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		Living in Exile     B'ha'alotkha   (Num 8:1 - 12:16)

B'Midbar/Numbers 10:10   And you shall sound the trumpets on the day of your rejoicing, and on your appointed times, and on the heads of your months, over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings

View whole verse and interlinear translation ...

Trumpets? What trumpets? At the beginning of this section, The Name ...

HaShem: literally, Hebrew for 'The Name' - an allusion used to avoid pronouncing the Tetragrammaton, the so-called 'ineffable' name of G–d
HaShem tells Moshe, "Have two silver trumpets made; make them of hammered work" (B'Midbar 10:2, NJPS); they are to be used for communication: for summoning and commanding the people. Long blasts and short blasts or, presumably, combinations thereof, bring different groups of people to a meeting or tell the different parts of the camp to set out. Always to be blown by Aharon's sons, the priests, they are also used for battlefield communication so that HaShem Himself will hear and remember His people to deliver them from their enemies. Our text, however, speaks of them being used in a very different context: in times of rejoicing and celebration: the festivals, life-cycle events and important offerings. The Who Is ...

Ba'al HaTurim: Rabbi Yaakov ben Asher (1269-1343 CE), born in Cologne, Germany; lived for 40 years in and around Toledo, Spain; died en route to Israel; his commentary to the Chumash is based upon an abridgement of the Ramban, including Rashi, Rashbam and Ibn Ezra; it includes many references to gematria and textual novelties
Baal HaTurim explains that this includes shabbat since the gematria of שִׂמְחַתְכֶם, "your rejoicing", (808) is equal to that of גַּם בְּיוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת, "also on the day of Shabbat". He also points out that the word וּבְמוֹעֲדֵיכֵם, "and on your appointed times", is spelled in full, with a ו (6) [after the מ]. This, he says, "is an allusion to the six festivals ordained by the Torah: Pesach, Shavuot, Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret." Who Is ...

Abraham Ibn Ezra: (1089-1167 CE), born in Tudela, Spain; died in the South of France after wandering all around the shores of the Mediterranean and England; a philosopher, astronomer, doctor, poet and linguist; wrote a Hebrew grammar and a commentary on the Bible
Ibn Ezra says that "your rejoicing" includes other festivals such as Purim and Hanukkah.

The Mishnah records that on an ordinary day, "they never sounded less than twenty-one blasts in the Temple: three at the opening of the gates, nine at the daily morning sacrifice and nine at the daily evening sacrifice" (m. Sukkah 5:5) with many more on shabbat and the festivals. This is synchronisation - as the Who Is ...

Gersonides: Rabbi Levi ben Gershom, Gersonides or Ralbag (1288-1344 CE); famous rabbi, philosopher, mathematician and astronomer/astrologer; born at Bagnols in Languedock, France; wrote a commentary on the Torah and a parallel to Maimonides' Guide For The Perplexed
Ralbag reminds us, "all the occasions on which the trumpets are sounded involve collective action" - and communication, according to Ibn Ezra: "so all Israel will hear and they will know that the burnt offerings are being brought and they will direct their hearts to G-d." Rabbi Who Is ...

Hirsch: Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808-1888 CE), German rabbi, author and educator; staunch opponent of the Reform movement in Germany and one of the fathers of Orthodox Judaism
Hirsch cites the Psalmist - "Satisfy us at daybreak with Your steadfast love that we may sing for joy all our days" (Psalm 90:14, NJPS) - in order to explain that, "'joy' does not designate an exuberant joy brought about by some special occasion, but can very well be used to designate that cheerful mood, that feeling of inner happiness which should really form the keynote of our whole life."

When else were the trumpets blown? The historical narrative tells us that they were blown at the coronation of King Joash - "there was the king standing by the pillar, according to the custom, and the captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets" (2 Kings 11:14, ESV) - and at the restoration of worship at the temple after the reforms of King Hezekiah: "Hezekiah gave the order to offer the burnt offering on the altar. When the burnt offering began, the song of the L-RD and the trumpets began also, together with the instruments of King David of Israel. All the congregation prostrated themselves, the song was sung and the trumpets were blown -- all this until the end of the burnt offering" (2 Chronicles 29:27-28, NJPS). Michael Morales suggests that "the various instances [of blowing] assume the integration of the cult into Israel's everyday life, as each occasion incorporates the regular offering of whole burnt offerings and sacrifices of peace offerings. It is over such offerings and sacrifices that the trumpets are to be blown. As a form of prayer, calling YHVH to remember His people, the trumpet blasts over the offerings show that the cult was not mere externalism - the sacrifices solicited spiritual engagement."¹

Making the connection between the silver trumpets, sacrifices, singing and prayer is significant. Jacob Milgrom reports that "in late Second Temple times the trumpet was also blown twice daily during the sacrifice of the tamid."² The Mishnah tells us how: "Two priests stand at the table of the fat pieces, with two silver trumpets in their hands. They sounded a prolonged sound, a wavering sound and a prolonged sound. When they reached a break in the singing of the Levites, the sounded a prolonged sound and the people prostrated themselves. At every break in the singing was a prolonged blast and at every prolonged blast, a prostration. This is the order of the daily whole burnt offering in the liturgy of the house of our G-d" (m. Tamid 7:3) and the next mishnah records the different psalms that were sung by the Levites for each day of the week and shabbat.

