The Feast of Trumpets and the Coming King

The Significance of Rosh Hashanah

Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on Friday, September 11, 2026.

As Jewish people around the world gather to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, believers in Jesus have an opportunity to reflect on the prophetic significance of this biblical feast and what it teaches us about the Lord’s return.

The Day of the Blowing of Trumpets

The biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah, meaning The Day of the Blowing of Trumpets.

“Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, “In the seventh month on the first of the month, you shall have a rest, a reminder by blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation.”’”

— Leviticus 23:23-24

The central symbol of this feast is the shofar, a trumpet made from a ram’s horn. Its curved shape has long been associated with humility, brokenness, and repentance.

God commanded Israel to observe this feast on the first day of the seventh month, Tishri, as a day set apart for worship and reflection.

A Time to Stop

The Lord further instructed:

“You shall not do any laborious work, but you shall present an offering by fire to the Lord.”

— Leviticus 23:25

This was not a day for business as usual. It was a day to stop.

A day to examine one’s heart.

A day to consider one’s spiritual condition before God.

Sometimes God tells us to go. Other times He tells us to stop. Stop what is distracting you. Stop long enough to hear His voice. Stop and take inventory of your walk with Him.

The Trumpet Yet to Sound

For Christians, the sound of the trumpet points beyond ancient Israel to a future event.

The Apostle Paul wrote:

“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first. 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 so we shall always be with the Lord.”

— 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17

One day there will be a final trumpet blast.

The next great sounding of God’s trumpet will gather believers into the presence of the Lord. The dead in Christ will rise, and living believers will be caught up to meet Him.

Every blast of the shofar serves as a reminder that history is moving toward that moment.

Rosh Hashanah and the Days of Awe

Although Scripture calls this day the Feast of Trumpets, it later became known as Rosh Hashanah, meaning “Head of the Year,” marking the beginning of Israel’s civil year.

Jewish tradition associates Rosh Hashanah with the beginning of the Ten Days of Awe, a period of self-examination that concludes on the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur.

The emphasis during these days is repentance, reflection, and a renewed commitment to God. One traditional greeting is:

Leshanah tovah tikatevu — “May you be inscribed for a good year.”

Another familiar custom is dipping apples in honey, expressing the hope for a sweet year ahead

One meaningful tradition is the Tashlich ceremony, in which people gather near a body of water and symbolically cast away breadcrumbs or stones, representing repentance from sin.

The practice is often associated with Micah’s words:

“He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.”

— Micah 7:19

While these customs developed after biblical times, they reflect an important truth: God calls people to repentance and offers mercy to those who seek Him.

God’s Calendar of Redemption

The seven biblical feasts of Israel can be viewed as God’s prophetic calendar of redemption.

The first four feasts were fulfilled during Christ’s first coming:

• Passover points to Christ’s sacrificial death.

• Unleavened Bread points to His burial.

• First Fruits points to His resurrection.

• Pentecost points to the coming of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the church.

Today we live between the fulfillment of the fourth feast and the fulfillment of the fall feasts that many believers associate with Christ’s return and the completion of God’s redemptive plan.

We are living in the Church Age.

And we are waiting.

Waiting for the trumpet.

Waiting for the King.

Are You Ready?

The final trumpet will be both a warning and an invitation.

A warning of coming judgment upon a rebellious world.

An invitation for God’s people to be gathered to Him forever.

When the trumpet sounded at Jericho, the walls fell down. When God’s trumpet sounds in the future, His people will rise up.

Jesus said:

“Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.”

— Matthew 24:42

As Rosh Hashanah approaches, may the sound of the shofar remind us to examine our hearts, renew our devotion to Christ, and live with expectancy.

The King is coming.

Are you waiting?

Are you watching?

Are you prepared?

—Stuart

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