[Note: The following is the prepared text for a sermon delivered to The Dalles congregation of the United Church of God on Sabbath, September 24, 2022.]

It is customary as we approach the Feast of Trumpets to view this festival from the perspective of the millennial reign of Jesus Christ back through the various plagues of the seventh trumpet and perhaps the seven trumpets spoken of in Revelation. What I propose to do today is the exact opposite of this. After all, as we come to the Feast of Trumpets, we do not know exactly how or when events will unfold. We have prophecies but do not know exactly what their fulfillment looks like. This puts us at least somewhat more in the perspective of those whose knowledge of God’s plan had not been entirely revealed in detail, but was rather expounded through symbols and rituals that included details added over the course of time.

In order to uncover the Feast of Trumpets in reverse to the way we normally look at the festival, we will first discuss what is said about the Feast of Trumpets in scripture that provides the basis for how the Feast of Trumpets was understood. After this we will look a bit broader at the symbolism of the trumpet in particular. Finally, we will close with a brief discussion of how the themes and symbols of the Feast of Trumpets connect with the first coming of Jesus Christ. And it is to that task that we will now turn.

There are only two places where the Feast of Trumpets is referred to explicitly by name. The first is exactly where you would expect, in Leviticus 23:23-25. This description is by far the sketchiest of any of the Holy Days. Leviticus 23:23-25 reads: “Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “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.  You shall do no customary work on it; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.’ ”” The bare minimum of information is given here. It is said that the Sabbath rest on the first day of the seventh month, at the very middle point of the year, is to be a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a day of commanded assembly, and a day where no customary work is to be done and where an offering is to be given to God. That is literally all that we are told about the day from this passage.

The offerings that were given on that day during the tabernacle and temple worship system are the second of the two locations where the Feast of Trumpets is referred to by name. We find this reference in Numbers 29:1-6. Numbers 29:1-6 reads: “‘And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work. For you it is a day of blowing the trumpets.  You shall offer a burnt offering as a sweet aroma to the Lord: one young bull, one ram, and seven lambs in their first year, without blemish.  Their grain offering shall be fine flour mixed with oil: three-tenths of an ephah for the bull, two-tenths for the ram, and one-tenth for each of the seven lambs; also one kid of the goats as a sin offering, to make atonement for you; besides the burnt offering with its grain offering for the New Moon, the regular burnt offering with its grain offering, and their drink offerings, according to their ordinance, as a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord.” This passage gives considerable detail about the sacrifices that were offered on this day up to the destruction of the temple of Herod in Jerusalem, but all it has to say about the day itself is that it is to be treated as both a normal new moon and also as day of blowing the trumpets, which we already knew from Leviticus, and is the only thing that the Bible explicitly tells us about this day. Everything else we know about the Feast of Trumpets we know from applying the symbolism of the trumpets. For ancient Israel, this day must have seemed to be highly mysterious.

From the fact that contemporary Jews refer to the Feast of Trumpets as Rosh Hashannah, or their New Year’s Day, suggests that much of the symbolism that the Jews have attached to this day relates to the inauguration of a new year. There is some evidence, based on the chronology of the kings of Israel and Judah provided in 1 and 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles, that this association of the Feast of Trumpets with the start of a new royal or civil year is something that began in ancient times, even though the Bible is very plain that the beginning of the religious year takes place in spring. We can tell, therefore, that the Jews understood Trumpets in a similar sense to the way that we do. From the symbolism of the trumpets and its meanings about the inauguration of rule–which we associate with the inauguration of the rule of Jesus Christ–the Jews extrapolated a more general inauguration of the civil year and of the counting of the years ruled by its kings year after year. How did they do this?

The first time we hear about trumpets is when we hear about them several times in Exodus 19:10-20. Let us read about trumpets and what they signify in Exodus 19:10-20: “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes.  And let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Take heed to yourselves that you do not go up to the mountain or touch its base. Whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death.  Not a hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot with an arrow; whether man or beast, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds long, they shall come near the mountain.” So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified the people, and they washed their clothes.  And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not come near your wives.” Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.  And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.  Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly.  And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice.  Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.”

