time of great spiritual potential that challenges us to examine our character, and work towards refining the emotive aspects of our personality. The Torah commands us to count each of these days and weeks, totaling seven complete weeks: "And you shall count for yourselves, from the morrow of the rest day, from the day when you bring the Omer of the waving -- seven weeks, they shall be complete." However the true goal of counting the Omer is not simply to count off the days, but to tell -- indeed, to write -- the story of our lives; to make every day count.

"And you shall count for yourselves, from the morrow of the rest day [Passover] from the day you bring the omer as a wave offering seven weeks; they shall be complete. You shall count until the day after the seventh week, [namely,] the fiftieth day, [on which] you shall bring a new meal offering to HaShem" (Exodus 23:15-16).

Psalm 67 is traditionally recited each evening after the counting of the Omer:

"For the conductor, on neginoth; a psalm, a song.
G-d will be gracious to us and bless us; He will cause His countenance to shine with us forever. That Your way should be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations. Peoples will thank You, O G-d; peoples will thank You, yea, all of them. Kingdoms will rejoice and sing praises, for You will judge peoples fairly, and the kingdoms - You will lead them on earth forever. Peoples will thank You, O G-d; peoples will thank You, yea, all of them. The earth gave forth its produce; G-d, our G-d, will bless us. G-d will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear Him."
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Rabbi Chaim Richman
Jerusalem Lights | Torah for Everyone

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