What is Rosh HaShanah and Why Does a Christian Need to Understand it?

 

This week's post is by guest blogger, Stephanie Pavlantos. As we approach the time of Jewish celebrations, I think you will enjoy and be enlightened by her knowledge of the connection between these festivals and Christ's ministry and sacrifice. Read more about Stephanie in her bio below and please check out her book, Jewels of Hebrews. 

 

The Feast of Trumpets

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of solemn rest, a memorial proclaimed with a blast of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work, and you shall present a food offering to the Lord.” Lev. 23:23-25 ESV (Emphasis mine)

 

At sundown on September 25, 2022, the Jewish feast Rosh HaShanah or the Feast of Trumpets (literally the Day of Shouting) begins. This two-day feast begins the Ten days of Awe to its conclusion on Yom Kippur.

Rosh HaShanah is so rich in meaning and has many facets to it.

First, Rosh HaShanah commemorates the anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve. Without man, creation has no real meaning. Elohim made our world and all that is in it for our enjoyment and made us to have a relationship with Him. As I heard one YouTube rabbi say, “Creation was for man so we could inhabit it and declare Elohim King.”

Which brings me to another meaning of Rosh HaShanah. It’s the coronation of the King. The LORD is not only our Righteous Judge, but our King of kings. When we declare Him as the King of all, we are celebrating Rosh HaShanah.

In addition to the collective aspects of Rosh Hashanah worship, the coronation renews each Jew’s personal bond with G‑d, his direct inner connection as an individual. Each man and woman personally ask G‑d to accept the coronation, thus creating the bond of “We are your people and You are our King.” (https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/4412/jewish/The-Coronation.htm)

We also know the Feast of Trumpets as the “head of the year” because it celebrates the New Year. Unlike the parties Westerners have to bring in the New Year, this Jewish holiday is a call to repentance, prayer, and a commitment to live a holier life in the coming year. For this reason, Jews know Rosh HaShanah as the Day of Judgment.

The teaching of the sages that each person is judged on Rosh HaShanah does not refer to whether a person will merit Gan Eden and the World to Come if he is worthy… Rather man is judged on Rosh HaShanah concerning only this world: whether he is worthy of life and peace, or death and affliction. https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/4399/jewish/Day-of-Judgment.htm)

Another aspect of Rosh HaShanah is as a Resurrection Day. Just as God made Adam from the dust of the earth, all those who belong to the Messiah will rise from the earth to live with Him forever.

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

1 Thess. 4:16 ESV

 

All feasts are based on the lunar calendar and fall on the full moon except Rosh HaShanah. It begins on the first of the month of Tishri on the New Moon. There is a Hebrew idiom that says, “No man knows the day or hour.” Jesus said, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” Matthew 24:36 ESV

Some scholars believe when Jesus said this, He was referring to the Feast of Trumpets as the time He would return for those who believe. Obviously, no one knows which year that will happen, but many people pray each year around this feast that this will be the year of Jesus’ return and we will be “caught up” with Him.

For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 1 Thess. 4:15-17 ESV

 

At the start of the Feast of Trumpets, people blow the shofar at least one hundred times.

In days of the Bible, the Sanhedrin had two witnesses who watched the sky for the New Moon, and the sliver of light which would be next to come from the dark sphere. Once they saw that light, they immediately ran to the president of the Sanhedrin to report it. The Sanhedrin sent messages to communities while others blew their shofars to let all know it was the beginning of the feast.

At the last trumpet, the feast begins. At the last trumpet, Jesus raises the dead. Most believe this is referring to the rapture.

In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 1 Cor. 15:52 ESV

The shofar is extremely important to this feast.

On the first day of the seventh month, you shall have a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work. It is a day for you to blow the trumpets… Num. 29:1 ESV

Since they made the shofar from a ram’s horn, it’s also a day to remember the binding of Isaac.

 In Genesis 22, we read the story of God’s command to Abraham to take his only son, whom he loved, to Mt. Moriah and sacrifice him as a burnt offering. They needed a lot of heavy wood for this sacrifice, so Scripture tells us Isaac carried the wood for the offering. Isaac was not a young boy, but probably a man to carry all the wood. He asked his father about the lamb. Abraham told Isaac God would provide the lamb.

An angel stopped Abraham as he was getting ready to slaughter his son. As Abraham looked, he saw a ram caught in the thickets by his horns. He offered the ram in place of his son.

In this story, we see two very important things. First, if Isaac was not a boy but a man, he freely offered his life because his father asked him to do it. Second, the Hebrew words for lamb and ram do not rhyme like they do in English. So, as the rabbis, or priests, read this story annually to the people, they heard God would provide the lamb, but He provided a ram. From that time on, the Jewish people watched and waited for God’s Lamb.

Two thousand years later, John the Baptizer sees Jesus coming towards him and announces, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29 ESV). The King had come.

Each of the Jewish feasts point to the Messiah. As Christians, God invites us to take part in these feasts. They are for worship and for evangelism. You will learn more about the One who came as the Jewish Messiah first for the Jew and then for the Gentile.

Join the conversation and share your thoughts. 

What is Rosh HaShanah and Why Does a Christian Need to Understand it? (click to tweet)

Stephanie Pavlantos is passionate about getting people into God’s Word. She has taught Bible studies for twenty years and has spoken at ladies’ retreats. She self-published her first Bible study called The Few, the Humble, the Church: A Study on the Book of Ephesians and Spiritual Warfare in 2008. Her second Bible study, called Jewels of Hebrews, published by Mt. Zion Ridge Press in 2020.

She has been published in Refresh Bible study magazine, Charisma magazine, and CBN.com and a contributor to www.VineWords.net, Feed Your Soul with the Word of God compilation by Lighthousebiblestudies.com, and Love Knots compilation by VineWords Publishing. She also writes for Salem Web Network who owns Crosswalk.com, Biblestudytools.com, and Christianity.com

She is ordained with Messenger Fellowship in Nashville, TN. Stephanie works for Besorah Institute for Judeo-Christian Studies in the Student Services department and teaching online classes.

Married for thirty years, she and Mike have three children, Matthew, Alexandria, Michael and two German shepherds, Sophie and Mia. Mike and Stephanie have a small homestead where they grow fruits and vegetables, and raise sheep, chickens, and ducks.

You can find Stephanie at https://stephaniepavlantos.com/