Announcing the return of our Lord

Edmund Heddle looks at the biblical significance of the shofar and the silver trumpet as prophetic instruments.

Reference to the blowing of trumpets is made in both Old and New Testaments. In every case they are sounding the alert to wake up the people to what God has to say to them. As we study the occasions on which trumpets were blown we shall gain a clearer understanding of 'What is a prophet?' and of the responsibility he has to make his trumpet call unmistakably clear (1 Cor 14:8).

Two Types of Trumpet

With a single exception the trumpets of the Old Testament divide up into the shofar or ram's horn and the chatsotserah made of hammered silver. In the New Testament the word 'salpinx' does service for both.

Moses was told by God to make two trumpets of hammered silver. Only the priests were allowed to blow them, and they were the means of alerting the people to assemble, to dismiss, to set out on a journey, to go into battle and to mark new year and other festivals.

Both the Old and the New Testaments contain references to the blowing of the trumpets – in every case they are sounding the alert to wake the people up to what God is saying.

It would appear that, unlike the shofar which has no musical sound with different notes, the silver trumpets had two distinct notes. This is apparent from the instructions given to Moses that when both trumpets were sounded simultaneously the whole assembly of the Lord's people were to gather at the Tent of Meeting; but if a single trumpet was sounded only the leaders were to assemble before Yahweh. Unless one of the trumpets produced two different notes no-one could tell whether all the people or only the leaders were being called.

By contrast the shofar, mentioned 72 times in the Old Testament, is not a musical instrument as such. Made of the curved horn of a cow or a ram, it was used to make a loud sound. It is still used by Jews at their solemn festivals. By contrast the silver trumpets were long, straight and slim. We know their shape from the bas-relief on the Arch of Titus in Rome depicting the overthrow of Jerusalem.

When God Appears

When God descended to Mount Sinai there was a very loud trumpet blast, which grew louder and louder (Ex 19:16 and 19). When the trumpet sounded the people trembled with fear and stayed at a distance (Ex 20:18). The writer to the Hebrews comments on the people's fear (Heb 12:18-21).

Paul tells us that when God descends at the Last Day the trumpet call of God will sound (1 Thess 4:16) and at the last trumpet the dead will be raised (1 Cor 15:52). Jesus makes it clear that this final trumpet call will be blown by angels (Matt 24:31). All prophesying has as its objective the preparing of people for that 'dreadful day' (Rev 6:15-16).

Directing the People of God in the Wilderness

According to Numbers 10:1-10, the Israelites were alerted to their responsibility by the sounding of the silver trumpets. For example, the whole company of people, or perhaps just the leaders, were summoned to the Tent of Meeting; the clans of Israel set out on their journey to the Promised Land, or camped for a while in some place.

References to trumpets in Scripture usually concern either the shofar (ram's horn) or the silver trumpet, which are very different in appearance and sound.

At Historic Events

These events included:

• the bringing up of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem (1 Chron 13:7-8);
• the establishment of the Ark in the Holy Place in the Temple (2 Chron 5:7);
• the dedication of the Temple (2 Chron 15:14);
• Jehoshaphat's victory (2 Chron 20:28);
• the proclamation of Joash as king after his escape from the massacre under Athaliah, the only queen ever to occupy the throne of Judah (2 Chron 23:11-13);
• subsequent to the purification of the Temple by King Hezekiah and while the Levites and all the people bowed in worship (2 Chron 29:25-29);
• after they had laid the foundation stone of the Temple (Ezra 3:10-11);
• and when they had dedicated the wall of Jerusalem (Neh 12:31-36).

We note that seven named priests were appointed to blow trumpets before the Ark of God (1 Chron 15:24). In all the religious celebrations accompanied by the blowing of trumpets the one song which was repeated over and over again down the years was, "He is good: his love endures forever" (1 Chron 16:41. 2 Chron 5:14; 7:3; 20:21 and Ezra 3:11).

On Regular Occasions

Trumpets were blown at the new moon (Num 10:10, Ps 81:3). The Hebrew word for 'moon' is the same as the word for 'month', and at the commencement of each period trumpets alerted God's people to the passing of time.

The feast of trumpets, held on the first day of the seventh month, was a New Year festival celebrated with the blowing of trumpets (Lev 23:23-25, Num 29:1-6). As in the West today where there is both a religious year commencing in Advent and a civil year commencing in January, so in Bible times there was a religious year beginning with the month Nisan or Abib, the 'green ear month' roughly equivalent to our April, and a civil year commencing with the seventh month Tishri or Ethanim (1 Kings 8:2) in the autumn.

The sound of the trumpet marked both regular occasions like each new month and year, and special occasions like festivals.

The one-day Feast of Trumpets announced the most important month in the year, in which occurred both the Day of Atonement (Num 29:7-11) and the Feast of Tabernacles (Num 29:12-39), and took its feast place at the new moon of the seventh month. It would appear that the new moon was the regular day on which to consult prophets (2 Kings 4:23). The use of these instruments at this feast is called a memorial blowing of trumpets, and may be understood in two ways. First, that God is alerting the people to prepare for the solemnities of that particular month and, second, that the people are reminding God of his covenant promises.

It is interesting that in neither of the scripture passages dealing with the Feast of Trumpets does the word 'trumpet' occur. The word used instead is 'teruah', which denotes either the shouting of people or the blast of a trumpet - perhaps both are included.

At the Feast of Trumpets the memorial blowing of trumpets is designed to alert the people to prepare, and to remind God of his covenant promises.

