AOY Teaching · Counting the Omer Series
Firstfruits of the
Counted Walk
Two intertwined commands — First Fruits and Counting the Omer — that span Redemption itself.
In Leviticus 23, Yahuah speaks to Musha (Moses) of His Moedim (Appointed times). These are not “Hebrew (Jewish) Feasts” but Yahuah’s own Qudesh (Holy) Gathering (Convocations). Today we examine two (2) intertwined Commands: First (1st) Fruits (Reshit) and Counting the Omer (Sefirat HaOmer).
The Command of First Fruits
Leviticus 23:9–10
And Yahuah spoke to Musha (Moses), saying, “Speak to the Children of Yasharal (Israel), and say to them: ‘When you Come into the Land Which I Give to You, and Reap its Harvest, then you Shall Bring a Sheaf of the First (1st) Fruits of your Harvest to the Priest.'”
FirstFruit is tied to Entering the Promised Land and Reaping the Harvest. This is Agricultural, but Scripture also uses Harvest as a Metaphor for Redemption.
Matthew 9:37–38
Then He said to His Disciples, “The Harvest Truly is Plentiful, but the Laborers are few. Therefore Pray the Master of the Harvest to send out laborers into His Harvest.”
The Sheaf (Omer in Hebrew) is a Bundle of Barley, the First (1st) Grain to Ripen in Yasharal (Israel).
Leviticus 23:11
“He Shall Wave the Sheaf before Yahuah, to be accepted for you; on the Day after the Sabbath the Priest Shall Wave it.”
The Timing is Precise: “the Day After the Sabbath.” Which Sabbath? The Weekly Sabbath that Falls During the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Leviticus 23:7–8
On the First (1st) Day you Shall have a Qudesh (Holy) Gathering (Convocation); you Shall do No Customary Work on it. But you Shall Offer an Offering Made by Fire to Yahuah for Seven (7) Days. Qudesh (Holy) Gathering (Convocation) you Shall Do No Customary Work on it.’
Therefore, FirstFruits is always on the First (1st) Day of the Week (Yom Rishon). This becomes the Anchor for Counting.
Joshua 5:10–12
Now the Children of Yasharal (Israel) camped in Gilgal, and Kept the Pesach (Passover) on the Fourteenth (14th) Day of the Month at Even on the plains of Yericho. And they ate of the Produce of the land on the Day After the Pesach (Passover), Unleavened Bread and Parched Grain, on the very Same Day. Then the Manna Ceased on the Day After they had Eaten the Produce of the land; and the Children of Yasharal (Israel) no longer had Manna, but they ate the Food of the land of Canaan that year.
Yasharal (Israel) kept the Pesach (Passover) in Gilgal, and on the day after the Pesach (Passover) they ate Unleavened cakes and Parched Grain from the land. The manna ceased. FirstFruits Marks the Shift from Supernatural Bread to the Fruit of the Land of Promise.
Leviticus 23:12–14
“On the Day you Wave the Sheaf you Shall Offer a Male lamb of the First (1st) Year, without Blemish, as a Burnt Offering to Yahuah… You Shall Eat Neither Bread nor Parched Grain nor Fresh Grain until the Same Day that you have Brought an Offering to your Alahym.”
This Teaches Priority, Consecration, and Dependence. The First (1st) and Best Belongs to Yahuah. Until He Receives His Portion, You Do Not Consume.
Yahusha Is First Fruits
1 Corinthians 15:20
But now Yahusha Ha Mashyach is Risen from the Dead, and has Become the First (1st) Fruits of those Who Have Fallen asleep.
1 Corinthians 15:22–23
For as in Adam all Die, even so in Yahusha All Shall be Made Alive. But each one (1) in his own order: Yahusha the FirstFruits, afterward those who are Yahusha’s at His coming.
1 Thessalonians 4:16
For the Master Himself will Descend from Shamym (Heaven) with a Shout, with the Voice of an Archangel, and with the Trumpet of Alahym. And the Dead in Mashyach will Rise First (1st).
Shaul (Paul), under the Ruach HaQudesh, explicitly identifies Yahusha’s Resurrection as the Fulfillment of the Wave Sheaf. The Day Yahusha Rose was “Very Early (while it was Still Dark), the Day after the Sabbath” of that Pesach (Passover) Week, on the First (1st) Day of the Week.
John 20:1
Early on the First (1st) Day of the Week, while it was Still Dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.
