To Count a Measure: Lessons of the Omer from the Desert

As we head into the home stretch of the Omer, it is important to remember that when we count the Omer, we are not counting objects, when we say the bracha, we say that we are counting a measurement. We are literally saying we are commanded to count somewhere between 2 and 2.5 liters.. 

We are not counting the tenufah, the wave offering.  We are not counting the seorah, the barley. 

Why count the measurement that Am Yisrael had to offer? Why not the actual object? 

Rabbi David Hofstetter in his book Doresh David brings up this very question and shares a beautiful midrash from the Tanchuma.. 

Vayikra Rabba 28:3

אָמַר רַבִּי בֶּרֶכְיָה, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְמשֶׁה לֵךְ אֱמֹר לָהֶם לְיִשְׂרָאֵל כְּשֶׁהָיִיתִי נוֹתֵן לָכֶם אֶת הַמָּן הָיִיתִי נוֹתֵן עֹמֶר לְכָל אֶחָד וְאֶחָד מִכֶּם, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (שמות טז, טז): עֹמֶר לַגֻּלְגֹּלֶת

, וְעַכְשָׁיו שֶׁאַתֶּם נוֹתְנִים לִי אֶת הָעֹמֶר אֵין לִי אֶלָּא עֹמֶר אֶחָד מִכֻּלְּכֶם, וְלֹא עוֹד אֶלָּא שֶׁאֵינוֹ שֶׁל חִטִּים אֶלָּא שֶׁל שְׂעוֹרִים, לְפִיכָךְ משֶׁה מַזְהִיר אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאוֹמֵר לָהֶם: וַהֲבֵאתֶם אֶת עֹמֶר.

Rabbi Berekhya said: The Holy One blessed be He said to Moses: ‘Go and say to Israel: When I would give you manna, I would give an omer to each and every one of you. That is what is written: “An omer per person” (Exodus 16:16). 

Now that you are giving Me the omer, I have only one omer from all of you. 

Moreover, it is not of wheat, but of barley.’ Therefore, Moses cautions Israel and says to them: “You shall bring a sheaf [omer].”

Through the lenses of this Midrash, I wanted to share three lessons linking the Man and the Omer.

Lesson #1-Sabainu Metuvecha:

We live in a world where each of us lives a life of “go getting”--going after the most, but the Man actually stood against that.

Let’s look at the psukim.  

Shemot 16: 16-18

זֶ֤ה הַדָּבָר֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר צִוָּ֣ה יְהֹוָ֔ה לִקְט֣וּ מִמֶּ֔נּוּ אִ֖ישׁ לְפִ֣י אׇכְל֑וֹ עֹ֣מֶר לַגֻּלְגֹּ֗לֶת מִסְפַּר֙ נַפְשֹׁ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם אִ֛ישׁ לַאֲשֶׁ֥ר בְּאׇהֳל֖וֹ תִּקָּֽחוּ׃

is is what GOD has commanded: Each household shall gather as much as it requires to eat—an omer to a person for as many of you as there are; each household shall fetch according to those in its tent.”

But then look what happened–they listened to their impulses and did not do it that way..

וַיַּעֲשׂוּ־כֵ֖ן בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַֽיִּלְקְט֔וּ הַמַּרְבֶּ֖ה וְהַמַּמְעִֽיט׃

The Israelites did so, some gathering much, some little.

וַיָּמֹ֣דּוּ בָעֹ֔מֶר וְלֹ֤א הֶעְדִּיף֙ הַמַּרְבֶּ֔ה וְהַמַּמְעִ֖יט לֹ֣א הֶחְסִ֑יר אִ֥ישׁ לְפִֽי־אׇכְל֖וֹ לקָֽטוּ׃

But when they measured it by the omer, anyone who had gathered much had no excess, and anyone who had gathered little had no deficiency: each household had gathered as much as it needed to eat.