Let us note a couple of things about this use of the trumpet. Already, when trumpets are mentioned, there is already a method of their use. The trumpet sounds long as a signal for Israel to come near to the mountain, but they are not to touch the mountain on pain of death. The trumpets signal the approach of God near them, but they are not holy nor have they committed themselves wholly to Him, and so they are not allowed to be close to God in the sense that Moses is welcomed to come up to the top of the mountain and speak personally with God face to face as it were. The trumpet, though, is a method of communication, and what it communicates is the presence and power of God. From the first use of the trumpet, the connection between the arrival of the one who was to become Jesus Christ and the trumpet blast had been made clear. It is worth nothing briefly as well that Exodus 20:18-19 gives us the response of Israel to the thundering of the ten commandments and to the trumpet blast that communicated God’s approach. Exodus 20:18-19 reads: “Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.”” Rather than being motivated by the sound of the trumpet to approach God and recognize His authority and rule, Israel was terrified at the approach of God and wanted to hide from God as did Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. It was a bad omen of what was to come in the relationship between God and ancient Israel in the wilderness.

The next time that trumpets are mentioned in the Bible that we have yet to discuss occurs in the first ten verses of Numbers 10, when two silver trumpets are made with specific purposes. Numbers 10:1-10 reads as follows: “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:  “Make two silver trumpets for yourself; you shall make them of hammered work; you shall use them for calling the congregation and for directing the movement of the camps.  When they blow both of them, all the congregation shall gather before you at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.  But if they blow only one, then the leaders, the heads of the divisions of Israel, shall gather to you.  When you sound the advance, the camps that lie on the east side shall then begin their journey.  When you sound the advance the second time, then the camps that lie on the south side shall begin their journey; they shall sound the call for them to begin their journeys.  And when the assembly is to be gathered together, you shall blow, but not sound the advance.  The sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets; and these shall be to you as an ordinance forever throughout your generations. “When you go to war in your land against the enemy who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be remembered before the Lord your God, and you will be saved from your enemies.  Also in the day of your gladness, in your appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be a memorial for you before your God: I am the Lord your God.””

Just as the Feast of Tabernacles is to be a memorial of the blowing of the trumpets, so too these two silver trumpets that were commanded to be made had specific purposes for ancient Israel and those purposes help to inform what the Feast of Trumpets means. This passage is very detailed about the way that these trumpets were to be used. For one, these trumpets were to be used to bring the people before God. If one trumpet was blown, the leaders were to approach God, and if two, then the entire congregation of Israel was to assemble, as days of national celebration, at appointed easts, and at the new moons. The trumpets were also used to call Israel to journey to the promised land and also to go up to war against the enemy who oppressed them. These varied purposes are all connected to the meaning of the Feast of Trumpets. The trumpet announces the coming of God’s feasts and the passage of time from one month to another. The Feast of Trumpets is not only one of God’s feasts but the only one that occurs on the new moon. The trumpet calls Israel’s leaders and Israel to assemble before God, as in the feasts and when God has something to communicate to them. Similarly, the trumpet signals the call for salvation and deliverance from oppression and evil. And so it is that the Feast of Trumpets also signifies salvation and deliverance, in Jesus’ first coming from sin and death and in the second from the systems of evil under Satan that have ruled over this earth for thousands of years.

