Can You Hear The Trumpet Sound?
A Celebration of Rosh Hashanah-The Feast of Trumpets
EOLS: The Feast of Trumpets celebrates God’s call to His people announcing His voice and His coming.
Leviticus 23:23-25
(23) Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
(24) "Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ’In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation.
(25) You shall do no customary work on it; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.’ "
I’ll never forget the night of September 11, 1988. It was a Sunday night, and I had gone home to visit my parents. It was pretty much a normal Sunday evening, and I’d get up the next morning to drive back to Athens to work.
There was one major difference. It was the first day of Rosh-Hashana, the Feast of Trumpets. I don’t know that I had ever really been aware of it before.
But in 1988 man named Edgar Whisenant had received a lot of attention in the Christian world with a booklet he entitled “Eighty-Eight Reasons the Rapture Will Occur in 1988.” TBN had dedicated that entire weekend to special programming about the Rapture, with special announcements for people who might miss it!
While most of the Christian world was taking this prediction with a large grain of salt; “we’ll see” attitude, it had gotten a lot of press. Whisenant was a retired NASA engineer, and used a lot of impressive mathematical gymnastics to arrive at his conclusions. He at least had the ear, if not the total confidence of several big-name evangelicals.
Jesus himself told us NO man knows the day or the hour. I knew in my heart that whenever someone makes a specific prediction, you can discount that date! That tells us when it WON’T happen!
Yet I went to bed, praying a little differently than usual. “Lord, if it should be true-then it will be great, but if not I still look for you every day.” After talking to the Lord for awhile, I drifted off to sleep, fully expecting to wake in the morning.
It must have been about midnight when the house began to rattle and quake. Flashes of light were coming in through the window, and at times the entire earth seemed to light up with a luminescent glow. I woke suddenly from my sleep…and my heart began to pound as though it would jump from my chest! I sat straight up in bed, and as I did, I heard in my head:
Matthew 24:27
(27) For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
“This is it Lord…the Rapture!” Oh, I was scared to death for those few seconds!
I began to come to my senses and hear the rain. It was a fall thunderstorm! I laughed at myself as I breathed a sigh of relief. As my racing heart settled, I prayed and fell asleep as the lightning struck and the thunder rolled.
But some seventeen years later, I never forget this season. Each year I look up to the sky during this time and wonder if this could be the year! You see, it was Rosh Hashanah, 1988. It was the Feast of Trumpets!
Many Bible teachers believe that Holy History coincides with the Feasts of the Lord, and that the Rosh Hashanah will be the season when Jesus comes back. There’s some good evidence that this could be the case-whatever year He may choose. It could well be during this very season.
It’s the beginning of a new year on the Jewish Calendar. Chances are it’s marked on the calendar you keep in your home. It’s a two-day holiday that will run Tuesday and Wednesday October 4-5, 2005. In the ancient Hebrew calendar it’s called the 1st and 2nd of Tishrei, Year 5766. Traditional Judaism holds it as the date of Creation.
A Jewish parent called his son in New York. The father said to David, "I hate to tell you, but your mother and I can’t stand each other anymore, and we are divorcing. That’s it!! I want to live out the rest of my years in peace. I am telling you now, so you and your sister shouldn’t go into shock later when I move out."
The father hung up, and David immediately called his sister and tells her the news. The sister says, "I’ll handle this." The sister calls Florida and gets her father on the phone. She pleads to her father, "Don’t do ANYTHING ’til David and I get there! We will be there Friday night."
The father says, "All right, all right already." When the father hangs up the phone he hollers to his wife, "Okay, they’re coming for Rosh Hashana.”
In the Scriptures it’s called “Yom Teruhah” which is translated “an awakening blast, or shout.” We know it from Scripture as one of the Holy Festivals of the Lord from the days of Moses- the Feast of Trumpets!
Yom Teruhah is the sixth festival of seven, and comes just ten days before the most high and holy day of all-Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.
God loves celebrations! He loves for His people to come together for enjoyment, for feasting and fellowship. We’ve been talking quite a bit about fellowship in the early New Testament Church-in the Book of Acts. It’s called “koinonia” in Greek. It’s as much a part of church life as preaching and prayer. It is vital and it is not optional!
