TRUMPET, shofar (shoh-fahr): Strong’s#7782: A trumpet made from a curved animal horn; a cornet. The shofar is mentioned 72 times, first in Exodus 19:16, 19, and 20:18, where a trumpet sounded at Mt. Sinai, heralding the Lord’s descent and the giving of the Law. In the account of the fall of Jericho in Joshua 6:1-20, shofar appears 14 times. In Ezekiel 33:2-9, the sound of a trumpet (which warns a city of danger) is compared to the prophet’s voice. The shofar was sounded not only as a call to arms but also to herald the Day of Atonement, the Year of Jubilee, and events such as the return of the ark. To sound the ram’s horn came from the root word “teruwah” in Hebrew which means clangor of trumpets, acclamation of joy, clamor, rejoicing , high joyful sound, loud noise, wild shout, a battle cry, to announce forcefully or loudly. “Uwah” means to split the ears with sound. The ram’s horn represents the ram caught in the thicket, when Abraham was about to sacrifice Isaac. Likewise, it represents God’s humble substitute for us, Jesus Christ. SOUNDING THE SHOFAR The shofar is one of the earliest musical instruments known to humanity. It was developed by the early Hebrews and is made from the horn of an animal, usually a ram but sometimes of a sheep, goat, mountain goat, antelope, or gazelle (not of a cow because of the golden calf incident). The shofar is blown on many different occasions: on the Jubilee Year, on Rosh Hashana (New Years), also called Yom Teru’ah (the day of blowing,), in religious rites, or as a call to war. There are traditional Jewish shofar calls, but don’t be limited by that, be sensitive to the Holy Spirit how He might direct it blown. THE SHOFAR CALLS *the Tekiah: the “blast”, one long blast with a clear tone. (Long blast on Yom Kippur, Day of Atonement, also the coming of the King) *the Shevarim: a “broken,” sighing sound of three short calls. *the Teruah: the “alarm,” a rapid series of nine or more very short notes. ( plea to mercy, “crying”) *the Tekiah Gedolah: “the great Tekiah,” a single unbroken blast, held as long as possible. * a combination of Tekiah, Shevarim, Teruah, ending with a Tekiah Gedolah. In fact there is not certainty on what a teruah sound really is. It could be a shevarim, a teruah, or a combination of both.
SCRIPTURAL USES Exodus 19:16-19 - Blown to herald the Lord’s descent and the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai “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.17) And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.18) 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.19) And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice.” Exodus 20:18-20, “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.19) Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.”20) And Moses said to the people, “Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.” Blown to assemble congregation or leaders; to advance the camp; when going to war; appointed feasts Numbers 10:1-10 - “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2) “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. 3) “When they blow both of them, all the congregation shall gather before you at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 4) “But if they blow only one, then the leaders, the heads of the divisions of Israel, shall gather to you. 5) “When you sound the advance, the camps that lie on the east side shall then begin their journey. 6) “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. 7) “And when the assembly is to be gathered together, you shall blow, but not sound the advance. 8) “The sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets; and these shall be to you as an ordinance forever throughout your generations. 9) “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.10) “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.” This scripture in Numbers refers to silver trumpets. [Strong's number: 2689 Hebrew: chatsotsrah Pronunciation: khats-o-tser-aw' by reduplication from 2690; a trumpet (from its sundered or quavering note): -trumpet(-er).] However, it is important to note that you will find that for each occasion of blowing the silver trumpets, you can find related scriptures in other passages that use the Hebrew word shofar. For example in Numbers 10:10, it says to blow the trumpet on feasts days and beginning of the months. In the following scripture in Leviticus 25, the word trumpet is shofar; to sound it on Jubilee. In Psalm 81:3, “Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day.” Again this word is shofar in the Hebrew. Blown to herald the Day of Atonement; to announce the Year of Jubilee Leviticus 25:9-10 - ‘Then you shall cause the trumpet of the Jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement you shall make the trumpet to sound throughout all your land.10) ‘And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee for you; and each of you shall return to his possession, and each of you shall return to his family.”
Blown continually by
seven priests before the Ark, as part of strategic warfare
Blown by Gideon to rally
troops and by 300 in battle
(Confusion to enemy) Blown to usher in the ark of the Lord (His Presence) as David danced 2 Samuel 6:12-15 - “Now it was told King David, saying, “The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-Edom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God.” So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with gladness.13) And so it was, when those bearing the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, that he sacrificed oxen and fatted sheep.14) Then David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod.15) So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet.” 1 Chronicles 15:28 - “Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with shouting, and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and harps.” (cornet is shofar and trumpets are the silver trumpets in this passage.) Blown to announce God’s presence and to praise and worship Him Psalm 98:6 - “With trumpets and the sound of a horn; Shout joyfully before the Lord, the King.” (In this scripture, trumpets are mostly likely silver trumpets and horn (cornet) is the word shofar.) Psalm150:3 - “Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp!” Psalm 47:5 - “God has gone up with a shout, The Lord with the sound of a trumpet.” Isaiah 27:13 - “So it shall be in that day: 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.” Revelation1:10 - “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet,”
Blown to call people to
repentance; to call assembly together for repentance and fasting Hosea 8:1 - “Set the trumpet to your mouth! 1) He shall come like an eagle against the house of the Lord, because they have transgressed My covenant And rebelled against My law.” Joel 2:1, 15 - “Blow the trumpet in Zion, 1) 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: 15) Blow the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly;”
Blown to sound the alarm
of war Jeremiah 6:1, 17; 51:27 - “O you children of Benjamin, 1) gather yourselves to flee from the midst of Jerusalem! Blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and set up a signal-fire in Beth Haccerem; for disaster appears out of the north, and great destruction.17) Also, I set watchmen over you, saying, ‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’ But they said, ‘We will not listen.’” 27) “Set up a banner in the land, ** Blow the trumpet among the nations! Prepare the nations against her, call the kingdoms together against her: Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Appoint a general against her; cause the horses to come up like the bristling locusts.”
Blown to sound the
warning of danger
3:6 - “If a trumpet is blown in a city, will not the people be afraid? If there is calamity in a city, will not the Lord have done it?” Zephaniah 1:16 - “A day of trumpet and alarm against the fortified cities and against the high towers.” Hosea 5:8 - “Blow the ram’s horn in Gibeah, The trumpet in Ramah! Cry aloud at Beth Aven, ‘Look behind you, O Benjamin!’ Sound of the trumpet compared to a prophet’s voice Ezekiel 33:2-9 - “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, 3) ‘when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, 4) ‘then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. 5) ‘He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life. 6) ‘But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.’ 7) “So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me. 8) “When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you shall surely die!’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. 9) “Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.” Blown by the Lord Zechariah 9:14 - “Then the Lord will be seen over them, and His arrow will go forth like lightning. The Lord God will blow the trumpet, and go with whirlwinds from the south.”
Blown to release angels
Blown by the angels 10:7 - But in the days of the sounding of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, the mystery of God would be finished, as He declared to His servants the prophets. 11:15 - 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!”
Blown at His coming
I
Thessalonians 4:16 - “For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a
rousing cry, with a call from one of the ruling angels, and with God’s
shofar; those who died united with the Messiah will be the first to
rise;” (Complete Jewish Bible)
Blown to rally or summon troops
Anointing of kings
Dedication of Solomon’s temple
Appointed by David before the
Ark
Other references to: War -
Job 39:24, 25; Ezekiel 7:14; Amos 2:2, 3:6;
Job
39:19-25 (war reference)
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