09/11/2026
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐ฅ๐ผ๐๐ต ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ๐ต?
Rosh HaShanah begins sundown on Friday, September 11, 2026, and ends nightfall on Sunday, September 13, 2026.
The name Rosh HaShanah ืจืืฉ ืืฉื ื literally mean โhead of the year.โ It is when the yearly agricultural cycle begins in Israel. That means that the Sabbatical and Jubilee years described in Leviticus 25 are counted at this time, being tied to the agricultural season.
On Rosh HaShanah, we can say โlโshanah tovah,โ which means โto a good yearโ or โshanah tovah umtukah,โ which means โmay you have a good and sweet new year.โ The greeting can be shortened to โshanah tovah.
๐๐ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ป๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ๐:
Yom Teruah (Feast of Trumpets)
โข The biblical name for Rosh HaShanah, which literally translates to "the day of blowing". It refers to the shofar blasts that are sounded throughout the day's prayer services.
Yom HaDin
โข Translates to "the day of judgment". It refers to the image of God sitting on a throne with the Book of Life and the Book of Death, which determine each Jew's fate for the coming year.
Yom HaZikaron
โข Translates to "the day of remembrance". It refers to the day when God looks back and "remembers" our deeds.
HaYom HaRat Olam
โข Translates to "the day the world was conceived". It refers to the anniversary of the creation of the world.
Yom HaKeseh
โข Translates to "the day of concealment". It refers to the idea that Israel conceals its greatness in awe of this time of judgment.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ฏ๐น๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฆ๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ฐ๐ฒ
The Bible refers to the holiday in this way:
โTell the people of Israโel, โIn the seventh month, the first of the month is to be for you a day of complete rest for remembering, a holy convocation announced with blasts on the shofar. Do not do any kind of ordinary work, and bring an offering made by fire to Adonai.โโ (Leviticus 23:24-25 CJB)
To summarize, we know a few things from the biblical text:
โข It occurs at the beginning of the agricultural cycle.
โข It is a memorial.
โข It is observed with the alarm-like sound of a shofar.
๐ฅ๐ผ๐๐ต ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ๐ต ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ก๐ฒ๐ ๐ง๐ฒ๐๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐
Yeshua (Jesus) often taught about things that relate strongly to Rosh HaShanah themes. In His parables, He sometimes depicted God as an employer who demands an accounting (Matthew 25:14โ30; Luke 16; 19:11โ27). He spoke often about the harvest in terms of human souls (Matthew 13, Luke 8), and He referred to dividing between who is spiritually fruitful and who is not (Matthew 7:15โ20; 12:33โ45; 25:31โ46; Luke 6:43โ45).
The โbook of lifeโ in which our names and deeds are recorded is one of the main symbols of Rosh HasShanah. The New Testament also talks about this (Luke 10:20; Philippians 4:3; many places in Revelation). It also talks about the record of our debt due to our sins, which was canceled and forgiven through Messiah (Colossians 2:14). It speaks of our sins being โblotted outโโthat is, erasedโthrough repentance, which implies that they were once written down (Acts 3:19).
The New Testament also often speaks of the shofar (the trumpet). In Matthew 24:31, this accompanies the gathering of the elect. In 1 Corinthians 15:52 and 1 Thessalonians 4:16 it announces the resurrection from the dead. In Revelation 8โ9 it accompanies judgments on the earth. All of these are Rosh HaShanah themes.
Rosh HaShanah is a powerful and inspiring holiday. It reminds us to be diligent in our service of God at the same time that it assures us of Godโs forgiveness and mercy. It instills in us an awareness of the ingathering yet to come, with the return of the Messiah and the resurrection of the dead.