Leviticus 23:1-2
(1) And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
(2) "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ’The feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.
The Lord never, ever misses a teaching opportunity! The Bible is replete with beautiful and incredibly rich pictures and object lessons which God uses to illustrate His plans and purposes to His people! We call them types, or shadows.
The declaration says that the feasts are the Lord’s! He used them in the Old Testament to teach His people and to point towards the future for their instruction. But why would he use something like feasts?
Think with me, how would a Jew from 1500 BC understand an important spiritual principle; and that same principle be easily understood by the generation that we live in today? How could God reveal himself in such a way, that it would cross all cultural boundaries, and all divides and customs?
God, in His wisdom chose to use symbols that are common to all people. He chooses things like food and celebrations-things that are common to all men, that we all understand. Community life, fellowship, celebration of seasons and harvest-these things speak to us, straight to our hearts!
The people who lived in that ancient day could look at that multi-sensory experience and realize-there is something coming! Our God has a plan and a purpose and He is sovereign. We will trust Him and follow Him!
Today we can look back at those festivals and say Hallelujah! Our God reigns and Jesus Is Lord! You see each Festival preaches JESUS! They were fulfilled when Jesus came to earth as our High Priest and the Captain of our Salvation! The picture becomes even richer from our side-we see the fulfillment and we worship with abandon as we realize what God has given us! The Festivals show us our great need, the Great Savior who came to seek and to save us.
The Feast of Trumpets was interesting, because it was a full-blown feast, a holy convocation where all of Israel gathered at the Tent of Meeting. Yet, its purpose was specifically to announce that which was coming, it was a prelude to another festival some ten days later - Yom Kippur-the Day of Atonement. This was the highest and holiest day of Judaism.
It was on this day that Aaron the High Priest would enter into the Holy of Holies to sprinkle the blood of sacrifice on the Mercy Seat, to make propitiation for Israel. All the people would afflict themselves and search their hearts and pray that they would find favor with God as the High Priest made propitiation and atonement with animal blood upon the Mercy Seat.
It was the blast of the shofar that announced the coming of the Day of Atonement. It was a call to readiness, watchfulness, and repentance.
The Sound of the Trumpet is often employed in Scripture as an image of the very Voice of God.
The voice of God and the voice of the trumpet were heard concurrently on Mt. Sinai.
Exodus 19:18-19
(18) Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly.
(19) And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice.
John heard the voice of the Lord as the voice of a trumpet in Revelation.
Revelation 1:10
(10) I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet,
The trumpet introduces the Son of Man coming in great glory to receive His people and resurrect the dead in Matthew 24. It will happen like this according to Jesus:
Matthew 24:30-31
(30) Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
(31) And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Today, we commemorate and celebrate Rosh Hashanah, Yom Teruhah-the Feast of Trumpets! We look at that ancient celebration and we realize the timeless truth! God calls his people to hear the trumpet blast, and to awaken to a new level of communication with Him!
The Trumpet says “get ready!”
And it’s with that context, and that backdrop that we enter Yom Teruah, the Feast of Trumpets, 2005/5766!
Introduce the Shofar, and explain its significance.
The Trumpet Blast of the Shofar, with a great shout from God’s people is first of all-
I. A Call to Rejoice
It’s the Holy Call to worship, to shout joyfully, to glory in the presence of our God and our King! The blast of the shofar tells God’s people to rejoice and to praise His Name. It is a prelude to worship.
1Chronicles 13:7-8
(7) So they carried the ark of God on a new cart from the house of Abinadab, and Uzza and Ahio drove the cart.
(8) Then David and all Israel played music before God with all their might, with singing, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on cymbals, and with trumpets.
Psa 98:6
(6) With trumpets and the sound of a horn; Shout joyfully before the Lord, the King.
Psa 89:15
(15) Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound! They walk, O Lord, in the light of Your countenance.
The Feast of Trumpets was a time of powerful praise and worship, God’s people would shout, lift holy hands and sing to Him. Historically, it is believed that Psalms 93-100 were all written as songs for the Feast of Trumpets.