Luke 24:1
On the First (1st) Day of the Week, Deep Very Early (Dawn), the women came to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared.
Matthew 28:1
After the Sabbath, as it began (Dawn) towards the First (1st) Day of the Week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.
Mark 16:2
Very Early on the First (1st) Day of the Week, at the rising (Dawn) of the Sun, they went to the tomb.
In the region of Yarushalym (Jerusalem) during the time of Yahusha, astronomical dawn typically began around 4:00 AM, with the Sun visibly rising around 5:30 AM. However, exact times fluctuated depending on the season, as ancient daily schedules were governed by sunlight rather than strict clock-time.
Yahusha is the First (1st) Fruits from the Dead.
John 20:17
Yahusha said to her, “Do Not Cling to Me, for I have not yet Ascended to My Father; but Go to My Brethren and Say to them, ‘I am Ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My Alahym and your Alahym.'”
This Ascension on the Morning of His Resurrection Corresponds to the Priest Waving the Sheaf before Yahuah. Yahusha ascends as the Wave Offering, accepted on our behalf.
There is an Order: First (1st), the Head (Yahusha); then, at His coming, the Body (Believers).
Romans 8:23
Not only that, but we also who have the Firstfruits of the Ruach (Spirit), even We Ourselves Groan within Ourselves, Eagerly Waiting for the Adoption, the Redemption of our Body.
The Ruach given now is a down-payment, just as the First (1st) Sheaf Promised the Full Ingathering.
Counting the Omer: From First Fruits to Shavuot
Leviticus 23:15–16
‘And you Shall Count for Yourselves from the Day after the Sabbath, from the Day that you Brought the Sheaf of the Wave Offering: Seven (7) Sabbaths shall be Completed. Count Fifty (50) Days to the Day after the Seventh (7th) Sabbath; then you Shall Offer a New Grain Offering to Yahuah.’
The Command is to Count. From the Wave Sheaf Day (Yahusha’s Resurrection) you Count Seven (7) Full Sabbaths (Weeks) 7X7=49 Days, then the 50th Day is Shavuot (Pentecost).
Why Count?
Counting Builds Anticipation. It links the Resurrection (FirstFruits) to the Giving of the Ruach.
Acts 2:1–4
When the Day of Shavuot (Pentecost) had Fully Come, they were all with One (1) Accord in One (1) Place. And suddenly there came a Sound from Shamym (Heaven), as of a Rushing Mighty Wind, and it Filled the Whole House where they were Sitting. Then there Appeared to them Divided (Separated) Tongues (Languages), as of Fire, and One (1) Sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Ruach Ha Qudesh and Began to Speak with other Tongues (Languages), as the Ruach gave them utterance.
Divided (Separated) Tongues of Fire” Refers to the Ruach, like a Qudesh Fire, Enlightens and Purifies so that Believers can Share More and More. A Miraculous, Visible Manifestation of the Ruach Ha Qudesh Descending upon Yahusha’s Disciples at Shavuot. Signifying the Empowerment of Believers for Witnessing, and Divine Purification within each Believer.
Presence of Yahuah: Similar to the Burning Bush, Fire Represents Yahuah’s Qudesh (Holy), Purifying Presence Dwelling in Believers.
Hebrews 12:29
For our Alahym is a Consuming Fire.
Deuteronomy 4:24
For Yahuah your Alahym is a Consuming Fire, a Jealous Alahym.
Describing Yahuah as a Powerful Force that Destroys Impurity, Idolatry, and Evil, while also Refining and Purifying the Hearts of Believers. Signifying Yahuah’s intense Jealousy for His People’s Devotion, and Righteous Judgment against Sin.
Empowerment for Witness: The Tongues (Languages) Symbolize Power, Boldness, and the Ability to Speak Yahuah’s Word effectively, particularly in Different Languages to Share the Gospel (Besorah, Good News).
Separated or Divided: Suggests a Single Divine Source Splitting to Rest upon each individual Disciple, Signifying Personalized Empowerment within a Unified Assembly (Body).
Fulfilled Promise: This event Marked the Immersion (Baptism) in the Ruach HaQudesh, Promised by Yahusha, Transforming the Disciples.
1 Corinthians 12:10
to another the Working of Miracles, to another Prophecy, to another Distinguishing between ruachs (spirits), to another Speaking in Various Tongues (Languages), and to still another the Interpretation (understanding) of Tongues (Languages).
Acts 1:8
But you Shall Receive Power when the Ruach Ha Qudesh has Come upon you; and you Shall be Witnesses to Me in Yarushalym (Jerusalem), and in all Yahudah and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.