Not surprisingly, when we see the trumpet referred to in the book of Joshua and Judges it is in a military capacity that these trumpets are blown. We see, for example, in Joshua 6:1-21 the trumpet being referred to repeatedly as a sign of Israel’s holy warfare against the doomed city of Jericho. I will read out this passage and emphasize whenever the word trumpet is used. Joshua 6:1-21 reads: “Now Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel; none went out, and none came in.  And the Lord said to Joshua: “See! I have given Jericho into your hand, its king, and the mighty men of valor.  You shall march around the city, all you men of war; you shall go all around the city once. This you shall do six days.  And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. But the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets.  It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him.” Then Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord.”  And he said to the people, “Proceed, and march around the city, and let him who is armed advance before the ark of the Lord.” So it was, when Joshua had spoken to the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the Lord advanced and blew the trumpets, and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them.  The armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard came after the ark, while the priests continued blowing the trumpets.  Now Joshua had commanded the people, saying, “You shall not shout or make any noise with your voice, nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I say to you, ‘Shout!’ Then you shall shout.”  So he had the ark of the Lord circle the city, going around it once. Then they came into the camp and lodged in the camp. And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord.  Then seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord went on continually and blew with the trumpets. And the armed men went before them. But the rear guard came after the ark of the Lord, while the priests continued blowing the trumpets.  And the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. So they did six days. But it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose early, about the dawning of the day, and marched around the city seven times in the same manner. On that day only they marched around the city seven times.  And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city!  Now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it. Only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.  And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it.  But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord; they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.” So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. And it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat. Then the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.  And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.

Trumpets are mentioned over and over again in this passage. The trumpet blasts signify the arrival of the rule of God and God’s people Israel over the city of Jericho and over the Promised land as a whole. The trumpets announce that the time of the corrupt and oppressive rule of the Canaanite rulers over the land had come to an end and that judgment and destruction had come upon their polities. Whether or not Israel understood the connection between trumpets and God’s rule as well as the importance of the trumpets as a means of communication to Israel as well as to everyone else who could hear those trumpets is irrelevant. To Israel, the trumpets were a sign of victory and of the establishment of their rule over the land, and to Israel’s enemies, the trumpets were a sign of judgment and impending destruction. And it should not be a surprise that the Feast of Trumpets carries the same double meaning depending on whether one is a citizen of the Kingdom of God or an enemy of that kingdom.

And again when we see trumpets referred to in the book of Judges, we similarly see them being used as symbols of the deliverance that was coming to Israel from the oppression they suffered and as means of communicating that the time of that deliverance had come. So it is we read about Ehud in Judges 3:26-28. Judges 3:26-28 reads: “But Ehud had escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the ^[a]stone images and escaped to Seirah.  And it happened, when he arrived, that he blew the trumpet in the mountains of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mountains; and ^[b]he led them.  Then he said to them, “Follow me, for the Lord has delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand.” So they went down after him, seized the fords of the Jordan leading to Moab, and did not allow anyone to cross over.” Similarly, we read of Gideon calling together the Israelites to fight against the Mideonites in Judges 6:33-35: “Then all the Midianites and Amalekites, the people of the East, gathered together; and they crossed over and encamped in the Valley of Jezreel.  But the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon; then he blew the trumpet, and the Abiezrites gathered behind him.  And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, who also gathered behind him. He also sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.”

Later on, when Gideon led Israel to battle against Mideon in Judges 7:15-23, the symbolism and the literal use of the trumpet coincide as a way of announcing God’s judgment of Mideon and His deliverance of Israel. Judges 7:15-23 reads: “And so it was, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise, for the Lord has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand.”  Then he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and torches inside the pitchers.  And he said to them, “Look at me and do likewise; watch, and when I come to the edge of the camp you shall do as I do:  When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then you also blow the trumpets on every side of the whole camp, and say, ‘The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!’ ” So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just as they had posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands.  Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers—they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing—and they cried, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!”  And every man stood in his place all around the camp; and the whole army ran and cried out and fled.  When the three hundred blew the trumpets, the Lord set every man’s sword against his companion throughout the whole camp; and the army fled to Beth Acacia, toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath. And the men of Israel gathered together from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh, and pursued the Midianites.”

