1. The Shofar gives forth “Groans too deep for words”
2. Hearing the Shofar at the Crossroads of Human History
3. There will be a Second Chance
4. The Sound of Rejoicing
5. The Two Witnesses
6. Moses, the first Baal Tokea
7. The second Baal Tokea
8. The Two “Horns” of the Ram

The Shofar gives forth “Groans too deep for words:”

:יֹום תְּרוּעָה יִהְיֶה לָכֶֽם

“Yom Teruah yihiyeh lachem.” It shall be a day of Teruah to you.

In Numbers 29:1the word teruah (תְּרוּעָה) from the root ruah (רוּעַ) literally means “to shout.” As already stated, the teruah is to be made in a series of broken sounds (יָבַב-yabev); literally “to groan,” to “cry out” in a lament. The three broken sounds which comprise the teruah (Shofar blasts) are to be similar to groans.

Teruah #1.  A person groans when he is undergoing great physical exertion and distress or is experiencing great emotional extremes in his physical or spiritual being.

Teruah #2.  Momentous peaks and valleys are experienced in a person’s life both during times of great joy and happiness and at perilous times of great distress.

Teruah #3.  The best illustration of these alternating moments of both *anguish and joyousness is best illustrated in the anguish and the joy that a mother experiences in the birthing of her new born infant (i.e. the sounds of the pain and anguish of labor that leads to great joy).

Final prolonged painful effort: The ultimate groan of anguish occurs when a mother gives forth that final prolonged painful effort that brings forth the joy of “new life” into the world. This is not the short increasing sounds of labor.

Long Sound of bringing the infant into the world: This is the long sound of prolonged effort that immediately precedes an infant being born into the world. This final sound of childbirth is the sound of the Tekiah Gedolah  (תרועה גדולה). Of this final prolonged sound the Messiah has said:

הָאִשָּׁה הַיּוֹלֶדֶת שְׁרוּיָה בְּעֶצֶב, כִּי הִגִּיעָה שְׁעָתָהּ. אֲבָל לְאַחַר שֶׁיָּלְדָה אֶת הַיֶּלֶד אֵין הִיא זוֹכֶרֶת עוֹד אֶת הַסֵּבֶל, בְּשֶׁל הַשִֹמְחָה כִּי נוֹלַד אָדָם לָעוֹלָם.פ

The Tekiah Gedolah: “Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy (הַשִּׂמְחָה) that a child has been born into the world.”

Hearing the Shofar at the Crossroads of Human History:

Hope or Fear: At Yom Teruah and Rosh Hashanah a person’s thoughts are oriented toward a hopeful perspective or one of fear. In the fall most of AmIsrael do not know if they will be judged favorably or not until it has been determined whether their name will remain in the Book of Life or if it has been blotted out. It is at this crossroad between hope and fear that each person must hear, understand and obey the most important directive of the Shofar blasts:

“It shall be a day of teruah to you.”

Faith or Unbelief: Festive or Jewish tradition points out that the duration of the sound should reflect the great distinction between the festive mood of Rosh Hashanah (Tishri 1-2) and the somber days of Yamim Noraim (Tishri 3-10). A person’s status with the Shofet haChayim v’hametim (Judge of the Living and the dead) at the time of the final Shofar blast at Rosh Hashanah will determine whether one who is still living has chosen the path of hope, securing the promise of eternal life or fear; our testing God and God further testing us because of our unbelief.

There will be a Second Chance:

Not a Dead End: Yom Teruah and Rosh Hashanah are not decreed to be a time of dead ends or lost causes for even the unbelieving. This is so because in God’s mercy during these days even if one fails to heed “the call” of the Shofar at Rosh Hashanah–the optimal time to believe, repent, pray, and obey Adonai–there still is a second (prolonged) chance to heed the call of the Shofar of God before Yom Kippur ends.

Delay of the “Locking” and “Closing” Ceremony: There will be judgment at the return of Messiah on Yom Kippur. However, the end of human history will not come at that time. For Messiah will suspend the completion of the Yom Kippur closing (Ne’ilah) ceremony and the sealing of the books for one thousand years. Then will the end come.

This will make the Final Yom Kippur of Messiah’s return a Yom Kippurim.

Final Yom Kippurim: On Yom Kippur the Messiah ben David will return to earth from heaven and in a single day put down the rebellion of humankind against Adonai. He will save all Israel. Then He will put the rest of the Yom Kippur ceremony on pause.

