The Feast of Trumpets

The first three of God’s commanded Festivals come in the spring. They all picture spiritual aspects of the Plan of God. The last four Festivals all fall in the seventh month—the month of finality or completion—and picture the completion of God’s plan on earth.
     The Feast of Trumpets occurs on the very first day of the seventh month of God’s sacred calendar. It ushers in the final events of God’s Plan. It pictures the MASSIVE intervention of God in human affairs—climaxing in the Second Coming of Christ as King of kings. Notice God’s original command to ancient Israel:   ”Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing of TRUMPETS, a holy convocation’” (Leviticus 23:24).
     In Israel, the blowing of trumpets was used as a signal for the people to assemble, to take some action—or as an alarm of WAR (Numbers 10:1–10). Therefore, being placed as it is just before the final events of this age, the Feast of Trumpets clearly signifies the soon-coming time of world upheaval, chaos and war that virtually all the prophecies of the Bible show will immediately precede Christ’s return.
     It should be noted that trumpets were also used to herald the coronation of a new king, as in the case of Israel’s King Solomon (1 Kings 1:34, 39). And the peaceful rule of Solomon, following the wars of his father David, was a type of the coming rule of the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Kings 4:25; 1 Chronicles 28:5).
     This evil age of human self-rule will end with the human race standing on the very threshold of mass extinction. Indeed, the Bible has much to say about a terrible World War to come that will engulf the whole earth in the near future. To learn about this horrific time called the “Great Tribulation” (Matthew 24:21) and the circumstances that will bring it about, please write for our informative booklets, The Beast of Revelation and What’s Ahead for America and Britain? Both are available free of charge.
     Thankfully—before it is all over—God’s intervention will prevent humanity from utterly destroying itself (v. 22). For then the day of man will be over—and the Day of the Lord will commence. Yet it will not begin with peace and joy for everyone. Rather, the Almighty will have to enforce peace upon rebellious humanity—by first breaking its stubborn will. Thus, our Creator will intervene to show HIS POWER and remind a wayward civilization that HE is the ultimate RULER of heaven and earth.
     Notice Joel’s inspired prophecy: “Blow the TRUMPET in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the Lord is coming, for it is at hand” (Joel 2:1). So the blowing of trumpets here sounds an “alarm” that the prophesied “Day of the Lord is at hand”!
     Picturing the time when the Israelites are released from captivity at Christ’s Second Coming and are brought back to the land of Israel, the Prophet Isaiah proclaimed: “So it shall be in that day that the great TRUMPET will be blown; they will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria, and they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem” (Isaiah 27:13).
     Of course, the “trumpet plagues” are described in Revelation 8 and 9. Coming after the Great Tribulation, these awesome plagues will literally SHAKE this earth like nothing ever has before. At a time when the prophesied Beast and False Prophet (cf. Revelation 13:15–18) have just destroyed millions of lives with awesome technological weapons of war, then the great God intervenes to show HIS POWER and remind a rebellious civilization that He is the ultimate RULER of heaven and earth. “So the seven angels who had the SEVEN TRUMPETS prepared themselves to sound. The first angel sounded: And hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth; and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up” (8:6–7).
     Finally, the Living Jesus Christ supernaturally intervenes to SAVE a rebellious humanity and to bring genuine PEACE to the world. “Then the seventh angel sounded: and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!’” (11:15).
     So Christ will return at the seventh trump! “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a TRUMPET, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matthew 24:29–31).
     What is the significance of Christ sending angels to gather His elect at this time? As the Apostle Paul wrote regarding Christ’s return at the last trumpet: “But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Corinthians 15:20). But notice what he further stated: “For since by man [Adam] came death, by Man [Christ] also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits [i.e. the first of the firstfruits], afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming [i.e. the rest of the firstfruits]” (vv. 21–23). And when will it all happen? Paul wrote: “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the LAST TRUMPET. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (vv. 51–52). Perhaps there is nothing more encouraging than this amazing fact.
     Can we picture a great blinding LIGHT so radiant that humans cannot even look at it? That is how the risen Christ’s face will look as He returns in GLORY. Can we picture a massive TRUMPET BLAST literally SHAKING the earth and Christ returning as King of kings? Can we picture the true saints of God rising to meet Christ in the air and then descending with Him to the Mount of Olives to join Him in RULING this rebellious planet? (cf. Zechariah 14:1–4, 9; Revelation 2:26–27).
     All of these things will occur at the seventh trumpet! For although the Feast of Trumpets pictures the horrifying upsets and WARS and PLAGUES at the end of this human civilization, it also pictures the glorious DIVINE INTERVENTION of the Creator God who will finally restore order and bring genuine PEACE and JOY to a chastened humanity that is finally ready to “listen” to God and follow His righteous ways.