Genesis 11:7–9
Come, let Us Go Down and Confuse their language (tongue), so that they Will Not Understand One (1) another’s Speech.” So Yahuah Scattered them from there over the face of all the earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it is called Babel, for there Yahuah Confused the Language (Tongue) of the Whole World, and from that place Yahuah Scattered them over the face of all the earth.
“Babbling” typically refers to an infant’s early vocal experimentation (starting around 3–4 months) or, more generally, incoherent, or excited speech. symbolizing confusion, linguistic mixing, and a chaotic, unintelligible noise.
The Torah Connection
In the Turah (Old Covenant), Shavuot Commemorated the Giving of the Turah at Sinai, likewise the Giving of the Ruach HaQudesh on the Third (3rd) New Moon (Month), later understood as Shavuot.
Exodus 19:1
In the Third (3rd) Month after the Children of Yasharal (Israel) had Gone Out of the land of Mytsrym (Egypt), on the Same Day, they Came to the Wilderness of Sinai.
Exodus 19:11
And let them Be Ready for the Third (3rd) Day. For on the Third (3rd) Day Yahuah Will Come Down upon Mount Sinai in the Sight of all the People.
In the Brit HaDashah (New Covenant), Yahuah Writes His Turah on Hearts by the Ruach HaQudesh.
Jeremiah 17:10
“I Yahuah Search the Heart and Test the Mind, to Give Every Man According to His Ways, According to the Fruit of His Deeds.”
Jeremiah 24:7
I Will Give them a Heart to Know that I am Yahuah, and They Shall Be My People and I Will Be their Alahym, for They Shall Return to Me with their Whole Heart.
Hebrews 8:8–10
Because Finding Fault with them, He says: “Behold, the Days are Coming, says Yahuah, and I Will Complete (Accomplish), with the House of Yasharal (Israel) and with the House of Yahudah (Judah) a New Covenant, not According to the Covenant that I Made with their Fathers in the Day when I took them by the Hand to Lead them Out of the land of Mytsrym (Egypt); Because they Did Not Continue in My Covenant, I Disregarded them, says Yahuah. For this is the Covenant that I Will Make (Appoint) with the House of Yasharal (Israel) after those Days, says Yahuah: I Will Put (Give, Grant, Bestow) My Turah (laws) in their Mind (Understanding, Thought, Intention) and Write them on their Hearts (Thoughts, Feelings); and I Will Be their Alahym, and They Shall Be My People.
Jeremiah 31:33
But this is the Covenant that I Will Make (Cut) with the House of Yasharal (Israel) after those days, says Yahuah: I Will Put (Add, Apply, Appoint, Ascribe, Assign, Bestow) My Turah (law) in their Minds (Midst, Inner Part, Inward Part, Within), and Write it on their Hearts (Heart, Mind); and I Will Be Their Alahym, and They Shall Be My People.
Ezekiel 11:19
And I Will Give Them One (1) Heart, and a New Ruach I Will Put Within Them. I Will Remove the Heart of Stone from Their Flesh and Give them a Heart of Flesh.
1 John 5:3
For This is the Love of Alahym, that We Should Keep His Commandments; and His Commandments are not Burdensome.
Matthew 22:37
And He (Yahusha) said to him, “You Shall Love Yahuah Your Alahym with All Your Heart and with All Your Soul and with All Your Mind.
Deuteronomy 6:5
And You Shall Love Yahuah Your Alahym with All Your Heart and with All Your Soul and with All Your Strength.
Deuteronomy 30:6
Yahuah Your Alahym will Circumcise Your Hearts and the Hearts of your Descendants, and You Will Love Him with All your Heart and with All Your Soul, so That You May Live.
Each Day of the Count You Acknowledge: “We are Moving from the First (1st) Sheaf to the Full Harvest.”
Deuteronomy 16:9–10
“You Shall Count Seven (7) Weeks for Yourself; Begin to Count the Seven (7) Weeks from the Time you Begin to Put the Sickle to the Grain. Then You Shall Keep the Feast of Weeks to Yahuah Your Alahym…”
The Omer as a Measure
The Sheaf Waved was an Omer’s (about 2 Quarts) Worth. Thus “Counting the Omer” means Counting the Days from the Offering of that Measure until the New Offering at Shavuot (“New Grain Offering”).
