Is There an Eschatological Significance to the Feast of Trumpets?

Tzedakah Ministries is sometimes asked by churches that just observed and/or participated in a Jesus in the Passover presentation if any of the other Jewish feasts of the Old Testament unveil the truth of Jesus' Messiahship. The short answer ... YES!

Passover brings to reality the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus through the truth of the Matzah Tash and the four cups. The Feasts of Unleavened Bread and the First Fruits are manifested and fulfilled on Easter Sunday morning!

These first three feasts proclaim Jesus' first coming while Shavuot (Pentecost) unveils the coming of the Holy Spirit. In fact, compare Ezekiel 1, which is read today in synagogues during Shavuot, and Acts 2 for proof of this amazing truth.

Therefore, if the first three feasts were realized in the first coming of Jesus and the middle feast is proof of the Holy Spirit's arrival, then would it not seem obvious that the final three feasts might have something to do with Jesus' triumphal second coming? The Feasts of Trumpet (aka Rosh Hoshanah), Yom Kippur, and the Feast of Tabernacles are fall feasts. The Feast of Trumpets, specifically, is known for two items - the blowing of the Shofar and the reading of Genesis 22 regarding the binding and sacrifice of Isaac. The Shofar is blown to announce the arrival of a new year and the reading of Genesis 22 to remind the listener of the eternality of the Abrahamic Covenant.

The blowing of the Shofar brings to mind the promise of 1 Thessalonians 4 in which we are told that Jesus himself shall descend when the trumpet blows. The reading of Genesis 22 is not only another prophetic realization of Jesus' sacrifice but also reminds us that His second coming is not about death but about the fulfillment of the covenant promises of Genesis 12, 15, 17, and especially 22.

The question regarding the exact timing (i.e., Rapture) of the final Shofar can be answered another day. The ultimate truth is to realize for God that nothing is unexpected or unplanned. From Jesus' first coming to his second, this has all been pieces of the eternal plan of Adonai.