The Feast of Trumpets points to the Rapture – the last great harvest!
Leviticus 23:23-25 : The Lord said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites: ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of sabbath rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts.
Beginning in the spring, the seven Jewish feasts are Passover (Pesach), the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Firstfruits, the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost), the Feast of Trumpets (Rosh HaShanah), the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), and the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot).
The Jewish feasts are closely related to Israel’s spring and fall harvests and agricultural seasons. They were to remind the Israelites each year of God’s ongoing protection and provision. But, even more importantly, they foreshadowed the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. Not only did they play significant roles in Christ’s earthly ministry but they also symbolize the complete redemptive story of Christ, beginning with His death on the cross as the Passover Lamb and ending with His second coming after which He will “tabernacle” or dwell with His people forever.
While the four spring feasts look back at what Christ fulfilled at His first coming, the three fall feasts point us toward the glory of the second coming. The spring feasts are the source of our hope in Christ—His finished work of atonement for sins—and the fall feasts are the promise of what is to come—eternity with Christ. Understanding the significance of these God-appointed Jewish festivals helps us to better see and understand the complete picture and plan of redemption found in Scripture.
The next unfulfilled feast is the Feast of Trumpets!
Numbers 29:1 : On the first day of the seventh month hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work. It is a day for you to sound the trumpets.
Jewish names and themes for this feast include:
1. Rosh HaShanah – ‘Head of the year’ / Tishrei 1 is the first day of the Jewish new year in their civil calendar. It is the anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve.
2. Yom Teruah – ‘Day of Awakening Blast’ / Jewish belief is that the resurrection of the dead will occur on the feast of Trumpets.
3.The Last Trumpet – On this day, there are 100 trumpet blasts. The final, long, and most significant trumpet blast is called ‘the last trump’.
4.Yom Zikaron – ‘Day of Remembrance’ / A day on which the chosen people remember God, and God remembers them.
5.Yom Hadin – ‘Day of Judgment’ / God opens the books on that day and judges the righteous and the wicked according to what they had done.
6.Yom Hamelech – the Day of the Coronation of the King.
7.The time of Jacob’s trouble – There shall be great tribulation in Israel such as never was since there was a nation.
8.Yom Hakeseh – The Hidden Day / It was ‘hidden’ because they didn’t know the exact day it would begin due to the fact that it is the only feast that starts on a new moon. Thus it was a two day feast because they didn’t want to celebrate it on the wrong day. Concerning Rosh HaShanah, the Jews would typically say “Of that day and hour no one knows.”
9.The Opening of the Gates of Heaven / The Gate of Heaven is opened on Rosh HaShanah so the righteous nation may enter.
10.The Wedding of Messiah / The blowing of the heavenly trumpet is a call for the entire, true, bride of God to assemble together.
Now, let’s review some scripture that corresponds to these names of the Feast of Trumpets….
1.Rosh HaShanah – ‘Head of the year’ Psalm 89:15-18 : Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound! They walk, O Lord, in the light of Your countenance. In Your name they rejoice all day long, And in Your righteousness they are exalted. For You are the glory of their strength, And in Your favor our horn is exalted. For our shield belongs to the Lord, And our king to the Holy One of Israel.
2.Yom Teruah – ‘Day of Awakening Blast’ Ephesians 5:14 : Therefore it is said: Get up, sleeper, and rise up from the dead, and the Messiah will shine on you.
Isaiah 26:19 : Your dead will live; their bodies will rise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in the dust! For you will be covered with the morning dew, and the earth will bring out the departed spirits.
3.The Last Trumpet 1 Corinthians 15:50-52 : I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
4.Yom Zikaron – ‘Day of Remembrance’ Malachi 3:16-17 : Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, And the Lord listened and heard them; So a book of remembrance was written before Him For those who fear the Lord And who meditate on His name.
“They shall be Mine,” says the Lord of hosts, “On the day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them As a man spares his own son who serves him.”
5.Yom Hadin – ‘Day of Judgment’ Revelation 17:8 : The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up from the abyss and go to destruction. Those who live on the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast that was, and is not, and will be present again.
6.Yom Hamelech – the Day of the Coronation of the King Revelation 5
7.The time of Jacob’s trouble Matthew 24:3-8
8.Yom Hakeseh – The Hidden Day Psalm 27:5 : For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.
9.The Opening of the Gates of Heaven Psalm 118:19-20 : Open the gates of righteousness for me; I will enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous will enter through it.