Psalm 96, "a great descriptive praise psalm",³ is one of "a corpus of psalms that celebrate the enthronement of YHVH as king over all creation and king over the other gods."⁴ Six imperative verbs are clustered in the first three verses - "Sing to the L-RD a new song, sing to the L-RD, all the earth. Sing to the L-RD, bless His name, proclaim His victory day after day. Tell of His glory among the nations, His wondrous deeds, among all peoples" (Psalm 96:1-3, NJPS) - the fifth, בָּשְּׂרוּ, translated 'proclaim' above, coming from the root בשׂר, to announce news or salvation,⁵ could be rendered, "announce the good news of His victory day after day". These verses "are a threefold call to all the earth to sing Yahweh's praise, followed by a threefold call to declare His glory among the nations, so that He may be praised, for knowledge must precede worship."⁶ This the song that Israel is to sing: "Declare among the nations, 'The LORD is king!' the world stands firm; it cannot be shaken; He judges the peoples with equity" (v. 10, NJPS). Short and long trumpet blasts! Whether the world wants to hear or acknowledge it, HaShem's sovereignty is absolute and He will judge the world and all its peoples fairly and justly. Heavens and earth are called to rejoice and praise Him for "He is coming, for He is coming to rule the earth; He will rule the world justly, and its peoples in faithfulness" (v. 13, NJPS).

Isaiah too proclaims the sovereignty of G-d, as he urges the exiles in Babylon to speak aloud the now, active, kingship of HaShem: "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, 'Your God reigns'" (Isaiah 52:7). Once again the root בשׂר is used for the bringing of good news; Sigmund Mowinckel suggests the last clause can be rendered "Say to Zion, Your G-d reigns, Your G-d is king. Your G-d has just become king,"⁷ as if the very pronouncement of the words has a realising or instantiating effect. As Zion hears, in real time, a further cementing of HaShem as not only the Creator G-d but Israel's G-d takes place. The proclamation is a self-involving speech act that includes the one who proclaims as well as those who hear; the messenger stands pledge for the truth and significance of the message so that the hearers may accept and believe.⁸ Celebration follows the announcement of good news: "The voice of your watchmen -- they lift up their voice; together they sing for joy; for eye to eye they see the return of the L-RD to Zion. Break forth together into singing, you waste places of Jerusalem, for the L-RD has comforted His people; He has redeemed Jerusalem" (vv. 8-9, ESV).

What gospel are we, the exiles in this generation of the last days, sharing in our spoken and unspoken witness today? Do our daily choices, actions and words broadcast that "the L-rd our G-d the Almighty reigns" (Revelation 19:6, ESV)? It should be obvious to all that we take decisions - both for now and the future, in how and where to spend our time, to invest our money, and to conduct our conversations - with a view to an alternative scenario to the ruling assumptions promulgated by the world, namely: Our G-d reigns. Not only does He exist, but He has opinions and positions on all matters and will - soon, we believe, but certainly at some point - come to judge the earth and everyone in it: "For the L-RD will not forsake His people; He will not abandon His heritage; for justice will return to the righteous, and all the upright in heart will follow it" (Psalm 94:14-15, ESV). We are accountable to Him rather than governments and authorities, principalities and powers and we blow the silver trumpet to proclaim His truth and to invite all who hear to be introduced to Yeshua. We follow the Master's instructions to "make disciples of all nations, immersing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Ruach ha-Kodesh" (Matthew 28:19, TLV), teaching and encouraging them to walk in His ways.

Commenting on our text, Gordon Wenham said that, "Like the arrangement of the camp with the tabernacle at the middle, and the ordering of the tribes in battle formation, the silver trumpets declare that Israel is the army of the King of kings preparing for a holy war of conquest."⁹ As we, the Jewish and Gentile followers of Yeshua, blow the silver trumpet today, we proclaim to the peoples of all nations that the Day of HaShem is at hand, that He has opened a window of salvation in Yeshua His Son, and urge them "as the Holy Spirit says, 'Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts'" (Hebrews 3:7-8, ESV). We are the vanguard of the army of the King, sounding the trumpet before Him, because He is coming soon!

1. - L. Michael Morales, Numbers 1-19, Apollos Old Testament Commentary, (London, Apollos, 2024), page 226.

2. - the customary and permanent morning and evening daily offerings.

3. - Geoffrey W. Grogan, Psalms, Two Horizons, (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2008), 165.

4. - Walter Brueggemann and William H. Bellinger Jr., Psalms, New Cambridge Bible Commentary, (New York, Cambridge University Press, 2014), page 414.

5. - David J. A. Clines (ed.) The Concise Dictionary of Classical Hebrew, (Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2009), page 57.

6. - Grogan, ibid.

7. - Quoted in Walter Brueggemann, Cadences of Home, (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 1977), page 85.

8. - Richard S. Briggs, Words in Action - Speech Act Theory and Biblical Interpretation, (Edinburgh, T&T Clark, 2001), 148-149.

9. - Gordon J. Wenham, Numbers, TOTC, (Nottingham, IVP, 1981), page 115.

Further Study: Psalm 98:1-4; Romans 10:14-17

Application: How can you blow your silver trumpet loudly and clearly today to announce the coming of the King and summon the people around you to meet Him before it is too late? Call on the Heavenly Herald to show you how and when to blow and give you the endurance to keep blowing until the victory is won.

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© Jonathan Allen, 2025

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