TRV
Rosh HashanahThe Feast of Trumpets
Introduction
Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is also known as the Feast of Trumpets. Celebrated on the first day of the seventh month (Tishrei) in the Hebrew calendar, this feast marks a time of spiritual reflection, repentance, and anticipation. The sounding of the shofar (ram's horn) calls God's people to awaken from spiritual slumber, examine their lives, and prepare for the Day of Atonement that follows ten days later. For Christians, Rosh Hashanah carries prophetic significance, foreshadowing the return of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, and the final gathering of God's people. The trumpet that sounded in ancient Israel points forward to the last trumpet that will herald Christ's glorious appearing.
The Biblical Foundation
God commanded Israel to observe a sacred assembly on the first day of the seventh month, a day of rest marked by the blowing of trumpets. "In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a solemn rest, a memorial proclaimed with blast of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work, and you shall present a food offering to the Lord."
Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation. Ye shall do no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
Numbers provides additional details: "On the first day of the seventh month you shall have a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work. It is a day for you to blow the trumpets." This feast inaugurated the final month of the religious calendar, a month of solemn assemblies and sacred observances.
And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you.
Numbers 29:1
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The shofar was blown on various occasions in Israel's history: to announce festivals, summon the people to assemble, alert them to danger, and proclaim victory. At Mount Sinai, the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder as God descended in fire. The trumpet announced God's presence and demanded the people's attention.
And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice.
Exodus 19:16-19
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Spiritual Awakening and Repentance
Jewish tradition associates Rosh Hashanah with judgment and repentance. The shofar's blast is a wake-up call, summoning people to self-examination and return to God. Isaiah prophesies, "Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city." God calls his people to rouse themselves from complacency and clothe themselves in righteousness.
Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.
Isaiah 52:1
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Paul writes, "Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at hand." Believers must live in constant readiness, alert and watching for Christ's return.
And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
Romans 13:11-12
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The trumpet summons us to examine our lives. Are we walking in holiness? Are we bearing fruit? Have we grown cold in our love for Christ? The shofar's sound is a call to repentance, to turn from sin and return wholeheartedly to God before the day of judgment arrives.
Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
Ephesians 5:14
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The Last Trumpet and Christ's Return
Paul connects the Feast of Trumpets imagery to Christ's second coming. He declares that the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. The dead in Christ will rise first, then those who are alive will be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air.
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Paul further explains the mystery of the resurrection: "We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." The last trumpet announces the resurrection and transformation of believers.
Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
Jesus taught that when the Son of Man comes in his glory, he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. The trumpet heralds the final ingathering of God's people from every nation and tribe.
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Matthew 24:30-31
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Revelation describes seven trumpets blown by angels, each announcing divine judgment. The seventh trumpet declares, "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever." The final trumpet announces Christ's eternal reign.
And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.
Revelation 11:15
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Coronation of the King
In ancient Israel, the trumpet announced the coronation of a new king. When Solomon was anointed king, Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent and anointed Solomon. They blew the trumpet, and all the people said, "Long live King Solomon!" The trumpet proclaimed the king's authority and summoned the people to pledge allegiance.
And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the tabernacle, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, God save king Solomon.
1 Kings 1:39
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Rosh Hashanah traditionally celebrates God as King, reciting prayers that declare his sovereignty over all creation. The psalmist proclaims, "God is gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God, sing praises: sing praises unto our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding."
Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords. When he returns, he will establish his kingdom in fullness, putting all enemies under his feet. The trumpet will announce his coronation, and every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
Revelation 19:16
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That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
The Gathering of Israel
Isaiah prophesied that in that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were lost in the land of Assyria and those who were driven out to the land of Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain at Jerusalem. The trumpet signals the regathering of God's scattered people.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem.
Isaiah 27:13
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Zechariah foretells that the Lord will appear over his people, and his arrow will go forth like lightning. The Lord God will sound the trumpet and will march forth in the whirlwinds of the south. The Lord of hosts will protect them. This passage connects the trumpet with God's intervention on behalf of his people.
And the LORD shall be seen over them, and his arrow shall go forth as the lightning: and the Lord GOD shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south. The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.
Paul explains that a partial hardening has come upon Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. The Deliverer will come from Zion; he will banish ungodliness from Jacob. This promise of Israel's future salvation may be connected to the eschatological trumpet that gathers God's elect.
For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
Romans 11:25-26
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Judgment and the Day of the Lord
The trumpet also announces judgment. Joel prophesies, "Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand." The day of the Lord is a day of darkness and gloom, of clouds and thick darkness, when God judges the earth.
Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.
Joel 2:1-2
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Zephaniah describes the day of the Lord as "a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities." The trumpet warns of impending judgment, calling people to repentance before it's too late.
The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers.
For believers, the trumpet announces deliverance and resurrection. For unbelievers, it announces judgment and wrath. Jesus will return "in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel." The same event brings salvation to some and condemnation to others.
And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Preparation and Watchfulness
The Feast of Trumpets calls us to live in readiness for Christ's return. Jesus warned, "Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming." We must be like servants who watch for their master's return, ready to open the door the moment he knocks.
Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
Matthew 24:42
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The parable of the ten virgins teaches the importance of preparedness. Five wise virgins brought oil for their lamps; five foolish virgins did not. When the bridegroom came at midnight, only the wise virgins were ready to enter the wedding feast. Jesus concludes, "Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh."
Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.
Matthew 25:1-13
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Peter exhorts believers to be sober-minded and watchful, for our adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. We resist him, firm in our faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by our brotherhood throughout the world. After we have suffered a little while, the God of all grace will restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish us.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
1 Peter 5:8-10
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Conclusion: Hearing the Trumpet's Call
Rosh Hashanah reminds us that we live between two trumpet blasts—the trumpet that sounded at Mount Sinai when God gave the Law, and the last trumpet that will sound when Christ returns to gather his elect. We are in the season of grace, the time when the gospel is proclaimed to all nations, calling people to repentance and faith. But one day the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised, and we will be transformed. Those who are ready will enter the wedding feast; those who are not will be shut out. Let us therefore examine our lives, repent of our sins, and live in eager anticipation of Christ's appearing. The trumpet is about to sound. Are you ready?