The Golden Age of Israel: This means that during the Golden age of Israel the Messiah will not allow any further observance of Yom Kippur to occur for one thousand years (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12). Then after that length of time he will allow the rest of the closing of the heavenly gates ceremony of Yom Kippur to continue on to the final closing and sealing ceremony.

Bookends to the Final Chapter of Human History: The one (final) Yom Kippur of all human history is split into two parts—-like bookends. Part I of this split Yom Kippur begins and ends in a single day when Messiah returns to Israel a second time. Afterwards, in the joyous time of the messianic kingdom, there is a pause of this solemn observance of the Ne’ilah service for a thousand years. Part II is then allowed to occur when all of the observances of Yom Kippur (as a whole) are brought to a final close; which like its part I counterpart of a thousand years before also happens in a single day.

In Torah Yom Kippur is always in the Plural: The Torah bears witness to this: In each and every observance the Torah always views each Yom Kippur day from the vantage point of its relationship to the final and permanent Yom Kippur. For this reason the Torah never refers to any observance of Yom Kippur in the singular (יום כיפור). The Torah always refers to this day in the plural as—-Yom Kippurim (יום כיפורים).

What this Means: This means the closing (נעילה-Ne’ilah) of the gates and final sealing of all humanity will not take place until the end of the messianic millennium. On that last day the completion of all mortal human history will come to an end. For the gates will be locked and the names of all of the people of human history will be sealed. For it is written:

כִּי אֶלֶף שָׁנִים בְּֽעֵינֶיךָ כְּיֹום אֶתְמֹול כִּי יַעֲבֹר וְאַשְׁמוּרָה בַלָּֽיְלָה׃

For a thousand years in Your sight are like yesterday when it passes by, or as a watch in the night.

אַךְ אַל יֵעָלֵם מִכֶּם הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה, אֲהוּבַי: יוֹם אֶחָד כְּאֶלֶף שָׁנִים בְּעֵינֵי ה’, וְאֶלֶף שָׁנִים כְּיוֹם אֶחָד.פ

But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with Adonai one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.

The Sound of Rejoicing:

In the Day of Your Gladness: The Shofar is blown with the simple blast and with broken blasts, followed once again with the simple blast of a Tekiah. This shows that even when the broken blasts are sounded, they are preceded by a solid sound of Tekiah, a sound made at a time of “rejoicing” (simcha-שִׂמְחָה, Numbers 10:10).

“בְיֹום שִׂמְחַתְכֶם”

“In the day of your gladness (v’yom simchatekem)”

From Sorrow to Great Joy! This indicates that Avinu Shebashamayim (our heavenly Father) has given us all the ability to change our spiritual circumstances from one of “sorrowful judgment” to one of great joy.

The Two Witnesses:

Moses and Elijah: There are two witnesses who constantly sound forth the two horns of the testimony of Messiah. the Two Witnesses who blow the Shofar that accomplishes the D’var HaShem are Moses and Elijah. Throughout the Tanakh and Brit HaChadashah these two witnesses trumpet forth the Word of God without ceasing. This is so that we might hear, understand, and obey the voice of our Father Adonai.

Moses, the first Baal Tokea:

Be Delivered from sin: The Shout of Moses: Be delivered from sin by believing in the Messiah our Deliverer who has atoned for our sins.

Sound #1.  Moses foreshadows: our “death to sin” through our faith in the sacrifice of our Messiah, the Go’el Yisrael (the Redeemer of Israel).
Sound #2.  Moses was willing to sacrifice his life so that our people would not be accursed.
Sound #3.  Moses trumpets forth the witness of Messiah’s power to atone for and cleanse us of all of our sins.

The Man of Sorrows has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us, for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.” Isaiah poignantly describes the omniscient empathy and compassion of the Suffering Servant when he prophecies:

נִבְזֶה וַחֲדַל אִישִׁים אִישׁ מַכְאֹבֹות וִידוּעַ חֹלִי וּכְמַסְתֵּר פָּנִים מִמֶּנּוּ נִבְזֶה וְלֹא חֲשַׁבְנֻֽהוּ׃ אָכֵן חֳלָיֵנוּ הוּא נָשָׂא וּמַכְאֹבֵינוּ סְבָלָם וַאֲנַחְנוּ חֲשַׁבְנֻהוּ נָגוּעַ מֻכֵּה אֱלֹהִים וּמְעֻנֶּֽה׃ וְהוּא מְחֹלָל מִפְּשָׁעֵנוּ מְדֻכָּא מֵעֲוֹנֹתֵינוּ מוּסַר שְׁלֹומֵנוּ עָלָיו וּבַחֲבֻרָתֹו נִרְפָּא־לָֽנוּ׃ כֻּלָּנוּ כַּצֹּאן תָּעִינוּ אִישׁ לְדַרְכֹּו פָּנִינוּ וַֽ ה’ הִפְגִּיעַ בֹּו אֵת עֲוֹן כֻּלָּֽנוּ׃

