CAN WE DREAM IT OVER AGAIN?
"On the first day of the seventh month hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work. It is a day for you to sound the trumpets." Numbers 29.1 niv
In Numbers and Leviticus, we are told to Commemorate (Remember) the blast of the trumpets. What are we remembering?
The command in Numbers and Leviticus to commemorate the blast of the trumpets (as at the Feast of Trumpets/Yom Teruah) calls Israel to remember foundational spiritual experiences—the overwhelming divine revelation at Sinai and, by extension, God’s power later displayed at Jericho.
The Sinai Experience
The trumpet (shofar) blast at Sinai accompanied God's descent, the giving of the tablets, and the initiation of a covenant relationship with Israel—an event marked by awe, fire, and the voice of God.
The festival commanded in Leviticus 23:24 and Numbers 29:1 is a “memorial” of trumpet blasts, understood not just as a ritual re-enactment, but a living reminder of that Sinai encounter and its implications of covenant, revelation, and divine presence.
Jewish tradition and commentators see this as remembering both for the people and “reminding” God of His promises; it’s a calling to repentance, readiness for atonement, and acknowledgment of God’s commitment to His people.
Power Affirmed at Jericho
Joshua 6.5 niv -- When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.”
Joshua’s victory at Jericho is a striking demonstration of the power of God given to Israel at Sinai, now manifest in the conquest of the Promised Land. The miraculous destruction of Jericho’s formidable walls was entirely the result of God’s intervention, not military might or human ingenuity.
Lest we forget the redemption of Rabab during the destruction of Jericho! Thanks to a scarlet cord (a Tikva) that she hung out of her window, Joshua was able to find and save her. Rabab is key to the story since she would become King David's great-great grandmother.
Sinai’s Power Manifested
At Sinai, the Israelites received the law, the covenant, and the assurance of God’s presence—the Ark of the Covenant, containing the Sinai tablets, symbolized this. In the conquest narrative, the Ark leads the way, emphasizing that it is the holy God of Sinai acting on behalf of His consecrated people. The instructions for Jericho’s conquest, received after Joshua’s encounter with the Commander of the LORD’s army (often interpreted as a divine or messianic figure), echo Moses’ experience at Sinai—where standing on holy ground is a sign of God preparing to act in salvation and judgment.
Miraculous Strategy
God’s battle plan—marching around Jericho, bearing the Ark, and blowing shofars—was not conventional warfare but obedience to a divine command. This approach recalled not only God’s past miracles in Egypt and the wilderness but also reinforced that victory in the Promised Land was contingent upon faithfulness to the covenant established at Sinai.
Lessons from Jericho
The destruction of Jericho demonstrated that God’s covenant power, first revealed at Sinai, was available to those who trusted and obeyed His word.
The fall of Jericho marked the continuation of God’s redemptive plan begun in Egypt and at Sinai, highlighting faith, obedience, and reliance on divine rather than human strength.
The events at Jericho exemplify that the true “weapon” of Israel was the transformative power received at Sinai: God’s presence, the covenant, and obedience to divine instruction.
Dreaming In Order To Re-living
How do you remember an experience you didn't personally have? You have to dream it -- you have to do it with your imagination. In effect, you have to use your God given gift to create the experience in your mind.
Engaging the God-given faculty of imagination is an ancient, biblically rooted practice: believers use memory, meditation, and creative mental imagery to internalize and “re-live” sacred events, making them a living part of faith.
Imagination in Biblical Remembrance
Imagination is not merely fantasy; it transforms what is known into what can be experienced internally, allowing someone to “see” themselves in the story of God.
Hebrew meditation, as taught in scripture (for example, Joshua 1:8), means filling the mind with God’s truth until it shapes identity and spiritual perception—not just memorizing but “experiencing” God’s works anew.
Practicing “holy imagination” is encouraged by many biblical and spiritual traditions: picturing oneself at Sinai, feeling the awe and hearing the trumpets, or imagining walking around Jericho to feel the power and fear, creates spiritual connection across generations.
Creating Living Memory
When the Torah instructs remembrance, it asks each new generation to re-enact, tell, and imagine the ancient events as if they themselves had been present.
By using imagination in prayer and meditation, every person is invited to creatively participate in God’s story—transforming national memories into personal, spiritual realities.
This God-given gift is central to passing on faith: the story comes alive through active contemplation, not just words or ritual. It is a means to step into His story.
The sound of the shofar is a living resonance—a bridge to the defining moments of Israel’s spiritual past, especially Sinai and Jericho. Hearing the blast is not a passive ritual; it is a summons to actively awaken memory, reverence, and spiritual imagination within oneself.
Its blast is a “memorial” (zichron teruah), intended to reconnect every generation with the momentous events of the past and with God’s ongoing faithfulness.
The Role of Imagination
To truly remember—to make the shofar’s blast meaningful—requires internal, imaginative participation. The act of hearing the shofar becomes a spiritual exercise in which one mentally places themselves at Sinai, standing with ancestors experiencing awe, trembling, and revelation.
Jewish tradition holds that each individual is called to “see themselves as if they came out of Egypt” or stood at Sinai—imagination transforms memory into living faith.
The power of the shofar is only fully realized when one responds, stirring the heart by envisioning the ancient events, letting the resonance move soul and spirit toward repentance and reconnection with God.
The shofar’s blast is both an echo of history and an invitation. Memory alone cannot suffice—imagination and the active engagement of the heart are essential for the sound to truly change and awaken those who hear it.
Ears to Hear. Eyes to See.
The Cross is to the Christian what the Shofar is to the Jew.
The cross in Christianity holds a central, profound significance comparable to the role of the shofar in Judaism. The cross symbolizes Yeshua's sacrificial death on Calvary and His victory over sin and death, and the foundation of salvation.
The Jew hears the shofar. The Christian looks to the cross. One on a mountain. The other on a hill.
For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.
1 Clap your hands, all you nations;
shout to God with cries of joy.
2 For the Lord Most High is awesome,
the great King over all the earth.
3 He subdued nations under us,
peoples under our feet.
4 He chose our inheritance for us,
the pride of Jacob, whom he loved.[b]
5 God has ascended amid shouts (teruah -תְּרוּעָה) of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises;
sing praises to our King, sing praises.
7 For God is the King of all the earth;
sing to him a psalm of praise.