Rashi tells us: 

המרבה והממעיט. יֵשׁ שֶׁלָּקְטוּ הַרְבֵּה וְיֵשׁ שֶׁלָּקְטוּ מְעַט, וּכְשֶׁבָּאוּ לְבֵיתָם מָדְדוּ בָעֹמֶר אִישׁ אִישׁ מַה שֶּׁלָּקְטוּ, וּמָצְאוּ שֶׁהַמַּרְבֶּה לִלְקֹט לֹא הֶעְדִּיף עַל עֹמֶר לַגֻּלְגֹּלֶת אֲשֶׁר בְּאָהֳלוֹ, וְהַמַּמְעִיט לִלְקֹט לֹא מָצָא חָסֵר מֵעֹמֶר לַגֻּלְגֹּלֶת; וְזֶהוּ נֵס גָּדוֹל שֶׁנַּעֲשָׂה בּוֹ:

המרבה והממעיט SOME MUCH, SOME LITTLE — There were some who gathered much and there were some who gathered little; and when they came home they measured it out by an Omer, each what he had gathered, and they then found that he who had gathered much had no excess over an Omer for each head that was in his tent, and that he who had gathered less did not find less than an Omer for each head, and this was a great miracle that was wrought in respect of it (the Manna).

So in the end, –the miracle was that, in the end, everyone got the same amount and that amount was enough. 

Yes there is a time for oneg to eat more, to want more, but it is important to know that, in the end, when God wanted to sustain us, God said, “You may think you need more, but you don’t, so don’t hoard. You may think that you don’t deserve more, but you do, so reach.”

God says that there is an amount that I will give, and I will give the same to everyone–that amount will sustain each of you to not only live but to thrive.

While there is a time for wanting and shooting for more, we don’t need so much to sustain us. 

We ask God, each Shabbat, שַׂבְּ֒עֵֽנוּ מִטּוּבֶֽךָ–-make us satisfied with your goodness. 

The Omer we each received of the Man reminds us of that important lesson. 

Lesson #2:-We can give a lot, but it still pales in what God gives us. 

Let’s remember, God gave an Omer to each person, each day

#1-From the Yahsan

עדר אלא שאנו של חושם אלא של שעורים.

וכן אמרו בתנחומא (יש״ו פי בשלח סי כג): ״אמר

להם דקב״ה: ראו מה ביני וביניכם...

אתם מקריבים לי עומר אחד בכל שנה...

ואני נתתי לכם לכל אחד ואחד עומר...

דלא עוד, אלא אתם הייתם מקריבים לי עומר

אחד בשנה, ואני נתתי לכם מן בכל יום״.

By calling it the Omer, it reminds us that no matter what we give and what we can do, that is so small in the infinite measure of the expanse of the universe. 

All at once, we are humbled and we realize that, yes we can each give in a timely and valuable way, but what we do is still so small.

Lesson #3 The Omer is the Language of Love

R. Hofsteder writes–The key of the Omer was that it was what God did for us out of love when we left Mitzrayim. 

In the most basic way, we were fed by our parents when we were fresh out of Egypt, just like a baby being fed by its mother. Just like a mother measures carefully the amount of milk, just so, God did so as well with the measurement of the Omer. 

Our giving of this Omer of the amount, not only shows this appreciation for God’s love for us, but can remind us of the importance of sustaining and giving in love to others. 

We also have to give the first mincha – as it must be done with zrizut-this also points to the yesod of our love. How much we bring is not the issue-it is the timing and the speed. 

When we hear the word Omer it is God’s love language – reminding us of the gifts we were given at that most initial time in our people’s history, reminding us of the daily gifts we are given and the love we can share with others. 

The Mekhilta (Mekhilta DeRabbi Yishmael, Tractate Vayehi Beshalach 1)

 tells us, 

רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן יוֹחַי אוֹמֵר: לֹא נִ תְּנָה תוֹרָה לִדְרֹשׁ אֶלָּא לְאוֹכְלֵי הַמָּן, 

R. Shimon would say: The Torah was given to be expounded only by the eaters of the Man

As we recite the Omer and head towards matan Torah, let’s push ourselves to internalize the lesson of the Man–realizing how much we actually need, remembering the countless gifts that God gives us and finally, living a life that recognizes God’s love for us and the lifelong task of passing that love to others.