These uses of the trumpets demonstrate what we have spoken of, that the trumpet was used to call Israel to war and to signal the deliverance of Israel from oppression. We see the trumpet being referred to numerous times in the books of 1 and 2 Samuel as well as 2 Kings to demonstrate troops being signaled that military combat is at hand by Saul, Joab, David, Absalom, Sheba, Jehu, and others. If you wish to do a word study of the word trumpet and examine these uses of the trumpet as being heavily involved in military combat during ancient Israel’s history, it is an interesting and rewarding study. For our present purposes, though, let us turn to a couple of examples of how the trumpet was not only used for military matters but also to signal important moments in the worship of God during ancient Israel’s history.

In 1 Chronicles 15:24-29, we see the mention of trumpets as a way of calling the people of Jerusalem to assemble to celebrate the bringing of the Ark of the Covenant into the city, repairing the shame that had been brought to Israel more than a century earlier during the time of Eli the priest when the Ark had been captured by the Philistines. This passage ends with an ominous reference to one who did not have the same spirit of celebration as everyone else. 1 Chronicles 15:24-29 reads: “Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer, the priests, were to blow the trumpets before the ark of God; and Obed-Edom and Jehiah, doorkeepers for the ark. So David, the elders of Israel, and the captains over thousands went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the house of Obed-Edom with joy.  And so it was, when God helped the Levites who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord, that they offered seven bulls and seven rams.  David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, as were all the Levites who bore the ark, the singers, and Chenaniah the music master with the singers. David also wore a linen ephod.  Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the horn, with trumpets and with cymbals, making music with stringed instruments and harps. And it happened, as the ark of the covenant of the Lord came to the City of David, that Michal, Saul’s daughter, looked through a window and saw King David whirling and playing music; and she despised him in her heart.”

In the next chapter, we see that trumpets were regularly blown during the time of David in obedience to God’s earlier commandment. 1 Chronicles 16:5-6 tells us this fact. 1 Chronicles 16:5-6 reads: “Asaph the chief, and next to him Zechariah, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, and Obed-Edom: Jeiel with stringed instruments and harps, but Asaph made music with cymbals;  Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests regularly blew the trumpets before the ark of the covenant of God.” If you drop down in this chapter to verses 37-43, we will see the regular worship that existed during the time of David and the role of the trumpets in this worship. 1 Chronicles 16:37-43 reads: “So he left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of the Lord to minister before the ark regularly, as every day’s work required; and Obed-Edom with his sixty-eight brethren, including Obed-Edom the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah, to be gatekeepers; and Zadok the priest and his brethren the priests, before the tabernacle of the Lord at the high place that was at Gibeon, to offer burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of burnt offering regularly morning and evening, and to do according to all that is written in the Law of the Lord which He commanded Israel; and with them Heman and Jeduthun and the rest who were chosen, who were designated by name, to give thanks to the Lord, because His mercy endures forever; and with them Heman and Jeduthun, to sound aloud with trumpets and cymbals and the musical instruments of God. Now the sons of Jeduthun were gatekeepers. Then all the people departed, every man to his house; and David returned to bless his house.”

So far we have seen that both the command to prepare for war as well as use the trumpet to call the people for religious assembly were both common in the Bible, and many more examples of this could be chosen. Trumpets, though, took on a symbolic meaning apart from these two purposes, though. In Job 39:19-25, as God is challenging Job about the forces involved in the created world, He says: ““Have you given the horse strength? Have you clothed his neck with thunder? Can you frighten him like a locust? His majestic snorting strikes terror. He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength; he gallops into the clash of arms. He mocks at fear, and is not frightened; nor does he turn back from the sword. The quiver rattles against him, the glittering spear and javelin. He devours the distance with fierceness and rage; nor does he come to a halt because the trumpet has sounded. At the blast of the trumpet he says, ‘Aha!’ He smells the battle from afar, the thunder of captains and shouting.” Here we see that God portrays this particular horse as being immune to terror simply because one sounds a trumpet. Instead, the call to battle is something that it relishes. One is reminded in all this, of course, of the fierce and bloodthirsty first two horsemen of the first and second seals in Revelation 6.

In Psalm 47:1-9, we see the trumpet being used as symbolic of the inauguration of God’s rule over humanity, in a way that is expressly millennial, not least because it comes as part of a millennial set of psalms written by the Sons of Korah between Psalms 42-49. I recommend these psalms as good reading material for this time of year as they provide a musical voice to the feelings before and at the very beginning of the millennium. At any rate, Psalm 47:1-9 itself reads, in its entirety: “Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph! For the Lord Most High is awesome;
He is a great King over all the earth. He will subdue the peoples under us, and the nations under our feet. He will choose our inheritance for us, the excellence of Jacob whom He loves. Selah God has gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet. sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises! For God is the King of all the earth; sing praises with understanding. God reigns over the nations; God sits on His holy throne. The princes of the people have gathered together, the people of the God of Abraham. For the shields of the earth belong to God; He is greatly exalted.”

Here we see that from the Hebrew scriptures themselves, even before the trumpets are explicitly associated with the return of Jesus Christ in Revelation, that a reader of the Bible who was sensitive to and aware of the symbolism of the Bible would recognize that trumpets itself was a symbol of the beginning of the rule of God. Historically speaking, we know from reading ancient Mesopotamian texts and also from closely studying the chronology of the books of 1 and 2 Kings that the regnal years of rulers both in the Bible and in heathen antiquity was related to a political year-end calendar that began in the fall at the start of the seventh lunar month, on the Day of Trumpets. This day symbolized, for many years in the ancient Middle East, the beginning of the rule of the king, when his first official year began, and every regnal year since then. It is interesting to see in all of this the counterfeit way that heathen and often very corrupt rulers seek to use that which is meant to honor God to honor themselves instead. It is also important for us to recognize that the Feast of Trumpets, with its symbolism of Jesus’ millennial rule, was already in the air thousands of years ago as being associated with rule and royal authority.

Let us now turn to the third and final part of this message and look at the way in which the themes of annunciation apply not only to the second coming of Jesus Christ at the seven trumpets in Revelation, but also with regards to the first coming of Jesus Christ. In the story of Luke 2:1-20, we have a story that sets the chronological timing as well as the theme of inauguration that we have seen fits the Feast of Trumpets. Luke 2:1-20 reads: “And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.  This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria.  So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child.  So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered.  And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.  Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.  For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.”  And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.  And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds.  But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.  Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.”

While it must be admitted that this passage does not mention the word trumpet or say that the angels announcing the birth of Christ and of the inauguration of His first coming to earth were blowing trumpets, we can see that the language of Psalm 47, with the commands to praise God and the gathering together of the family of David in Bethlehem at this time by the command of Caesar Augustus, is echoed here by the shouting of the angels as well as the praise of the shepherds who were gathered together to celebrate the birth of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords in a humble place as there was no room for them at the inn.

Let us reflect that whether we look at the Feast of Trumpets looking backwards from what we are told in Revelation about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ or whether we look at the Feast of Trumpets in reverse, from its beginnings in scripture as well as its symbolism and meaning, we end up in the same place. Trumpets call people together in assembly, inform the people of struggle and conflict, and announce the workings of God throughout human history in both the First and Second coming of Jesus Christ as well as other matters related to the religious and political well-being of God’s people and of the nations they are a part of. As both civil and religious authority are concentrated in God the Father and in Jesus Christ, it is little surprise that trumpets is symbolic of both religious and political matters. Let us therefore celebrate the coming Feast of Trumpets with a knowledge that God made the meaning of the day plain and had for a long time before Jesus’ coming, so that those who read the Bible shall be without excuse in seeing in the trumpets of scripture a picture of the announcement of God’s kingdom and God’s rule over mankind through His only begotten son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.