Yom Teruah—Loud Sound Day (a.k.a. “Rosh Hashanah”)
Biblical Name: Yom Teruah (Loud Sound Day/Loud Shout Day/Blast of Noise Day)
Rabbinic Jewish Name: Rosh Ha Shanah (Head of the Year)
Biblically speaking, Yom Teruah should NOT be called “Jewish New Year.” The biblical New Year is in the spring. In the Bible, “Rosh Ha Shanah” refers to the first day of the biblical year, just as “Rosh Chodesh'' refers to the first day of the Jewish month. “Rosh HaShanah” is what Bible scholars call a hapax legomenon—an expression that is used only once. That one place is Ezekiel 40:1, which says, “In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year [Heb. b’rosh ha shanah], on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was struck down, on this very day, the hand of the LORD was on me, and he brought me there” (Ezekiel 40:1 NET). In other words, Ezekiel had his visions at the beginning of the year on the tenth day of the first month. A NET Bible note tells us that the date of these visions was April 19, 573 B.C.
Biblical Rosh HaShanah always falls in the spring on Nisan 1, even though rabbinic Rosh Ha Shanah takes place in the fall. Since the real Rosh HaShanah--the biblical new year--actually falls in spring on the first day of the first month, what does the Bible call the holiday that occurs on the first day of the seventh month? The Bible refers to it as Yom Teruah. Yom means day; teruah can refer to a war cry, an alarm for war, a signal, a shout of joy, or a trumpet blast.
In Hebrew, a teruah is a loud noise of unspecified origin--a ram’s horn shofar, a silver trumpet, a vocal shout of anger or of joy, a call to arms, or a signal to assemble. In other words, it would be perfectly legitimate to translate Yom Teruah as “Loud Sound Day.”
Here is Leviticus 23:24 in Hebrew:
דַּבֵּר אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר בַּחֹדֶש הַשְּבִיעִי בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶש יִהְיֶה לָכֶם שַבָּתוֹן זִכְרוֹן תְּרוּעָה מִקְרָא-קֹדֶש׃
Dabber El-B’nai Yisrael Lemor BaChodesh Ha-Shevi-i B’echad La-Khodesh Yihyeh La-chem Shabaton Zikhron Teruah Mikra-Kodesh
In English Leviticus 23:24 says, “Tell the Israelites, ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you must have a complete rest, a reminder or memorial announced by loud horn blasts, a holy assembly.” In Hebrew, “Loud horn blasts”' is the single word Teruah. In other words, the Hebrew text only mentions blasts of noise--it doesn’t mention horns at all. In Hebrew, zikhron teruah means “remembrance blast.”
There is no verse in the Pentateuch that proves shofars had to be used on Yom Teruah, but we do know from the Pentateuch that the two silver trumpets would always have been used on Yom Teruah while the Temple was still standing. This is because Yom Teruah Tishrei always coincides with Rosh Chodesh Tishrei—the first day of Tishrei—and according to Numbers 10:10, silver trumpets (chatsotseroth keseph) had to be blown “on your appointed festivals or at the beginnings of your months.”
10 Also in the day of your gladness, and in your solemn days, and in the beginnings of your months, ye shall blow with the trumpets [chatsotseroth] over your burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; that they may be to you for a memorial before your God: I am the LORD your God. (Numbers 10:10 KJV)
Since Yom Teruah was always both an appointed festival and a Rosh Chodesh, the use of silver trumpets would have been mandatory on Yom Teruah. There is also a single verse in Psalms that reminds us that ram’s horns would always have been sounded on Yom Teruah anyway, not because it was Yom Teruah but because Yom Teruah always coincided with Rosh Chodesh Tishrei. Psalm 81:3-4 says, “Blow the shofar at the New Moon, [as well as] at the full moon, on our feast day [Day 1 of Sukkot]. For it is a statute for Israel, an ordinance of the God of Jacob.” (WMB)
Bible Verses About Yom Teruah
Leviticus 23:24 (WMB)
“Speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, there shall be a solemn rest for you, a memorial of blowing of shofars, a holy convocation.
Note: In Hebrew “memorial of blowing of shofars” is זִכְרוֹן תְּרוּעָה (zikhron teruah—memorial blast). Zikhron means memorial or reminder; a teruah is a loud blast of sound—a loud shout or a trumpet blast.
Numbers 29:1 (WMB)
“ ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a holy convocation; you shall do no regular work. It is a day of blowing of shofars [yom teruah—יוֹם תְּרוּעָה] to you.”
Here again, this verse doesn’t mention shofars. All we can be sure of is that it is to be a day of loud sounds.
Nehemiah 8:2–3 (WMB)
2 Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly, both men and women, and all who could hear with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 He read from it before the wide place that was in front of the water gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women, and of those who could understand. The ears of all the people were attentive to the scroll of the Torah.
Nehemiah 8:9–12 (WMB)
9 Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “Today is holy to the LORD your God. Don’t mourn, nor weep.” For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law. 10 Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared, for today is holy to our Lord. Don’t be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” 11 So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Hold your peace, for the day is holy. Don’t be grieved.” 12 All the people went their way to eat, to drink, to send portions, and to celebrate, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.