Waving the Omer Before the Master of All Worlds

Pesikta DeRav Kahana 8:3

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

"And he shall wave the Omer before the LORD for your acceptance" (Leviticus 23:11). How did he wave it? Rabbi Hama son of Rabbi Ukba in the name of Rabbi Yose bar Hanina said: he moved it back and forth to annul harsh winds, and raised it up and brought it down to annul harmful dews. Rabbi Simon in the name of Rabbi Joshua ben Levi said: he moved it back and forth to the One to whom the whole world belongs, and raised it up and brought it down to the One to whom the upper and lower realms belong. Rabbi Abin and Rabbi Judah and Rabbi Nehemiah hold this view.

Themes

CommandmentsSacrificeProvidence

Continue Reading

Pesikta de-Rav KahanaWho Has Given to Me First That I Should RepayGod asks a question that silences every boast: who ever gave to Me first, so that I would owe him in return? Everything under heaven is already Mine. Yet the HoMekhilta DeRabbi YishmaelYou Shall Not Take the Name of the Lord Your God in Vain a Vain OathThe Mekhilta deRabbi Yishmael, in its tractate Bachodesh on the giving of the Torah, parses the third commandment, "You shall not take the name of the Lord yourMekhilta DeRabbi YishmaelWhen a Priest Descends Steps, the Same Exposure Problem ExistsThe Torah prohibits approaching the altar by steps: "And you shall not go up with steps to My altar, so that your nakedness not be revealed upon it" (Exodus 20:Mekhilta DeRabbi YishmaelThis Seems to Require Bringing the First-born Animal to the Temple(Deuteronomy 12:6) says: "And you shall bring there your burnt-offerings and your sacrifices and the first-born of your herds and flocks." This seems to requireMekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiSpeak to the Whole Congregation and Take a Lamb on the TenthThe instruction to take the Passover lamb was not whispered to a few leaders. "Speak to all the congregation of Israel" (Exodus 12:3), the sages noted, teaches Mekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiWhy the Passover Lamb Must Be Unblemished and a Year OldScripture does not waste a word, and here it piles up qualifications for the Passover offering: it must be a lamb, without blemish, a year old, drawn from the s