FESTIVAL OF TRUMPETS
This festival occurred on the first day (or the new moon) of the seventh month, Ethanim (Tishri). It was the beginning of the secular year for the Jews. It stood apart from the Festival of the New Moon in the other eleven months as being more important. The command states additionally concerning the Festival of Trumpets that it should be set aside as a day of holy convention, on which no sort of laborious work was to be done.
The festival receives its name from the command: “There should occur for you a complete rest, a memorial by the trumpet blast.” “It should prove to be a day of the trumpet blast for you.” On this day the sacrifices of one young bull, one ram, seven sound male lambs a year old, together with a grain offering of fine flour moistened with oil and one male kid of the goats as a sin offering, were presented. This was in addition to the constant daily offerings as well as the sacrifices that were specially given on new-moon days.—Lev. 23:24; Num. 29:1-6.
At Leviticus 23:24, where a specific command is given to blow the trumpet on the new moon of the seventh month, “trumpet” is from the Hebrew word hhatsoh·tserahʹ. This designates a straight trumpet, a cornet, in contrast with the shoh·pharʹ trumpet, which was made from an animal’s horn. It appears that shoh·pharʹ trumpets were also blown at this time as well as on the other new moons, as indicated by Psalm 81:3. Tradition also holds that both kinds were used in the Festival of Trumpets.
This festival, of course, would be an important one, not only because the month it initiated saw the beginning of a new agricultural and labor year, but also because the Day of Atonement fell on the tenth day of this month and the Festival of Booths began on the fifteenth. The completion of ingathering of the crops of the outgoing year would take place in this month. The crops gathered during this month would include grapes for wine, which makes the heart of man rejoice, and olives, which, among other things, supplied food and oil for light and for use in connection with many of the grain offerings. (Ps. 104:15) Truly this festival marked the start of a month for thankfulness to Jehovah.