After this I looked, and there in heaven was an open door. The first voice that I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”
Revelation 4:1-3 Immediately I was in the Spirit, and a throne was set there in heaven. One was seated on the throne, and the One seated looked like jasper and carnelian stone. A rainbow that looked like an emerald surrounded the throne.
10.The Wedding of Messiah 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 : According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Rosh Hashanah is a two-day feast that ties back to God’s command in Leviticus 23:24. As the start of the Jewish new year, it is considered a day in which everything begins anew. It is one of the Jewish high holy days—one of the most important days of the year.
Like many Jewish feasts and holidays, Rosh Hashanah is known by several names. In this article, I want to explore those names because I think they might capture your attention.
🎺The Feast of Trumpets
Rosh Hashanah has many alternative names, but the best-known of them is the Feast of Trumpets. During Rosh Hashanah, according to tradition, the priest would blow the shofar—a ram’s horn that is often translated “trumpet” in the Bible—one hundred times. Over nine different sessions, the priest will blow the trumpet 11 times. That’s 99 soundings of the shofar, which leaves a final trumpet blast for the end. The last trumpet, the 100th blast, is the loudest and longest.
It’s the final trumpet of the Feast of Trumpets. Here is one way Paul described the Rapture:
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.—1 Corinthians 15:51-52
The Rapture has been associated with trumpet blasts since the first century. Throughout Scripture, it is linked with blasts of the shofar. That’s why it is called the Feast of Trumpets.
🎺Yom Teruah
Also related to the blowing of the shofar, Rosh Hashanah is sometimes known by the name Yom Teruah. It means “a day of blowing” or “the day of the awakening blasts.”
When the trumpet sounds during the Rapture, it is not just a noise to get our attention. It is an awakening blast for those who are in their graves:
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.—1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
For thousands of years, the Jews have been calling Rosh Hashanah the “day of the awakening blast,” and that is exactly what is going to happen at the Rapture. The dead in Christ will rise first. They will be roused from their “sleep” and be raised incorruptible.
🎺Yom Ha-Din
This name for Rosh Hashanah, Yom Ha-Din, is a reference to the day of judgment. The Jewish prayers during this feast emphasize it as a time during which the world is judged, or put on trial. In Hebrew, Din means judgment. The Jews believe Rosh Hashanah represents a period during which God weighs our rights and wrongs from the previous year.
Of course, you’ll understand why this ties in so closely to the Rapture and the events of the end times.
12 “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.”— Revelation 22:12-13
The Rapture will be a day when Jesus judges the church.
🎺Yom Hazikaron
Rosh Hashanah is also sometimes called Yom Hazikaron, which means “the day of remembrance.” During this feast, Jews pray that God will remember them during the coming year.
This reminds me of Luke 17, when Jesus describes the Rapture:
“I tell you, in that night there will be two men in one bed: the one will be taken and the other will be left. 35 Two women will be grinding together: the one will be taken and the other left. 36 Two men will be in the field: the one will be taken and the other left.”— Luke 17:34-36
He’s talking about a selective Rapture. God remembers who is His. He remembers those who have given their lives to Him. The Rapture is a day of remembrance.
🎺The Wedding Day of the Messiah
Another theme that has long been connected to Rosh Hashanah is the wedding day of the Messiah. Of course, many Jews are still awaiting the Messiah, while we as Christian believers know Jesus is the Messiah. But this is a very interesting theme for this holy feast.
“In My Father’s house are many mansions; 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. 4 And where I go you know, and the way you know.”— John 14:2-4
This is Jewish wedding language. When a Jewish groom was going to marry his bride, he left his father’s house with a bride price, or dowry, then went to the bride’s house to give her parents that gift. He drank a glass of wine with them, and that sealed the betrothal. Then he would promise His bride not to drink of that glass again until he drank it with her in his father’s house.
Of course, this is exactly what Jesus said to the disciples in the Upper Room:
Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; 18 for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”— Luke 22:17-18
Then, after paying the price and making that promise, the groom left for his father’s house where he would prepare a chuppah—a small house or room—for him and the bride to live in. Only after it was ready and the father approved it would the groom return for his bride. Only the father knew when that time of approval would come.
Jesus is the groom. We are the bride of Christ. He has bought his bride by paying the price for our sins. He is at His Father’s house preparing a place for us—and at the Father’s word, the Rapture will mark Christ’s return for His bride.