Imagine with me what it must have been like on that ancient day, when the High Priest, a son of Aaron, would blast the shofar, and the people would anticipate the very presence and voice of God in their midst…and they would began to chant and sing…
Psa 95:1-2
(1) Oh come, let us sing to the Lord! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.
(2) Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.
Psa 97:1-5
(1) The Lord reigns; Let the earth rejoice; Let the multitude of isles be glad!
(2) Clouds and darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.
(3) A fire goes before Him, And burns up His enemies round about.
(4) His lightnings light the world; The earth sees and trembles.
(5) The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the Lord, At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.
Psalm 98:6
(6) With trumpets and the sound of a horn; Shout joyfully before the Lord, the King.
And the wonderful Psalm 100:
Psa 100:1
(1) A Psalm of Thanksgiving. Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!
The book of Nehemiah recounts a very special celebration of the Feast of Trumpets.
Can you imagine with me what it must’ve been like to be among the fifty thousand returning exiles who had worked for months to rebuild the walls and the altar in the old city of Jerusalem? They had returned from exile by order of King Cyrus of Persia, and they were celebrating the Feasts of the Lord for the first time in over seventy years!
The atmosphere was charged with electricity and anticipation of the Voice of God coming forth in His sanctuary, Ezra, the scribe, priest and prophetic “pastor” of Israel came forth on that wooden platform to preach to the people from the Torah.
It was the first day of the seventh month, it was the Feast of Trumpets!
The shofar resounded throughout the crowd…every person could feel the blast deep in their spirit…it was a call to life, to praise, to worship! Following that long victory blast, Ezra the man of God stood up and proclaimed the Word of the Lord:
5) And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up.
(6) And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. Then all the people answered, "Amen, Amen!" while lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
And in the midst of worship, the preached Word of God went forth…
(8) So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading.
(9) And Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, "This day is holy to the Lord your God;
And then that prophetic voice went forth-that word of encouragement that we rejoice in today…
(10) Then he said to them, "Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength."
Dear friends, the Feast of Trumpets is the day when we fall on our faces and worship God! It’s the day when God’s voice speaks through His Word as it is expounded and preached!
It is the day when people who weep and who travail, and people who struggle can hear the sound of the Trumpet, the Voice of the Lord and know that
“The joy of the Lord is your strength!”
The Feast of Trumpets, with the mighty blast of the shofar is:
II. A Call to Rise
The message of the Feast of Trumpets includes arising to the call of God, awaking from a state of spiritual slumber, to readiness. Paul, in writing to the Ephesians paraphrases Isaiah 60:1-2 . Isaiah sees that glorious Feast of Trumpets from seven hundred years before Christ:
Isaiah 60:1-2
(1) Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.
(2) For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.
And Paul says it is Christ who will awaken us, and give us light!
Ephesians 5:14
(14) Therefore He says: "Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light."
The Feast of Trumpets teaches us today that we must arise to the High Calling of God!
Romans 13:11
(11)And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.
The Feast of Trumpets, the sound of the shofar is to awaken us to spiritual battle:
The shofar also used to be sounded when war was waged upon a dangerous enemy. Thus, the shofar we hear on Rosh HaShanah ought to also serve as a battle cry to wage war against our inner enemy -- our evil inclinations and passions as well as the devil, Ha Satan, himself. The shofar was also sounded on the Jubilee Year, heralding freedom from slavery. (Eddie Chumney, Hebrew Roots of Christianity Website)
Leviticus 25:9
(9) Then you shall cause the trumpet of the Jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement you shall make the trumpet to sound throughout all your land.
The trumpet blast of the Feast awakes us to arise-for the Day of the Lord is at hand!
Joel 2:1
(1) Blow 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 is coming, For it is at hand:
Numbers 10:8-9
(8) The sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets; and these shall be to you as an ordinance forever throughout your generations.
(9) When you go to war in your land against the enemy who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be remembered before the Lord your God, and you will be saved from your enemies.
The call of Jesus Christ is to wake up, to arise and do spiritual battle! Prepare for His coming! He is the fulfillment of the Feast of Trumpets-the one who calls to us-ARISE!
