A Look into Messianic Judaism: Biblical Feast Rosh Hashannah

Before we go into Rosh Hashannah, I want to make sure that you know/recognize that the Whole Scripture is made to know who God is. The Bible since I was just a toddler was made known to me as… Basic. Instructions. Before. Leaving. Earth. This allowed me to see that our faith is quite basic… There is a God who loves us, and want to be with us. We sinned and lost the initial connection. However, God in His Mercy extended to us His Instruction on how to return to Him. And so it is in this that we have to act in faith to build our relationship with Him as it was before by preparing the way for Him. When we prepare the Way of the Lord, we are in this constant expectation of His coming.

Shilo worshipping at his friends wedding example: Is she coming? 10 more min. Repeated until she came 3 hours later.

When the bride comes the bridegroom takes her away. So it is that when Yeshua comes again, He will take us back to Himself. We will no longer have our feet in the world, but we will be caught up with Him.

We all know what feasts and festivals are as they are usually components of our faith, community, and culture. Many celebrations pointed us to this idea that we were gaining something more than just a day off of work, but that we were a part of something greater than ourselves. So all our celebrations brought us a joy like nothing else. But what is so interesting that in the scripture there are the days that still today have not lost its significance, whereas many of the celebrations held today were invaded by evil. Instead of going into detail of what is evil, the Lord put in my heart to tell you guys, as Scripture says, what is good. If you keep these things, see that you will receive the blessing.

Last week I spoke of all the feast that we would be going through, and today we will look into The Feast of Trumpets - Rosh Hashanah! While some try to explain how these are Jewish Holidays, according to Scripture, these holidays are actually meant for the outsider too. Each feast recognized reflects God’s saving work; we believe Yeshua did & does save! Therefore, each celebration does point to God’s Redemptive plan making these celebration’s all the more meaningful. But most importantly, these holidays also reflect His Judgement. “Since sharing a table signified peace or fellowship, feasts as religious observances demonstrated a peaceful relationship between God and Israel.” If we consider ourselves Children of God, these holidays are a part of our relationship with God. They are essential for those that have receive the heavenly vision given to the Jew first and to all the world!

Swann, J. T. (2016). Feasts and Festivals of Israel. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

So now we read from Lev. 23:23-25

23 Adonai spoke to Moses saying: 24 “Speak to Bnei-Yisrael, saying: In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you are to have a Shabbat rest, a memorial of blowing (shofarot), a holy convocation. 25 You are to do no regular work, and you are to present an offering made by fire to Adonai.”

Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society. (2015). Holy Scriptures: Tree of Life Version (Le 23:23–25). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

We Read in Num. 29:1-6

1“On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a sacred assembly. You are to do no laborious work. It is for you a day for sounding the shofar. 2 You are to prepare a burnt offering as a pleasing aroma to Adonai: one young bull from the herd, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old, without flaw, 3 with their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah with the bull, two tenths with the ram, 4 and one tenth with each of the seven lambs, 5 as well as one male goat as a sin offering to make atonement for yourselves. 6 Also offer the burnt offering for the month with its grain offering, the regular burnt offering with its grain offering, and their appropriate drink offerings as a pleasing aroma to Adonai, as an offering by fire.

Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society. (2015). Holy Scriptures: Tree of Life Version (Nu 29:1–6). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

Fun Questions… What month does the New Year start in the Jewish Calendar? Hint: it is not the first month. (Those that said 7th month gets a treat) The 7th month is the month of Tishri

What month does the New Year Start in the Bible? Hint: it is not the 7th month. (Those that said the 1st month gets a treat) The biblical year starts in the spring with the month Nisan (Exodus 12:2).

Actually, there are a total of 4 celebrations that mark new years just as we would mark our seasons. “ On the 1st of Nisan is a new year for kings and for festivals; the 1st of Elul is a new year for the tithe of cattle.… The 1st of Tishri is new year’s [day] for the ordinary or civil year, for the computation of 7th years, and of the jubilees; also for planting. On the 1st of Shevat is the new year for trees.”

Because of the importance of Rosh Hashana, the Rabbi’s considered this day known as the feast of the trumpets as the “Spiritual” New Year. Biblically this appointed feast is Yom Teruah or Day of Sounding. Ofcourse, we ask… sounding of what? As we read, it is the sounding of the Shofar/Trumpet.

