Commentaries:
It is from this ceremony that the Feast of Trumpets draws its name. There is a great deal of symbolic meaning tied in with the blowing of these trumpets—especially with regard to the end time in which we are living.
Trumpets were blown to announce God's festivals, as well as to call God's people to assembly. Trumpets were also used as an alarm of invading armies and impending warfare. This terrifying sound filled the people of ancient Israel with fear, because they knew the horror of war was imminent! It is this warning of war that sets apart the Feast of Trumpets from God's other festivals.
Why Christians Should Keep God's Holy Days
The appointed time for the Feast of Trumpets is on the first day of the seventh month of God's sacred year. Like other months, this seventh month has two names: Tishri meaning "beginning," and Ethanim meaning "strong" or "valiant," which may refer to the return and intervention of the supremely strong and valiant Captain of our salvation, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 2:10, KJV).
The Feast of Trumpets is actually a New Year's Day! It falls on the first day of a new year, hence the name Tishri or "beginning." There are two different (but complementary) "New Year's Days" in God's calendar because there are two distinct years in God's calendar or, more accurately, two distinct starting points for counting the year. One is the sacred and religious year, which starts in the spring with the month Abib or Nisan. The other is the administrative and financial year, also called the Civil Year, and it starts in the autumn on the Feast of Trumpets. In Bible times, the year's main harvests were complete by this date and enough crops had been sold by this time to enable farmers to afford to attend the fall holy day celebrations.
John Plunkett
What Is the Feast of Trumpets, Anyway?
God does not command us to do things just to show off His power. His commands are always filled with true logic and common sense; when He commands us to do something, it is always for a very good reason. He tells us to keep His Feast of Trumpets because He wants us to take a break from the mundane tasks of our daily lives. Like God's other holy days, the Feast of Trumpets is like a 24-hour stop sign. God wants us to stop!
On the Feast of Trumpets, God wants us to stop, to put aside our relatively unimportant daily affairs, and to concentrate for a mere 24 hours on what is really important, not on the physical things that are not lasting or eternal (II Corinthians 4:18). Even the rocks and mountains of this earth eventually will wear away to sand and dust (Psalm 102:25-27; see Hebrews 1:10-12). On this feast, God wants us to stop in order to concentrate on the truly eternal things: the return of Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the dead, the end of the age of man, and the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth. That is why we keep the Feast of Trumpets!
There are a few specific instructions here on how God wants us to observe His Feast of Trumpets:
1. It should be kept as a day of rest, similar to a weekly Sabbath.
2. It is a memorial of blowing of trumpets. Most church of God congregations do not own trumpets or rams' horn shofars, or have accomplished trumpeters. However, we often play some appropriate, recorded trumpet music as the holy day offering is being taken up. Such music gives us a good, aural reminder of the unique significance of this day.
3. A "holy convocation" should be held. A convocation is an assembly of people, and a holy convocation is a sacred assembly of people or a church service. Although many of God's scattered people find it necessary to keep the Sabbath alone or in tiny groups, it is good and worthwhile, if at all possible, to make the extra effort to keep the holy days with a larger group.
4. No "customary work" should be done. Customary work (or "servile work" as phrased in the King James Version) is work that we would normally do on a regular day, usually for pay. To the delight of our young people, this is properly extended to prohibit household chores, school work, and school homework. God does, however, allow a small amount of work to be done for the final preparation of food for the Feast, although as much of this labor as possible should be done on the previous day, termed in the Bible "the day of preparation" (see Exodus 12:16; 16:23; Matthew 27:62; Mark 15:42; Luke 23:54; John 19:14, 42).
5. Christians are not required to sacrifice animals by fire for their holy day offerings. Rather, they are to give monetary offerings—over and above their regular tithes—that may be used for the needs of the church and for the ongoing work of preaching God's Word.
John Plunkett
What Is the Feast of Trumpets, Anyway?
Seven is God's special number signifying completion and perfection. The seventh month of God's sacred calendar contains the final festivals outlining God's Master Plan of salvation. The first day of the seventh month marks the beginning of the final phases of God's plan.
Feast of Trumpets: Why the World Won't End in Cosmocide
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