The blast at the Feast of Trumpets is:
III. A Call to Repentance
“With every ritual and custom, the Jews are reminded that Rosh Hashanah is a time to wake up and examine one’s self before God. The sound of the trumpet alerts them, as it alerts all of us, to the fact that every action has a consequence, and we are responsible for every thought, word and deed. The theme of Rosh Hashanah is that inspite of human weakenesses the gates of repentance are always open.” –John Hagee, His Glory Revealed
Zechariah 9:14-15
(14) Then the Lord will be seen over them, And His arrow will go forth like lightning. The Lord God will blow the trumpet, And go with whirlwinds from the south.
(15) The Lord of hosts will defend them; They shall devour and subdue with slingstones. They shall drink and roar as if with wine; They shall be filled with blood like basins, Like the corners of the altar.
The blast of the shofar on Yom Teshurhah calls people to prepare for Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It’s the day when people will stand before God for judgment, and mercy.
The fulfillment of the Feast of Trumpets is Jesus Christ! His call is urgent!
It is a call to repent and prepare for eternity.
Isaiah equated the call to repentance with the shofar blast:
Isaiah 58:1
(1) "Cry aloud, spare not; Lift up your voice like a trumpet; Tell My people their transgression, And the house of Jacob their sins.
The message of the Feast of Trumpets today is the same: Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand! Jesus is the fulfillment of the Feast and today is His day of Grace-when salvation is offered to all men!
The time is urgent! Jesus calls all men to repent!
Mark 2:17
(17) When Jesus heard it, He said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."
2Corinthians 6:2
(2) For He says: "In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you." Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
the blast of the Feast of Trumpets is a:
IV. Call to Redemption
Isaiah saw from days of old, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the coming of the Day of the Lord when every eye would see him. In that great and terrible day, our Redemption will be completed-as the trumpet blast announces His coming and his banner is lifted up so high all will see-in the mountains!
Isaiah 18:3
(3) All inhabitants of the world and dwellers on the earth: When he lifts up a banner on the mountains, you see it; And when he blows a trumpet, you hear it.
That great and final day will be heralded with the Trumpet Blast-and the Feast of Trumpets teaches us that:
1Thessalonians 4:16-18
(16) For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
(17) Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
(18) Therefore comfort one another with these words
Jesus himself taught his disciples the truth of the final trumpet
Matthew 24:29-31
(29) "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
(30) Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
(31) And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Luke 21:27-28
(27) Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
(28) Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near."
Soon and very soon, we will hear that trumpet sound, and the Feast of Trumpets will usher in for those who love God and His appearing-Redemption. It will announce judgment for His enemies.
Listen for the trumpet! Let Him who has ears hear!
And finally, when our redemption comes, the Shofar will signal the Marriage of the Bride and the Bridegroom-the Feast is a
V. A Call To Relationship
The story of the Jewish Wedding illustrates and amplifies the Great Love that Jesus has for His Church.
The first step is betrothal, which is a long engagement. Mary and Joseph were betrothed when Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. The father of the Bride establishes a price for her, and negotiates with the Bridegroom who brings her gifts.
Then, the Bridegroom leaves for an undetermined length of time-to go to his father’s house to build on, to prepare a place for his Bride. When anyone would ask the bridegroom when his wedding date was, he would reply “no man knows except my father.”
You see, he could not go and retrieve His Bride until his father approved of his preparations!
That’s why Jesus told his disciples:
John 14:1-3
(1) "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.
(2) In My Father’s house are many mansions; [80] if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
(3) And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.
He was telling of that great day, when He would come for His Bride!
Isaiah had prophesied the joy of the Bridegroom when He would go to retrieve His Bride:
Isaiah 62:5
(5) For as a young man marries a virgin, So shall your sons marry you; And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So shall your God rejoice over you.
When the father decided that the son was prepared for His Bride, he would release him to take his wedding party to fetch his bride. His coming was announced with the sound of the shofar!
The Feast of Trumpets, Yom Teruhah prophesies of that day when the Father will send His Son to fetch His Bride…at the last trumpet!
1Corinthians 15:51-53
(51) Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed--
(52) in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
(53) For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
Rev 19:6-7
(6) And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!
(7) Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready."
Rev 21:2-4
(2) I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
(3) And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
(4) He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
Dearly beloved, can you almost hear that Trumpet Sound?