Ish Makhovot: “He was despised and rejected by men, a Man of Sorrows (אִישׁ מַכְאֹבֹות) and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces, he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement that brought us peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and Adonai has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

The second Baal Tokea:

Be made righteous forever: The Shout of Elijah: Be made righteous forever by believing in the besorah of the Messiah Ben David, Melekh HaGoyim, the King of the Nations who sits now above the heavens at the right hand of the Majesty; who will soon return to earth to restore Israel and establish the rule of God’s Rule over all the earth.

Sound #1.  Elijah foreshadows: our “resurrection” and “ascension” to become the righteousness of God our Father through our faith in the M’shiach, Hatekumah v’ HaChayim, the “Resurrection and the Life.”
Sound #2.  Elijah was taken up, ascended alive into heaven; as was our Messiah; as we soon shall be.
Sound #3.  Elijah trumpets forth the Messiah’s power and authority to give to us the gift of eternal life.

The physical Resurrection of the Body: The promises of our resurrection and of eternal life in the Scriptures do not refer to some vague “immortality of the soul,” as taught in pagan religions but to an actual physical resurrection of the body. Job, David, Daniel and Malachi affirm that those who have died will soon awake, some to eternal life, and others to everlasting shame and contempt (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12). Therefore, it is written (Malachi 4:1-2):

כִּֽי־הִנֵּה הַיֹּום בָּא בֹּעֵר כַּתַּנּוּר וְהָיוּ כָל־זֵדִים וְכָל־עֹשֵׂה רִשְׁעָה קַשׁ וְלִהַט אֹתָם הַיֹּום הַבָּא אָמַר ה’ צְבָאֹות אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יַעֲזֹב לָהֶם שֹׁרֶשׁ וְעָנָֽף׃ וְזָרְחָה לָכֶם יִרְאֵי שְׁמִי שֶׁמֶשׁ צְדָקָה וּמַרְפֵּא בִּכְנָפֶיהָ וִֽיצָאתֶם וּפִשְׁתֶּם כְּעֶגְלֵי מַרְבֵּֽק׃

Shemesh Tsedakah; “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; all the arrogant and every evildoer shall be stubble, and the day that is coming shall set them ablaze—says Adonai Tseva’ot —leaving them neither root nor branch. But for you who revere My name, the Sun of Righteousness (שמש צדקה) shall rise with healing in its wings; and you shall go forth and frolic like calves of the stall.

The Two “Horns” of the Ram:

Left and Right Horns: There are two Ram’s horns and two principal Shofar blowers (witnesses): The Left Horn of the Ram speaks of our being cleansed, purified. The  Right Horn of the Ram speaks of our becoming the righteousness of our heavenly Father.

Left Horn #1.  The left horn of the ram is the Word of God revealed in the atoning sacrifice of His beloved son (the Messiah).

Left Horn #2.  Through the left horn of the ram we learn that we are sinners in need of a Deliverer. We learn this truth from the Prophet Moses.

Left Horn #3.  By Messiah’s death, as required under the “Covenant of the Law,” the beloved son has removed all our sins.

Left Horn #4.  Sin is removed through the sacrifice of the Messiah. The left horn calls us to repent, believe, confess and be cleansed.

Right Horn #1.  The right horn is the Word of God revealed in power through the gracious works of the Spirit of the Holy One. The unlimited power of the Spirit of the Holy One was demonstrated in the resurrection of the Messiah ben Yosef and his ascension above the heavens.

Right Horn #2.  Through the Living Torah of the Spirit we learn that we are made righteous by the gift of the Spirit. Eternal life is appropriated by us through our faith in the Messiah.

Right Horn #3.  By the Messiah’s resurrection and ascension into heaven the second and last Adam is able to instill his righteousness in all who follow him through the Gift of the Father; the indwelling Presence of His Spirit in our spirits.

Right Horn #4.  The Gift of the Father assures us that through no merit whatsoever of our own we will one day be transformed into the “likeness” of our Messiah who is the exact Image (צלם אלוהים-Tselem Elohim) of our Righteous Father.

Messiah in Rosh Hashanah & Yom Teruah Chapter 14 >>