New Year Celebrations in the Bible.
Although 2020 is far from over, according to the Jewish calendar the new year of 5781 starts next week! The festival of Rosh Hashanah, which means “head of the year,” is one of the most widely observed Jewish holidays today. But the Bible tells us very little about it. How did people celebrate the new year in the days of the Bible?
A Disappointing Return to Zion
The Bible tells us that on the first day of the seventh month we are to observe a “Festival of Trumpets,” marked by blowing the ram’s horn (shofar). The richest description of this new year’s feast is in chapter 8 of the Book of Nehemiah. In the year 458 BCE, the Babylonian exile ended, but only a small group of Jews returned to Jerusalem. The knowledge of the Torah was lacking after years of exile.
Ezra Instructs the People
Ezra the Scribe decides to educate the people. He chooses the day of Rosh Hashanah to publicly read the whole Torah to the city. He stands before the people with a scroll of the Torah. But he does not just recite the words, rather, “he read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read” (Neh. 8:8).
Devote yourself to Biblical studies. This shows us that 2,500 years ago, Rosh Hashanah was a day to renew one’s connection to God by hearing the Word of God recited and explained. Do you yearn to hear the words of Scripture precisely as they sounded from Ezra? In honour of Ezra’s educational initiative, we are offering you a special discount. Enroll in our live online Biblical Hebrew course this Rosh Hashanah and devote yourself to Biblical study.
bahmer wrote:
Although 2020 is far from over, according to the Jewish calendar the new year of 5781 starts next week! The festival of Rosh Hashanah, which means “head of the year,” is one of the most widely observed Jewish holidays today. But the Bible tells us very little about it. How did people celebrate the new year in the days of the Bible?
A Disappointing Return to Zion
The Bible tells us that on the first day of the seventh month we are to observe a “Festival of Trumpets,” marked by blowing the ram’s horn (shofar). The richest description of this new year’s feast is in chapter 8 of the Book of Nehemiah. In the year 458 BCE, the Babylonian exile ended, but only a small group of Jews returned to Jerusalem. The knowledge of the Torah was lacking after years of exile.
Ezra Instructs the People
Ezra the Scribe decides to educate the people. He chooses the day of Rosh Hashanah to publicly read the whole Torah to the city. He stands before the people with a scroll of the Torah. But he does not just recite the words, rather, “he read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people understood what was being read” (Neh. 8:8).
Devote yourself to Biblical studies. This shows us that 2,500 years ago, Rosh Hashanah was a day to renew one’s connection to God by hearing the Word of God recited and explained. Do you yearn to hear the words of Scripture precisely as they sounded from Ezra? In honour of Ezra’s educational initiative, we are offering you a special discount. Enroll in our live online Biblical Hebrew course this Rosh Hashanah and devote yourself to Biblical study.
Although 2020 is far from over, according to the J... (
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Correct me if I'm wrong, it's also a time of forgiveness. If you don't forgive you won't be forgiven. By forgiving you gain favor with God. An excellent way to start any new year, Jewish, Christian, or other.
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