There is no doubt that HaShem wanted me to share this with you now, because the main purpose of the feast of trumpets focuses on this one word—Regathering. All the Moadim (appointed times) call us to a pure faith in God, Rosh HaShanah is a holiday that commands us to Hear the sounding of the Shofar. In just those words, it is a call to gather to Hear the Word of God. It is the day when the people of Israel recognize their spiritual condition and make the necessary changes to insure that they are aligned with the very Word of God in order to receive the Word of God. The Lord gave us His Word in order to not just be in a relationship with Him, but too literally be able to be with Him. It is basically the difference between long distance relationship, and seeing Him Face to Face. It is believe that it was on the first of Elul that Moses ascended Mount Sinai in order to receive the second set of Tablets of the Law and that he descended on Yom Kippur (Pirke DeRabbi Eliezer 46), and because of this Yom Teruah is the day where we see God’s Mercy over the people of Yisrael in order to restore them with the New Covenant.... This is not New as in the Old is gone away with… rather the New tablets with the Testimony are the same exact ones that were broken because of our sin. Yom Teruah is our call to gather and repent in order for the Lord to extend His mercy and re-establish His Word to us!

Kasdan, B. (2007). God’s appointed times: a practical guide for understanding and celebrating the Biblical holidays (2nd ed., pp. 63–64). Clarksville, MD: Messianic Jewish Publishers.

In synagogues the shofar, or ram’s horn, is sounded daily to alert the faithful that the time of repentance is near. Many Orthodox men take a special water immersion (Hebrew, tevilah mikveh) to symbolize cleansing their ways. Since the theme of Rosh HaShanah is repentance, the observance takes on a somber character, yet always with a hint of hope because of God’s forgiveness. In the traditional Jewish home, the evening starts with the festival dinner with many of the customary dishes. Then it is off to synagogue for the evening service. A good part of the next day is also spent in worship. The liturgy, music and prayers emphasize the recurring theme of repentance, turning to God. Since the day is a Shabbat, most Jewish people take off from work or school in order to observe the day correctly. In traditional groups, the afternoon of Rosh HaShanah is spent at a body of water (ocean, lake or stream) observing the ancient service, Tashlich. The word derives from Micah 7:19 where the prophet promises, “You will hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” To illustrate this beautiful truth, people cast bread crumbs or pebbles into the water and rejoice in God’s promise of forgiveness. With these themes in mind, it is customary in the Jewish community to send holiday cards greeting family and friends with wishes for a blessed New Year. The most noticeable custom is the shofar, the trumpet mentioned in the biblical text. The shofar is sounded in the synagogue with four different notes: tekia (blast), shevarim (broken notes), teruah (alarm) and tekia gedolah (the great blast). These notes provide some spiritual lessons. Rabbis observed that the shofar was used in the ancient world to hail a king. So, too, at Rosh HaShanah, all Israel is said to appear before the King of Kings in anticipation of personal judgement. Also, often in the Bible the shofar was sounded to gather the troops together for battle (see Joshua 6). In this case, the shofar is our “wake-up call”; an alarm to call us to our appointed time.

Kasdan, B. (2007). God’s appointed times: a practical guide for understanding and celebrating the Biblical holidays (2nd ed., pp. 64–65). Clarksville, MD: Messianic Jewish Publishers.

The instrument to be used in the trumpeting is not specified in the Bible, but Jewish tradition decided in favor of the horn and not the metal trumpet, permitting for synagogue use any kind of horn except a cow’s, but for temple use only a straight (antelope’s) horn and never a crooked (ram’s) horn (Rōsh ha-shānāh, 3:2–4). According to 4:1, when the new year began on a Sabbath the horns were blown only in the temple, but after its destruction they were blown in every synagogue. Every Israelite was obliged to come within hearing distance of the sound (3:7). In the synagogue liturgy of 4:5–9 (which forms the basis of the modern Jewish practice), four sets of “benedictions” were read, and after each of the last three sets the horn blown nine times. Modern Judaism sees in the signals a call to self-examination and repentance, in view of the approaching Day of Atonement. See Trumpet, III, 2, (8).

Easton, B. S. (1915). Trumpets, Feast Of. In J. Orr, J. L. Nuelsen, E. Y. Mullins, & M. O. Evans (Eds.), The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia (Vol. 1–5, pp. 3024–3025). Chicago: The Howard-Severance Company.

