GOD'S PROGRAM FOR HIS PEOPLE PREDICTED IN ISRAEL'S FEASTS

V. The Feast Of Trumpets: God's Future Regathering Of Israel

(Leviticus 23:23-25)

I. Introduction

A. The Leviticus 23:1-44 feasts for Israel typologically predict God's program for His people in history (Bible Know. Com., O. T., p. 208), what is valuable for us to study today in view of unsettling current events.

B. The fifth feast is the Feast of Trumpets (Leviticus 23:23-25), and it typifies God's regathering of Israel from the nations at the end of the Great Tribulation Period, cf. Matthew 24:29-31.

C. We thus view Scripture to understand the truths of this feast in God's program for His people (as follows):

II. The Feast Of Trumpets: God's Future Regathering Of Israel, Leviticus 23:23-25.

A. Though the feasts of Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits and Pentecost are all connected by the dating of their events, the remaining feasts of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement and Tabernacles (Booths) are not thus connected to the former feasts, but they all occur in the seventh month connected by dating to each other, Ibid.

B. As such, these final three feasts typologically predict God's future working with the nation Israel following the era of the Church, the Pretribulation Rapture of the Church and the Great Tribulation Period.

C. The first of these final three feasts is the Feast of Trumpets that occurs on the first day of the seventh month, and it predicts God's future regathering of the nation Israel at the end of the Great Tribulation Period:

1. The Feast of Trumpets involved the blowing of trumpets, and Isaiah 27:12-13 predicts God will thoroughly thresh the grain, that is, He will judge the area between the Euphrates River and the Wadi of Egypt to bring His people back to Jerusalem and its realm accompanied by the blowing of a great trumpet.

2. Christ also predicted that at the end of the Great Tribulation Period that is predicted in Matthew 24:4-28, He will return to the earth in great glory (Matthew 24:29-30) and that He will then send His angels with the sound of a great trumpet to gather His elect from the four winds of the earth, Matthew 24:31.

D. The Feast of Trumpets was a Sabbath Day of rest (Leviticus 23:24-25a), meaning this regathering of Israel will be achieved by God's grace, not by any self-help effort by man. For this reason, the current State of Israel is NOT the fulfillment of this promised regathering. In addition, the nation Israel that exists in the Holy Land today has not repented regarding its rejection of Messiah Jesus, so it is not God's regathered nation!

E. Leviticus 23:25b simply states that Israel was to offer an offering by fire unto the Lord, but Numbers 29:1-6 gives the details of that offering (Ibid., p. 207), and they typify the truths on God's regathering of Israel:

1. Israel was to offer (a) for a great burnt offering one young bull, one ram, seven lambs of the first year without blemish with their respective meal offerings of flour mingled with olive oil -- three tenths of an ephah for the bull, two tenths of an ephah for the ram, one tenth of an ephah for each of the seven lambs -- and (b) one male goat for a sin offering to make an atonement for the people of Israel, Num. 29:1-5 ESV.

2. This list of offerings typified the need for (a) consecration to God (burnt offering) and (b) national cleansing (sin offering), which failure of consecration and resulting sinful waywardness had led to the dispersion of the nation that had necessitated God's regathering of Israel from the nations, Ezek. 39:25-29.

3. These sacrifices were to be made in addition to the burnt offering of the new moon, the start of the seventh month, along with its grain offering, the regular burnt offering with its grain offering and drink offering, all as a pleasing aroma to the Lord, Numbers 29:6. The burnt offering typified the believer's need to be consecrated to God to live a holy life in fellowship with God (meal offerings) with resulting joy (drink offering, cf. 1 John 1:3-4). Thus, once Israel is regathered from the nations by God's grace and thus has returned to trust in God and obey Him, Israel will enjoy God's material and spiritual blessings such as His pouring out His Holy Spirit on them, Ezekiel 39:28-29; Joel 2:28-32.

Lesson: Though the people of Israel sinned against the Lord so that He punished them by causing them to be scattered among the Gentile nations in fulfillment of Deuteronomy 28:15, 64-67, by His grace through Christ's atonement, God will yet literally fulfill His Abrahamic Covenant by saving Israel (Romans 11:26; Zechariah 12:10-13:1) and regathering her from the Gentile nations back to her land with a great trumpet and the agency of God's angels to establish His Messianic, Millennial Kingdom for Israel, Genesis 12:1-3; Revelation 20:4-6.

Application: (1) May we rejoice that God has the power to forgive and to cleanse His people from their sins, be they the nation Israel in the future or we the people of God in the Church today, 1 John 1:8-10. (2) May we apply what cleansing we might need today (1 John 1:9) and rely on the Lord to walk in holiness in fellowship with Him!