This first day of the month Tishri is called by the Jews Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the year, or New Year's Day. The Year of Jubilee was announced by the sounding of trumpets everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month (Lev 25:8-13), which is the Day of Atonement. The term 'jubilee' is derived from the word 'yobhel', which means ram's horn. After every six-year period of use the land was to have a 'sabbath of rest'; during the seventh year the land was to lay fallow for one year.

The culmination of these sabbatical periods was reached every fiftieth year, when the Year of Jubilee was heralded by blasts on the ram's horn throughout the land. With the arrival of this year slaves were released, debts were remitted, property reverted to its original owners and Israelites who had been jailed for debt were released. Isaiah 61:1-3 is steeped in jubilee phraseology, and this was the scripture passage Jesus chose to explain his mission and that of the church, his prophetic people (Luke 4:16-21).

Coronation of KingsShofar.

1 Kings 1:39 tells us, "Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the sacred tent and anointed Solomon. Then they sounded the trumpet and all the people shouted 'Long live King Solomon!'" In earlier times, during Absalom's conspiracy against King David, instructions had been given to Absalom's supporters that as soon as they heard the sound of the trumpets they were to proclaim, 'Absalom is king in Hebron'. This announcement was to lead to great sorrow when the day came for David to mourn the death of his son. "O my son Absalom, my son, my son, if only I had died instead of you!" (2 Sam 18:33). How different from the day when trumpets declared his accession!

While Elijah was hiding in the cave from the wrath of Queen Jezebel, God told him that Elisha was to anoint Jehu, the son of Nimshi, to be King over Israel (1 Kings 19:16). In obedience to this commission, Elisha sent one of the young prophets to find Jehu and to take him into an inner room, pour oil on his head and say, 'I anoint you King over Israel'. When Jehu returned to the council of his companions they endorsed his accession: "Then they blew the trumpet and shouted 'Jehu is King!'" Part of Jehu's commission was to avenge the blood of the prophets killed by Jezebel (2 Kings 9:1-13).

Warning of Invasion

The prophet Ezekiel used the concept of invasion to illustrate his prophesying (Eze 33:2-6):

If the people of the land choose one of their men and make him their watchman, and he sees the sword coming against the land and blows the trumpet to warn the people, then if anyone hears the trumpet but does not take warning and the sword comes and takes his life, his blood will be on his own head...but if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword...takes the life of one of them...I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood.

Isaiah castigates Israel's prophet-watchmen with the statement, "Israel's watchmen are blind" (56:10). Of what possible use is a blind watchman?

Trumpets were blown to mark the coronation of kings and to warn of impending war.

In Warfare

Trumpets were used in the following ways:

• to recruit an army (Judg 3:26-¬28);
• to lead troops out to battle (Num 10:9);
• to sound a battle-cry (2 Chron 13:12-15);
• to signal to the army during fighting (Num 31:6);
• to call people to defend their city (Neh 4:18-22);
• to effect a God-given strategy (Josh 6:5, Judg 7:17-18);
• to terminate the engagement (2 Sam 2:28) and to send the troops home (2 Sam 20:22b).

When Paul was emphasising the superiority of the gift of prophecy he likened it to blowing a trumpet, and made the point that "If the trumpet does not sound a clear call" the army will not know what they are being ordered to do (1 Cor 14:8).

Heralding the Judgments Preceding the Day of the Lord

In the book of the Revelation seven trumpets reveal the increasing severity of the judgments that will fall on the earth before the kingdom of this world becomes the kingdom of our God and of his Christ. The first four trumpets announce that one-third of the earth, sea, rivers and sun, moon and stars will be affected. Before the remaining three trumpets sound, three 'Woes' express the terrible nature of what has yet to be revealed.

At the fifth trumpet the angel of the abyss unlocks its door and choking smoke and locusts like scorpions are set loose, while the sixth trumpet sees one third of mankind killed. Yet for all this, the rest of mankind that had survived does not repent of their sins. How thrilling to hear the message of the seventh trumpet: "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ and he will reign for ever and ever" (Rev 11:15).

Paul likened the gift of prophecy to blowing a trumpet, and pointed out that if trumpets are not blown clearly in warfare, the army will not know what it should do.

God's Trumpeters

Prophets are called to sound a clear trumpet call and are responsible for alerting God's people and to rousing them from lethargy, laziness and sleep, as we have seen from our study of trumpets in scripture. It is prophecy that brings God into his rightful place among his people, causing them to crown him King (1 Cor 14:24-25). It is prophets who are needed to lead God's people into victorious spiritual warfare.

Prophets and their warning trumpets are essential if the tide of evil invading Britain and other countries is to be withstood. The insight of Spirit-filled prophets is required to see in the disasters of today the beginnings of the final conflict between Christ Jesus and the adversary, satan, and to make it real to today's church.

Prophets are called to sound a clear trumpet call and alert God's people, rousing them from lethargy, laziness and sleep and causing them to crown God King.

Reaction to the Trumpet Call

When the trumpet sounded on Sinai, the first such sound in scripture, the people trembled (Ex 19:16), as Amos in a later day said they should (Amos 3:6). Trumpets are intended to alert the hearers (1 Kings 1:41). But if the trumpet gives an uncertain call they will not know what is required of them (1 Cor 14:8).

It matters not whether the instrument is a muddy ram's horn or a beautiful silver trumpet, neither will function without breath. So today, prophets can sound the alert only as they breathe in the Spirit that inspired the Lord's trumpeters.

In our series on the Jewish High Holy Days, Helen Belton examines Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.