Verses that tell us why we blow or hear the Trumpets:

Holy Scriptures: Tree of Life Version Chapter 10

9Whenever you go to war in your own land against the enemy who is hostile to you, you are to sound short blasts of alarm. Then you will be remembered before ADONAI your God and be delivered from your enemies.

10Also at your days of rejoicing, feasts and new moons, you are to blow on the trumpets over your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. They will then be a reminder for you before ADONAI your God. I am ADONAI your God!”

These are only a few verses of all thats written regarding the Shofar -

Num. 29:1; Josh. 6:5; 1 Sam 13:3; 2 Sam 15:10; 2 Sam 6:15; Isa 18:3; Isa 27:13; Isa 58:1; Jer 4:5; Jer 6:17; Ezek 33:3-6; Joel 2:1; Zech 9:14; Psalm 47:6; Psalm 81:4; Job 39:25; Neh 4:14; Matt 24:31; 1 Cor 15:52; 1 Thess 4:16; Heb 12:19

Psalm 98 TLV

A psalm. Sing to Adonai a new song, for He has done marvelous things. His right hand and His holy arm have won victory for Him. Adonai has made His salvation known. He has revealed His righteousness before the eyes of the nations. He has remembered His lovingkindness, His faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. Shout joyfully to Adonai, all the earth. Break forth, sing for joy, and sing praises. Sing praises to Adonai with the harp, with the harp and a voice of melody. With trumpets and sound of the shofar blast a sound before the King, Adonai. Let the sea roar and all within it, the world and those who dwell in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing for joy together— before Adonai, for He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with fairness.

The Prophetic Fulfillment

As with all biblical holy days, there is prophetic as well as historical meaning in Rosh HaShanah. Many classical rabbis saw a connection between Rosh HaShanah as the holy day of regathering and the Messiah who would be the agent of regathering. While the historical emphasis of the holy day is repentance, the prophetic theme looks for the future day when the full spiritual regathering will occur under the Messiah.

All the details of Rosh HaShanah become more interesting as we consider the New Testament and the life of Yeshua.

Consider the parallel themes to Rosh HaShanah. Would it be surprising that Yeshua took a special immersion/mikveh in the fall of the year (Matthew 3:13–17)? Is there a relationship to the forty day period of testing by the adversary (Matthew 4:1–11)? And what was the message Yeshua immediately started proclaiming after the forty days? “Turn from your sins to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near!”

What better time could there have been for the Messiah to start his earthly ministry than the time of the spiritual new year? The historical evidence seems to indicate the month of Elul served as the perfect time of preparation for the greatest spiritual message ever to come to Israel: return to God, Messiah has come!

There is rich prophetic truth associated with this Feast of Trumpets. As it characterizes a time of ingathering and spiritual preparation, a future fulfillment of Rosh HaShanah is also alluded to. In speaking of the future regathering of the believers in Messiah, commonly called the “Rapture,” Rabbi Saul (the apostle Paul) reveals an interesting connection to the holy day:

(1 Thessalonians 4:16–18).

This holy day is a perfect picture of the regathering of believers! In the future all true believers in Yeshua will be gathered to meet him in the clouds. The dead in Messiah will rise first, to be followed immediately by those believers alive at that time. Not surprisingly, the signal of the gathering will be the sound of the shofar. In fact, the reference here is to a particular note sounded at Rosh HaShanah. The word normally translated “shout” in verse sixteen comes from the Hebrew, teruah, better translated in this context as the “alarm” blast of the shofar.

1 Corinthians 15:50–58 and Revelation 4:1

Another important fulfillment of Rosh HaShanah is the regathering of the Jewish believing remnant at the second coming of Messiah. (Isaiah 27:12–13). We are still waiting for this shofar to fulfill it.

He (the Son of Man) will send out his angels with a great shofar; and they will gather together his chosen people from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matthew 24:31).

Believers in Yeshua HaMashiach should have a fond appreciation for this rich holy day, Rosh HaShanah! It has served historically as a time of spiritual preparation and repentance. Prophetically, we are reminded of God’s promise to regather and restore his chosen people, Israel, in the last day. The sound of the shofar is also a reminder of the blessed hope every messianic believer possesses: we could enter Messiah’s presence at any time (Titus 2:13). Let us give heed to the sound of the shofar and all that the Lord has given for us to know that He is Coming!

Let us Pray: