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Happy Yom Teruah/Day of Trumpets!
Issue #22 | September 24th, 2025 | Zach Demoff
Zach Demoff
September 24, 2025
Greetings, my friend,
Welcome to The Arsenal Newsletter, your bi-monthly resource for training and equipping you to live a set apart lifestyle.
🐏 Chag Sameach! Day of Trumpets is here!
Shalom to everyone observing today! The fall Feasts are officially upon us, and this season is a deeply spiritual time to meet with and worship our Heavenly Father, study Scripture, and celebrate with other believers. It’s also a time to deeply reflect on our actions over the past year and seek repentance through our Messiah in preparation of the prophesied events of His return to earth and the final judgement of mankind to come in this season one day.
🤔…what is this day for exactly?
Yom Teruah, directly translated from Hebrew as “Day of Trumpets” or “Day of Blowing",” is one of the seven appointed times Yahweh commanded His people Israel through the giving His Torah at Mount Sinai through Moses to observe every single year. All of these appointed times can be found in chapter 23 of the Book of Leviticus, and some of them are mentioned in several other places as well. Here’s a comprehensive list with Scriptures for reference:
• Passover - Exo. 12:6-14, Lev. 23:5
• Feast of Unleavened Bread - Exo. 12:15-20, Lev. 23:6-8
• First Fruits - Lev. 23:9-14
• Pentecost/Shavuot - Lev. 23:15-22
• YOU ARE HERE 👉 Day of Trumpets/Yom Teruah - Lev. 23:23-25
• Day of Atonement/Yom Kippur - Lev. 23:26-32
• Feast of Tabernacles/Sukkot - Lev. 23:33-44
So, how is Yom Teruah observed and celebrated per Yahweh’s commands in Scripture?
It’s observed on the first day of the seventh month on the Hebrew calendar, known as Tishrei in modern day.
Like most of the appointed times, Yom Teruah is a Sabbath, meaning no regular/everyday work is done. Your servants and animals also get a day off too.
We’re to have a holy convocation, which means devoting that entire day to The Father in every aspect. Consequently, this often involves a lot of prayer and worship, often done corporately with other believers as well.
We’re to blow the shofar as a memorial (explained later)
An offering made by fire was to be sacrificed to Yahweh that day by the Levite priests
Additionally, the Jewish people have several notable traditions associated with the holiday:
Yom Teruah is also known by Jews as Rosh Hashanah, which means “head of the year." It marks the beginning of a civil new year in the state of Israel.
On this day, apples dipped in honey are eaten, which symbolizes a “sweet new year.”
Religious Jews also observe Yom Teruah as the anniversary of Creation.
Yom Teruah begins a period known as the “10 Days of Awe", a time of deep introspection, reflection, and repentance in preparation for Yom Kippur, which is 10 days after Yom Teruah.
Lastly, a ceremony known as a “tashlikh ceremony” is performed, in which breadcrumbs or stones are thrown into a body of water to symbolically cast off their sins in preparation for Yom Kippur. This custom is based on the Scriptural account of Israel symbolically placing their sins on a scapegoat during Yom Kippur during the time the Levitical priesthood was able to be active.
🤷♂️ But I’m not Jewish, and I believe in Christ as my Savior. What do these appointed times have to do with me?
Great question. And believe it or not, they have everything to do with us followers of Messiah, actually! Here are some key points to consider:
✝️ In His famous Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 5, Yeshua explicitly told us He didn’t come to do away with the Torah: He doesn’t even want us to think He did! But rather, He came to fulfill it, complete it, and bring it to full meaning.
“Do not think that I came to abolish the Torah or the Prophets! I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. Amen, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or serif shall ever pass away from the Torah until all things come to pass. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever keeps and teaches them, this one shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Pharisees and Torah scholars, you shall never enter the kingdom of heaven!”
🇮🇱 The Bible states that as believers in the Messiah, we have been grafted into the commonwealth of Israel! That means that the commandments, prophecies, and promises made to Israel are for us too! We of the nations have been grafted into Yahweh’s chosen people through the renewed covenant He made with us through His Son Yeshua. The Apostle Paul explains all of this in his epistles to the Roman and Ephesian churches:
“But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Insofar as I am an emissary to the Gentiles, I spotlight my ministry if somehow I might provoke to jealousy my own flesh and blood and save some of them. For if their rejection leads to the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? If the firstfruit is holy, so is the whole batch of dough; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. But if some of the branches were broken off and you—being a wild olive—were grafted in among them and became a partaker of the root of the olive tree with its richness, do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, it is not you who support the root but the root supports you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” True enough. They were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but fear— for if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will He spare you. Notice then the kindness and severity of God: severity toward those who fell; but God’s kindness toward you, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you too will be cut off! And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in; for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut out of that which by nature is a wild olive tree, and grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree? For I do not want you, brothers and sisters, to be ignorant of this mystery—lest you be wise in your own eyes—that a partial hardening has come upon Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, ‘The Deliverer shall come out of Zion. He shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. And this is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.’”
“Therefore, keep in mind that once you—Gentiles in the flesh—were called ‘uncircumcision’ by those called ‘circumcision’ (which is performed on flesh by hand). At that time you were separate from Messiah, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Messiah Yeshua , you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah. For He is our shalom , the One who made the two into one and broke down the middle wall of separation. Within His flesh He made powerless the hostility— the law code of mitzvot contained in regulations. He did this in order to create within Himself one new man from the two groups, making shalom , and to reconcile both to God in one body through the cross—by which He put the hostility to death. And He came and proclaimed shalom to you who were far away and shalom to those who were near— for through Him we both have access to the Father by the same Ruach . So then you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but you are fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household. You have been built on the foundation made up of the emissaries and prophets, with Messiah Yeshua Himself being the cornerstone. In Him the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple for the Lord. In Him, you also are being built together into God’s dwelling place in the Ruach.”
📩 In the Apostle John’s first epistle to an assembly of believers living in modern-day Turkey, he told them how we prove we love the Messiah is that we’ll keep His commandments. Yeshua Himself also said this (John 14:15). And because we know Yeshua told us He only speaks what The Father taught Him (John 8:28), and because we know Yahweh doesn’t change (Malachi 3:6), it’s very safe to assume that “the commandments” being spoken of are Yahweh’s commandments found in the Torah!
“Now we know that we have come to know Him by this—if we keep His commandments. The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God is truly made perfect. We know that we are in Him by this— whoever claims to abide in Him must walk just as He walked. Loved ones, I am not writing a new commandment for you, but an old commandment—one you had from the beginning. This old commandment is the word you have heard.”
And as a final nail in the coffin, John makes a very important distinction, also in his first epistle: We believe that the Messiah atones for our sin. But what exactly is sin according to the Bible? Turns out, it’s breaking the Law, the commandments in the Torah! Some English translations say lawlessness, others refer to it as transgression of the Law. But the meaning is the same: if we want to be obedient followers of Yeshua, truly learn to be like Him and know Him on a deeper level, and not to unintentionally sin against Him, it’s in our best interest to know and keep the same commandments He kept, and the ones that lead us away from what the New Testament calls sin! NOT for salvation, as that comes through faith alone, but because of our immense love for Him and our calling to walk just as He walked.
“Everyone practicing sin also practices lawlessness—indeed, sin is lawlessness. You know that Yeshua appeared in order to take away sins, and in Him there is no sin. No one who abides in Him keeps on sinning; no one who sins has seen Him or known Him.”
🌾 So what’s the significance of this Day for Christians today?
Believe it or not, all of the Biblical festivals/appointed times have a very strong Messianic significance to them! By closer examination at Scripture, we can see how Yeshua’s sacrifice and atonement for our sins, as well as His prophesied return and rule on this earth, adds another level of meaning to these Feast Days in addition to their historic significance!
Below is how Yeshua fulfilled the spring Feast Days through His first coming to this Earth:
• Passover - Yeshua died on Passover, and at the exact time the Passover Lamb for the Torah’s required sacrifice was being slain at the Temple in Jerusalem, which we know from historical records was the ninth hour (Matt. 27:45-50). Yeshua is known as our Passover Lamb according to the Apostle Paul, the ultimate sacrifice. The key here is that Passover is a memorial of the Israelites’ freedom from slavery in Egypt. In the same way, by becoming the Passover sacrifice, Yeshua has freed us from the slavery of sin and condemnation to eternal punishment through faith in His mighty power to save us and subsequent repentance.
• Feast of Unleavened Bread: Leaven represents sin in the Bible (1 Cor. 5:6-8). During the Feast, no leaven bread is to be eaten or even found in your home. This Feast is tied to Passover, and immediately following His death on Passover, Yeshua cleansed us from our sins, removing the spiritual leaven from us, as we do from our houses before the Feast. He was the sinless One, and when He took communion with His disciples, He symbolically used unleavened bread, which contains no leaven, representing His perfection.
• First Fruits: Per the biblical accounts of the time of Yeshua’s death and resurrection, and the sign of the prophet Jonah that states He was to be dead for three days and three nights, many believe Yeshua rose from the dead on First Fruits that year. This is significant because just as the Israelites gave their first portions of their harvest to the high priest as an offering, Yeshua, being the first to rise from the dead, was the first fruits of the resurrection of the “harvest” of souls in the resurrection that will be brought to the ultimate High Priest: Yeshua (Heb. 4:14-16) when we meet Him in the air upon His glorious return to Earth (1 Thess. 4:16-17).
• Pentecost/Shavuot: In the Book of Acts chapter 2, we read that the Holy Spirit, which was prophesied to be poured out on Yahweh’s people in the last days, finally descended upon humanity on Shavuot that year (Acts 2:1-4). Historically, many believe Shavuot was the day the Torah was given on Mount Sinai to all of Israel. On the same day, the Spirit was poured out and is given to all believers in the Messiah, who are grafted into Israel as explained earlier. This also fulfills Yeshua’s words, who said that people will worship Him in spirit AND in truth (John 4:23-24), where “truth” is defined as the Word, or the Torah (Psalm 119:160, John 17:17).
This is a perfect example of how Yeshua fulfills the Law: He doesn’t get rid of what was already put in place: He brings life and a fresh, beautiful meaning to the standard of holiness Yahweh has set in place for all who love Him and wish to know Him!
The fall Feast Days, however, have yet to be fulfilled in Messiah. But they’ll be fulfilled in His second coming, starting with Yom Teruah! While we don’t know the exact day or the hour, many believe that Yeshua’s return will take place on Yom Teruah, thus giving it a new meaning and important significance to Christians, who are eagerly awaiting the return of the King of Kings. This is because Yeshua’s return will be signified with the blast of Yahweh’s shofar (1 Cor. 15:51-52, 1 Thess. 4:16). And one of the main commandments we have for Yom Teruah is to blow a shofar as a memorial.
What are we memorializing exactly? The Torah doesn’t say, but now, because of the prophecies of the Messiah’s return, it’s my belief we’re memorializing the promise of His future coming by blowing a shofar. Just like how a loud shofar blast will announce the return of our Lord and Savior to all the earth.
🙌 So, how should we observe this day?
Yom Teruah is a day many who worship in spirit and truth around the world gather together for corporate worship, prayer, teaching, and fellowship. Many of these similar activities also occur every weekly Sabbath, and it’s often a wonderful time of catching up with one another, studying Scripture, playing games (maybe even some shofar-blowing contests!), eating traditional foods, and celebrating together in this wonderful time of the year. And it’s a great time all around!
But while all of this is fantastic and are activities I thoroughly enjoy, I want to remind you of something. These aren’t just holidays we celebrate every year and ones we make all about hanging out with other people, like Independence Day or Labor Day: While that aspect is important and great, these are Yahweh’s appointed times! And they’re titled that for a reason. Our Heavenly Father wishes to be among His people and have fellowship with them, just as we have it with each other. And He’s set apart these times for us to remember the incredible things He’s already done, and to look forward to the incredible things that are yet to come!
Therefore, I believe it’s just as important we make it a priority to have a one-on-one date with Yeshua during the Feast Days. And because of Yom Teruah’s great significance as a shadow of the Messiah’s imminent return, I believe we ought to spend some time alone with our First Love and prepare ourselves to be His spotless bride one day!
For me, my biggest priorities on this day (and all of the appointed times) are deep reflection and meditation on where I can improve on my flaws, spending some personal worship time in His presence, and studying His character as stated in His Word. Yahweh commanded us that we shall love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deut. 6:5), and Yeshua said anyone who loves his father, mother, or children more than Him is not worthy of Him (Matt. 10:37). Because of these things, we should make it our priority to put Him first and give Him the glory, honor, and respect He is so worthy of after the ultimate sacrifice He made for us. And after that, let’s make some noise with our praise and shofar blasts and have a wonderful time with our brothers and sisters in the faith!
If you’re observing today, it’s my prayer that you have a powerful encounter with our King, and that you walk away from today feeling refreshed, encouraged, and ready to do whatever it takes to serve our Creator in powerful ways and be ready for the return of our Savior!
Be blessed.
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