🎺The Day Which No One Knows
Another phrase the Jews use to describe Rosh Hashanah is “the day which no one knows.” That’s one reason this “holy day” actually spans two days on the calendar. It has everything to do with the new moon.
The ancient Jewish calendar was a lunar calendar, based on the cycles of the moon, back before people understood the movements of the planets and the cycles of the solar system. All the other Jewish holidays were timed to occur on the full moon, but Rosh Hashanah fell during the new moon. It was at the first of the month at the beginning of a new year.
It’s easy to tell when the moon is full. But discerning the new moon is trickier because it disappears altogether. According to ancient Jewish traditions, the new month would not officially begin until two witnesses reported that they had seen the sliver of the new moon to the High Priest. Jews knew that this sighting could take place within a two-day window of darkness. Once the sighting was witnessed and confirmed, the priests would sound the shofar. Then Rosh Hashanah would begin.
Isn’t that fascinating? Jesus described the Rapture using similar themes:
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.”—Mark 13:32-33
With Rosh Hashanah, the Jews knew the approximate season when the feast would take place, but they didn’t know the exact day or hour. It’s “the day which no one knows.”
●Rosh Hashanah is also called the Natzal, which is symbolic of the day of the resurrection of the righteous dead and taking up of the living righteous. Many interpreters refer to this as the rapture.
●Rosh Hashanah is also known as the time of the “Coronation of the King.” The Rosh Hashanah meal includes the challah loaves which are round loaves, drenched in honey, shaped like crowns,suggesting Kingship and reminding us of the crowns of reward laid up for the righteous.
●Rosh Hashanah is also known as, Kiddushin Nesuin, which is the Messiah’s wedding ceremony! The Feast of Pentecost is the “betrothal” in terms of a Hebrew wedding, while Rosh Hashanah is the full wedding.
●This Feast is also known as, “The feast of which no man knows the day or hour”. This is because it’s the only one that begins on the sighting of the new moon. It is celebrated over two days to allow for any discrepancy in the moon rise and the sighting of it. As such, ancient observers would watch for the new-moon, but would not know the day and hour (within two days). We most certainly will know the time and season.
●The Feast is also known as “Yom Hadin”, the day of judgement. This looks forward to all the severe judgements of the tribulation period. But for us believers this would be a classical reference to the work of the cross of Messiah and the judgement of reward stored up for us as we enter heaven. This is also the time the antichrist is revealed and let loose on the earth. We could say that Yom Hadin represents the start of the tribulation period, with the rapture at its beginning.
●The Feast of Rosh Hashanah is also called “Yom Teruah”, meaning the awakening trumpet blast. Teruah is also translated as “shout.” Isaiah 44:23 Zephaniah 3:14 Zechariah 9:9
The “Teruah” shout is used to represent: ●An expression of joy and great exuberance. ●The shout of a King. ●It is also a battle cry. ●It is the shout to gather together the people when the camp is to be moved.
One commentary says that the “Teruah” is the strongest word in the whole Bible indicating great exuberance and expectation.
“Teruah” in Hebrew means a specific sort of trumpet blast. One in which the sky is shattered and broken by the sound.
●The Feast of Rosh Hashanah incorporates the “Tashlikh” ceremony, which speaks of “casting off” and of “new beginnings.” At the ceremony, sins are symbolically cast off, leaving the participant with a “new beginning.” This most certainly speaks to us as believers of the final enemy contained in our flesh being destroyed as we receive new resurrection bodies. (1 Corinthians 15:26)
►This ritual Tashlikh, symbolising the casting off of sins and the new beginning, is performed in the late afternoon at dusk. In those days the time period at dusk, just after sunset, and just before night was called “The twinkling of an eye!” I hope I don’t need to say anything more about that!
●Rosh Hashanah is also called Yom Hakesh – The Hidden Day. Quite simply this means to hide away. But hide from whom? It is from Satan himself. The shofar is blown every day leading up to Rosh Hashanah, but not the day before. The theory is that this would hide the day of judgement from Satan. It most certainly speaks to the rapture as well.
Psalm 27:5 “In the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of His tabernacle …”
Isaiah 26:20-21 “Come my people, enter your chambers and shut your doors behind you; hide yourselves as it were for a little moment, until the indignation (tribulation) is past. For behold the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; the earth will disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain.”
The Feast of Trumpets points to the Rapture – the last great harvest!
Are we approaching the time when the heavenly trumpet will be heard?
