By: Eldress Kasey Perry
Yom Teruah or Feast of Trumpets is the first of the Fall Feasts, and what a way to usher them in! The day falls on a new moon, meaning that on the Hebrew calendar, it is the first day of the month. This day begins the seventh month of the year, which brings lots of activity. We have Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), and Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles).
We will have considered our ways
Eldress Kasey Perry
in the sixth month of the year as
it is time for Teshuvah – or
returning to Him.
By the time we get to the first day of the seventh month, we (in Hungry Hearts churches) will have followed the instruction we read in Haggai. We will have considered our ways in the sixth month of the year as it is time for teshuvah—or returning to Him. Haggai chapter 1 tells of man’s concern for himself , his own interests, and his own desires. Man is consumed with himself, and the things of God are left without proper attention. God warns them when He says, “Consider your ways!”. When we reach the seventh month, we have considered and examined; we have repented and mapped out plans for improved actions on our part for the next year, actions that will better reflect Adonai and magnify Him. By the seventh month, we are ready for these Fall Feasts—to observe and to celebrate!
Let’s take a look at the name of this feast. The day is known as Yom Teruah or Day of Blasting or Shouting. Yom means Day, and Teruah means blasting or shouting. It is also referred to as Zichron Teruah. Leviticus 23:24 states, “‘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.’” Zichron is a word used to communicate the idea of commemorating or reminding. This leads us to ask, “to commemorate what?” Actually, Teruah gives us a clue. So let’s examine Teruah.
Teruah is a kind of sound created by both silver trumpets and shofars, or a ram’s horns. This sound has a specific pattern, and throughout time it has had more than one purpose. The sound is a series of several, very short blasts. We see this type of sound alerting Israel in the desert to let them know that it was time to move (Numbers 10:5,6).
This sound is known as a sound or alarm for war (Job 39:25, Jeremiah 4:19). It is known as a sound of rejoicing and gladness (Psalm 27:6). Teruah is not just trumpet blasts, but it can also be a shout. We read about it as a sound of victory—the shout of the people, as we see when Jericho’s walls collapsed. Joshua 6:20 says, “So the people shouted and the priests blew the trumpets; and when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, everyone straight ahead, and they took the city.” The “great shout” that is annotated is teruah in the Hebrew text. Each of the purposes we just reviewed is associated with God’s involvement among His people. He has guided Israel, protected/fought for her, and given her victories. In turn, His people have reason to rejoice.
There is another aspect of Yom Teruah that should be considered: it is associated with an agricultural harvest. Just as Pesach/Passover is associated with the barley harvest, Shavuot/Pentecost is associated with the wheat harvest, and Yom Teruah is associated with the grape harvest. We know that the grape harvest points us to the Wrath of God, which is to come.
Revelation 14:14-20 speaks of the grape harvest, those who are harvested and thrown into the “great wine press of the wrath of God”. This, of course, is not where we want to be since this harvest is comprised of those who have set themselves against God. This window of time will bring about God’s judgement in the form of catastrophes and suffering on a level that mankind has never known—all because of disobedient choices and prideful positions taken against The Almighty.
During this last half of the Tribulation, scripture tells us of the seven trumpets and seven bowls that will afflict the world. Life is all but extinguished when the land, the waters, the heavens, and mankind suffer because of the calamities. There will be fire, great hail, water turning into blood, earthquakes, smoke and sulfur. With these words, there is no way to describe the anguish that will be experienced by men during this time. In Revelation 9:5-6, we read that conditions are so terrible people “seek” death; they “long to die”, and for a five month period they cannot. They live in torment. This 3.5-year period will culminate with the sound of the shofar and Yeshua’s public return. When He returns, He will have His own with Him. Revelation 17:14 tells us, “These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.”
The LORD will have the final say when it comes to this point on the timeline. When all is said and done, the millennial reign of Yeshua Messiah will begin; we will see our King of kings and LORD of lords take His rightful place over all the earth.
It is so important that we seriously assess our lives now while there is still time to make our choice for Yeshua. For those of us who say we follow Him—that we are Believers, obedience is the one true sign of our love. He told us this. In John 14:15, Yeshua stated, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Do we? When we have written instructions in His Word do we take heed and execute His plan? His Holy Days are part of His plan. Do you observe the days He set apart? While we are not perfect, we must be diligent as we work out our “own salvation with fear and trembling” (2 Philippians 2:12); we must follow the instructions we have been given. I know I want to be the servant whose Master finds her following the instructions He gave (Matthew 24:45, 46). When we are earnestly observant of His Holy Days, we demonstrate that we are truly set apart from the world and for Him.
As obedient Believers, we can look at the purposes for Teruah on a personal level. When we sound the shofar on Yom Teruah, we are observing His call for us to observe and commemorate, fulfilling the name Zichron Teruah also. We commemorate that He made war on the enemy, and He conquered death and the grave for us! We commemorate that He has moved us from the enemy’s camp to His own House! We are reminded of the time to come when Yeshua Messiah is King over this earth, and we serve and reign with Him. We are reminded of the eternal and abundant life we are given because of our victorious King—AND WE SHOUT! On Yom Teruah, ours will be individual and corporate shouts of praise, shofars sounded, and acknowledgement for our King will be heard to any who will listen!
As obedient, loyal Believers who love our LORD, we rejoice on this Holy Day. While it reminds us that there will be a heavy price to be paid for opposing Him, it also rings with victory for us! It reminds us of our Hope Who is coming to make everything right. It reminds us of the reward that will come to us as a result of our allegiance and work for Him. It reminds us of a day when His Ways will be The Law of the land, and this will include His Holy Days (see Zechariah 14)! This is definitely reason to sound the alarm and shout!
In our Hungry Hearts service, on Yom Teruah, we will voice our praises to our King; we will worship with music; and we will enjoy a message. There will be sounds of shouting and shofars. We will be sounding the alarm for all to hear! Listen! Wake up! Prepare because The King is coming!
Pursuit 