Leviticus 23:16
Count Fifty (50) Days to the Day after the Seventh (7th) Sabbath; then You Shall Offer a New Grain Offering to Yahuah.
Spiritual lesson: Our Walk from Resurrection to the Fullness of the Ruach is Measured. It is not instant; it is 49 Days of Preparation, Self-Examination, and Rejoicing. Each Day We Remember that the First (1st) Sheaf (Yahusha) has been Accepted, and We Await the Full Ingathering (the Harvest of Souls and the Outpouring of Power).
Scripture Simply Says, Count. How? Some used a Barley Sheaf Calendar. You can Count by Marking Days (Journal). The Purpose is Obedience and Expectancy.
Psalm 90:12
So Teach us to Number our Days, That we may Gain a Heart of Wisdom.
Counting the Omer is a form of Numbering Days with a Righteous Goal: the Feast of Weeks, which in Acts 2 saw 3,000 Saved.
Acts 2:41
Then those who Gladly Received his Word were Immersed (Baptized); and that Day about Three Thousand (3000) Souls were added to them.
The 50th day (Shavuot) is the Fulfillment of the Count. Yahusha’s Resurrection leads to the Harvest of the Ruach. The Same Ruach that Raised Yahusha from the Dead is now Poured out to Empower the Body.
Romans 8:11
But if the Ruach of Him who Raised Yahusha from the Dead Dwells in you, He who Raised Mashyach from the Dead will also Give Life to your Mortal Bodies through His Ruach who Dwells in you.
Living the Two Precepts
1. First Fruits Applied
Do you Give Yahuah the First (1st) of your Time, your Earnings, your Energy? The Wave Sheaf was Before you eat.
Proverbs 3:9
“Honor Yahuah with your Possessions, and with the First (1st) Fruits of all your Increase.”
The Principle of First (1st) Fruits is Eternal.
1 Corinthians 16:2
On the First (1st) Day of the Week let each One (1) of you lay something aside, storing up as he may Prosper, that there be No Collections when I come.
2. Counting Applied
We live in the Days between the Wave Sheaf (Resurrection) and the Final Shavuot (the Full Harvest of the Believers).
Revelation 14:14–16
Then I Looked, and Behold, a White Cloud, and on the Cloud Sat One (1) like the Son of Man, having on His head a Golden Crown, and in His hand a Sharp Sickle. And another Malak (Angel) came out of the Temple, Crying with a Loud Voice to Him who Sat on the Cloud, “Thrust in Your Sickle and Reap, for the Time has Come for You to Reap, for the Harvest of the Earth is Ripe.” So He Who Sat on the Cloud Thrust in His Sickle on the Earth, and the Earth was Reaped.
Final Invitation
Let us Count our Days from the Resurrection of Yahusha, the True Omer Waved in the Heavenly Sanctuary.
Hebrews 9:24
For Mashyach has not Entered the Qudesh (Holy) places made with Hands, which are copies of the True, but into Shamym (Heaven) itself, now to Appear in the Presence of Alahym for us.
Let us Anticipate the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, when the Harvest is Fully Gathered. And let us now Receive the Ruach HaQudesh, who is the Guarantee of that Harvest.
Ephesians 1:13–14
In Him you also Trusted, after you Heard the Word of Truth, the Gospel (Besorah, Good News) of your Salvation; in Whom also, having Believed, you were Sealed with the Ruach Ha Qudesh of Promise, Who is the Guarantee of our Inheritance until the Redemption of the Purchased Possession, to the Praise of His Glory.
Counting the Omer is a 49-Day Scriptural Mandate Connecting Pesach to Shavuot, bridging the Gap between Physical Liberation from Mytsrym (Egypt, Our Bondage) and the Spiritual Purpose of Receiving the Turah at Sinai, and the Receiving of the Precious Ruach Ha Qudesh on Shavuot. Acting as a 7-Week Period of Purification, Anticipation, and Self-improvement, showing Excitement for Receiving the Turah and Marking a Journey from Spiritual Defilement to Righteousness. Undergoing a Profound Spiritual Refinement, moving from a Low State of Impurity to a High Level of Righteousness. We Count to Emulate this Personal Growth Process.
HalleluYAH!
Study & Open Discussion
Watch Elder Rick teach through this material live, followed by an open discussion with the assembly.
Download the Full Teaching Notes
Receive Elder Rick’s complete written notes for “Firstfruits of the Counted Walk” as a free PDF — including all Scripture references, word studies, and the connection from First Fruits to Shavuot.
