The Significance of the Feasts: Yom Teruah (Feast of Trumpets)

Welcome to part two of the Significance of the Feasts series. The Spring Feasts have been fulfilled, and now it’s time to dive into Fall, the time of year when the Messiah was not only born but when He will inevitably return! While many of us have believed the false doctrines that we don’t know when Yeshua was born or that He could come back at any moment, my prayer for the rest of this series is that the Father will open our eyes to the truth so we will see why these feasts are vital for us today and understand their importance in God’s prophetic timeline!

What are the Fall Feasts?

While the Spring Feasts — Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and Shavuot (Pentecost) — were all about our relationship with God, the Fall Feasts — Yom Teruah (Trumpets), Yom Kippur (Atonement), and Sukkot (Tabernacles) — are all about ISRAEL!

Who is Israel?

We, the body of Messiah, are Israel! You see, there is no promise for the church in the Bible. Though you might read the word in your translations, “church” should actually read ecclesia, meaning assembly. As mentioned in our Shavuot article, Yeshua married ISRAEL (His people) on Mount Sinai and will remarry her during the Fall Feasts. How do we know it was Yeshua who married Israel? According to Torah Law, the son cannot marry the father’s bride (Leviticus 18), and we all know that the Messiah is perfect and NEVER broke Torah. It is not until after Yeshua’s ascension that we start seeing “church” written in the Bible; yet, throughout the Scriptures, Israel is continuously mentioned as the one under covenant with God.

So, how do we become Israel? Though we were once Gentiles, the moment we accepted Yeshua into our hearts, we were stripped of our old identity (2 Corinthians 5:15-21) and were grafted into His Kingdom (Romans 11:17-21).

“Therefore remember that you, once nations in the flesh, who are called ‘the uncircumcision’ by what is called ‘the circumcision’ made in the flesh by hands, that at that time you were without Messiah, excluded from the citizenship of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no expectation and without Elohim in the world. But now in Messiah Yeshua you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah.” ~ Ephesians 2:11-13

Yom Teruah – Feasts 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.”

Did you know that Yom Teruah (Feast of Trumpets) is the only Biblical feast written about more in the New Testament (Messianic Writings) than in the Old (Torah)? Unlike the other feasts, there is no explanation in the Torah about why we should observe this feast; however, as we research the significance of the shofar (trumpet) blow, we learn that it is a symbol of the Second Coming. So, while the Jews miss the importance of this day and celebrate it as Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, believers worldwide grab their shofars and raise a shout in anticipation for the day of the Messiah’s return!

1 Corinthians 20:51-52, “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.”

The Significance of the Trumpet

Throughout the Bible, the shofar is used in times of battle and victory and to announce the arrival of royalty. On the day of Yeshua’s return, He will fulfill all of these things: destroying His enemies, claiming victory over the world, and reigning over us as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Though it may look small, the shofar has the spiritual power to break down strongholds and destroy walls!

When Joshua and the Israelites came to Jericho, the Lord declared, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.” ~ Joshua 6:2-5 NIV

I like what UNLEARN the Lies said in their video – Yom Teruah, the Feast of Trumpets, “Jericho was an obstacle that was preventing them from entering the Promised Land, and they were instructed to shout and blow trumpets to destroy the wall. Likewise, sin is an obstacle that prevents us from entering the Promised Land, and we are told to shout and blow trumpets before we reach the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). Remember that Yom Teruah is ten days before Yom Kippur, and these days are meant to be a time of repentance and seeking the Lord.”

1 Thessalonians 4:16, “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.”

Can the Messiah Truly Come at Any Moment?

Since the Coronavirus pandemic, End-Time prophecies have run rampant. Preachers worldwide are telling their congregations to prepare because we’re in the End Times and be vigilant because the Messiah could return any day… Unfortunately, this is not the case. While it’s true that many signs show that we are reaching the end, many Biblical prophecies still need to be fulfilled before Yeshua can return. Moreover, there is no need to look at the sky for a man on a white horse every day because Yeshua will only return on one day — Yom Teruah!

While many use Matthew 24:36 to explain why we can’t know the day of the Messiah’s return, it’s a lot simpler than that. If there are two things we can learn from this series, God’s timing is ALWAYS perfect, and His appointed days are NEVER a coincidence. There is always a significant reason for each command the Lord gives—whether to show His timeline or our protection—so why wouldn’t that be the case for Yom Teruah?

Though we have been instructed when to observe the Lord’s feasts, it all comes down to the sighting of the new moon in Israel that determines the actual day. In Exodus 12:2, the Lord tells Moses and Aaron before the first Passover, “This new moon is the beginning of new moons for you, it is the first new moon of the year for you.” So, the Israelites looked to the sky each month to see the new moon. If the moon were seen with the naked eye on the first day by two or more witnesses, then it would mark the new month, and the countdown to coming feasts would begin; however, if the moon were not seen, then the start of the month would move to the following day.

So, while we know when to celebrate the feasts, the day isn’t certain until we’ve seen or not seen the new moon. This is why Yom Teruah is classically known as the “Hidden Day,” because we genuinely do not know when the first day of the seventh month will be (notice that this is the ONLY feast to occur on the first of a month!)

Revelation 11:15-19, “The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said:

‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever.’ And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying: ‘We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small— and for destroying those who destroy the earth.’ Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.”

How Should We Celebrate this Highly Anticipated Day?

Until the Messiah’s return, Yom Teruah remains a day of warning to believers that we should prepare our hearts because judgment is coming (Joel 2:1). We rejoice that our sins are washed clean in Messiah, and we are made new, but we also polish our armor as we patiently await the sound of the final trumpet blast that will announce the King is coming!

“Blessed and happy are the people who know the joyful sound [of the trumpet’s blast]! They walk, O Lord, in the light and favor of Your countenance! ~ Psalms 89:15 AMP

How should we observe this day? Well, in Nehemiah 8, we read that the people gathered to listen to Ezra read the Torah aloud — from daybreak until noon — before Nehemiah instructed the people, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10)

THE JOY OF THE LORD IS OUR STRENGTH!

There is still much to endure before Yeshua can return; however, take heart: God has not forgotten His people. So, shout to the Lord on this day and let Him know that we are ready and equipped for the mighty feast to be fulfilled!!

Revelation 22:12-21, “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.’ Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.‘I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the assemblies. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.’ And the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming quickly.’ Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen