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Festival of TrumpetsAid to Bible Understanding
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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.
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Festival of Unfermented CakesAid to Bible Understanding
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FESTIVAL OF UNFERMENTED CAKES
This festival began Nisan 15, the day after Passover, and continued for seven days through Nisan 21. Its name is derived from the unfermented cakes (Heb., mats·tsahʹ), the only bread allowed during the seven days of the festival. Unleavened bread is kneaded with water but without yeast. It has to be hurriedly prepared if fermentation is to be prevented.
The first day of the festival of unfermented cakes was a solemn assembly or sabbath. On the second day, Nisan 16, a sheaf of the firstfruits of the barley harvest, the first crop to ripen in Palestine, was brought to the priest. Prior to this festival no new grain or bread or roasted grain from the new harvest could be eaten. The priest offered such firstfruits to Jehovah symbolically by waving a sheaf of the grain to and fro, while a sound ram in its first year was offered as a burnt offering along with a grain offering moistened with oil and a drink offering. (Lev. 23:6-14) There was no command to burn any of the grain or its flour on the altar, as practiced later by the priests. Not only was there a public or national firstfruit offering, but provision was also made for each family and every individual who had a possession in Israel to offer thanksgiving sacrifices during this festive occasion.—Ex. 23:19; Deut. 26:1, 2.
SIGNIFICANCE
The eating of unfermented cakes at this time was in harmony with the instructions Moses received from Jehovah, as recorded at Exodus 12:14-20, which includes the strict injunction, at verse 19: “Seven days no sour dough is to be found in your houses.” In Deuteronomy 16:3 the unfermented cakes are called the “bread of affliction,” and they were a yearly reminder to the Jews of their hurried departure from the land of Egypt (when they did not have time to leaven their dough [Ex. 12:34]). They thus recalled the state of affliction and bondage from which Israel had been delivered, even as Jehovah himself said, “that you may remember the day of your coming out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life.” The realization of their present freedom as a nation and their acknowledgment of Jehovah as their Deliverer set a fitting background for the first of the three great annual festivals of the Israelites.—Deut. 16:16.
PREEXILIC OBSERVANCES
There are only three accounts recorded in the Scriptures of the keeping of the Festival of Unfermented Cakes following the Israelites’ entry into the Promised Land and prior to their Babylonian captivity. But the mention of no other observances should not be taken to mean that such were not held. Rather, in the first account, there is a general reference to all the festivals and Solomon’s arrangements to observe them.—2 Chron. 8:12, 13.
In the other two instances the circumstances are outstanding. One is the revival of the observance of the Festival of Unfermented Cakes, after a time of neglect. This revival was during the first year of faithful King Hezekiah’s reign. Interestingly, in this case there was not enough time to prepare for the annual festival on Nisan 15, because the work of cleaning and repairing the temple took until Nisan 16. So, advantage was taken of the Law to celebrate it during the second month. (2 Chron. 29:17; 30:13, 21, 22; Num. 9:10, 11) It was such a joyous occasion and resulted in such a religious revival that the celebration of seven days proved to be just too short, and so another seven days were set aside. (2 Chron. 30:23) King Hezekiah and his princes contributed generously, giving 2,000 bulls and 17,000 sheep to supply food for the multitudes attending.
The festival observance was the start of a great campaign against false religion, in many cities this being carried out before the worshipers returned to their homes. (2 Chron. 30:24; 31:1) The keeping of this Festival of Unfermented Cakes brought about Jehovah’s blessing and freedom from demon worship, and is a fine example of the beneficial effects that the keeping of these festivals had upon the Israelites.
The last recorded account of preexilic observance of the Festival of Unfermented Cakes was its celebration during the reign of King Josiah when he made a courageous effort to restore the pure worship of Jehovah in Judah.—2 Chron. 35:1-19.
Although these are the only observances specifically mentioned, prior to the kings, the faithful judges and priests of Israel were doubtless concerned with keeping the festivals. Later, both David and Solomon made extensive arrangements to keep the priesthood functioning properly, and other faithful kings of Judah must have seen to it that the festivals were regularly observed. Also, the Festival of Unfermented Cakes was kept quite regularly in postexilic times.
POSTEXILIC OBSERVANCE
Following the Jews’ release from Babylon and their return to Palestine, the temple at Jerusalem was rebuilt and completed under the vigorous encouragement given by Jehovah’s prophets Haggai and Zechariah. (Ezra 5:1, 2) In 515 B.C.E. the rebuilt house of Jehovah was inaugurated with great joy and with all the appropriate sacrifices attending the Festival of Unfermented Cakes. The record at Ezra 6:22 states: “And they went on to hold the festival of unfermented cakes seven days with rejoicing.”
The book of Malachi shows that, in time, notwithstanding the zealous start toward restoration of true worship by the exiles returned from Babylon, the priests became careless, proud and self-righteous. The temple service became a mockery, even though the festivals were kept in a formalistic way. (Mal. 1:6-8, 12-14; 2:1-3; 3:8-10) Jesus found the scribes and Pharisees scrupulously keeping the details of the Law, besides their added traditions. They zealously observed the festivals, including the Festival of Unfermented Cakes, but Jesus condemned them, for, because of their hypocrisy, they had lost sight of the real significance of these fine arrangements of Jehovah for their blessing.—Matt. 15:1-9; 23:23, 24; Luke 19:45, 46.
PROPHETIC SIGNIFICANCE
Jesus Christ gave the interpretation as to the symbolic significance of ferment or leaven, as recorded
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