by Voice of Judah
THE TEN DAYS OF AWE: REHEARSAL FOR FINAL REPENTANCE AND THE BOWLS OF WRATH
OVERVIEW OF THE FALL FEASTS SEASON
Below is the picture of the Fall Feasts season so you can reference it if needed. Beginning with Yom Teruah on Tishrei 1, all of the Fall Feasts occur in this month, the 7th month of the biblical Jewish calendar. I’ve included the Ten Days of Awe as they begin with Day 1 on Tishrei 1 (Yom Teruah) and conclude on Day 10 on Tishrei 10 (Yom Kippur).
THE FALL FEASTS SSEASON OF THE COMING OF MESSIAH
KEY
Biblical/Jewish days are reckoned from sunset to sunset (approximately 6pm to 6pm). So a biblical/Jewish “day” is shown in the calendar above as being spread across two standard calendar days.
Days highlighted in yellow mark Teshuvah – the 40 day period for introspection and repentance which begins on Elul 1 and ends with Yom Kippur on Tishrei 10.
(RC) = Rosh Chodesh (In Hebrew – “Head of the month”) This holiday occurs every month of the year. As the months were reckoned on the ancient Israel, biblical calendar – according to the sighting of the New Moon – the first of each month always starts on a “day and hour which no one knows…” Matthew 24:36.
t = Blowing the shofar (trumpet) after morning service during Elul. The shofar is not sounded on Shabbats (sabbath); nor is it sounded on the last day of Elul – making Yom Teruah “the hidden day.”
Lt = The “Last Trumpet” (last shofar blast) which marks the start of Yom Teruah. Paul refers to this marking event of this day in 1 Corinthians 15:52.
YT = Yom Teruah (Day of Shouting, Day of Trumpets). The only feast which occurs on Rosh Chodesh, a “day and hour which no one knows…” Matthew 24:36.
The rehearsal for the resurrection and the rapture.
DofA = Days of Awe. These begin on Yom Teruah (Tishrei 1) and conclude on Yom Kippur (Tishrei 10).
The rehearsal for the Bowls of Wrath in the book of Revelation.
YK = Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement)
The rehearsal for the defeat of Satan and national atonement for Israel.
S = Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) (superscripted numbers count the number of days of Sukkot).
The rehearsal for the Wedding Feast of the Lamb with His people.
SA (LGD) = Shemini Atzeret (The Last Great Day – in Hebrew: “the assembly of the eighth [day]”). The final (8th) day of Sukkot and the holiday of Simchat Torah (in Hebrew: “rejoicing in the Torah”). This day completes the annual Torah reading cycle, then the Torah reading cycle begins anew with Genesis 1.
The rehearsal for two events: 1) The time during the beginning of the Messianic Age (Millennial Reign of Messiah) when the nations will begin to seek Messiah for understanding as “the Law (Torah) will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem…” Isaiah 2:3, and 2) the time after the Millennial Reign when the Father Himself will come and dwell with His people forever (Revelation 21:1-5).
THE TEN DAYS OF AWE (YOM TERUAH TO YOM KIPPUR, TISHREI 1-10)
Rehearsal of the Final 10 Days for Repentance and Forgiveness.
The ten days from the 1st to the 10th of Tishrei are known as the Ten Days of Awe. Beginning with the last trump on Yom Teruah, these are fearful days as this time is traditionally understood to be one of judgement which begins on the “Judgment Day” of Yom Teruah and ends on Yom Kippur – the “final judgement day” when the heavenly courts close the books. This period is not a feast per se; however, the solemn and fearful atmosphere of these ten days is a foreshadowing of what will be occurring on the earth when Messiah fulfills this rehearsal.
Because the moon is “hidden” at Yom Teruah and only beginning to show during the first ten days of the month, the Ten Days of Awe are associated with darkness. Furthermore, this period begins and ends with judgement, creating a sense of foreboding and reverent fear of God.
The Tradition of Tashlich. The Hebrew word, tashlich (Strong’s Dictionary #7993), means: to throw, cast, hurl, fling. The tradition of Tashlich, which developed in the Middle Ages, is observed on Yom Teruah and continues through the Ten Days of Awe as some communities observe it. People gather near a body of water and cast bread or stones into it. They then empty out their pockets and shake them clean. This symbolizes casting sins away. This tradition comes from a verse in the book of the prophet Micah where Israel is counting on God to forgive their sins:
“Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” Micah 7:18-19
Tashlich, and the passage from Micah, both express the attitude of the Jewish people’s hearts during the Ten Days of Awe. They are seeking God to forgive their sins and show them mercy.
When Messiah Fulfills the Ten Days of Awe in the Future:
From the previous article we learned that on Yom Teruah God convenes the heavenly court and three books are opened: one for the righteous, one for the wicked and one for the intermediates. Yom Teruah is the first of the Ten Days of Awe. On this day, when Messiah comes and fulfills it in the future…
The righteous who will be sealed for eternal life – will be followers of Jesus, taken from the earth on Yom Teruah, who:
- are the “resurrected” – Anyone who has “died in Christ” since He implemented the New Covenant 2000 years ago, including those martyred at the end of this age. (Might this group also include people whom God deemed as righteous in His sight, but lived before the first advent of Jesus?)
- are the “raptured” – Those still alive at the coming of Messiah at Yom Teruah. These will be those who did not take the “mark of the beast” during the last 3 1/2 years of the Tribulation.
“This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus. Then I heard a voice from heaven say, ‘Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’ ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.’ Revelation 14:12-13
The wicked who will be sealed for perdition – will be those who aligned with the Antichrist and his new world order and took the “mark of the beast” as the following verse indicates:
“A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: ‘If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb.’” Revelation 14:9-10
The intermediates who have ten days left to repent – Will be those who also did not take the “mark of the beast”, but they are not followers of Jesus.
Seven Bowls of Wrath Poured Out.
In the last article we saw that Yom Teruah is when the resurrection and rapture occur at the final trumpet. That day is Tishrei 1. In the book of Revelation following the seventh trumpet, John sees those who have been gathered in heaven as the heavenly court convenes. Immediately following this John sees God’s temple in heaven opened and the angels come forth to pour out God’s seven bowls of wrath on the earth. Let’s read the entire passage:
“The seventh angel sounded his trumpet… Then God’s temple in heaven was opened…” Revelation 11:15-19
(John’s vision is interrupted by other revelations (Revelation 12:1 – 15:4), and then he resumes describing his vision)
“And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name. They held harps given them by God and sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb:
‘Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the ages. Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.’
After this I looked and in heaven the temple, that is, the tabernacle of the Testimony, was opened. Out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed in clean, shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests. Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God, who lives for ever and ever. And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.” Revelation 15:2-8
It appears that the followers of Messiah are resurrected and raptured on Tishrei 1, and God pours out His wrath on the earth during the Ten Days of Awe. What would follow then would be the Messiah and the hosts of heaven (believers and angels) coming to earth on Yom Kippur (Tishrei 10) and Messiah rescuing Israel from the Antichrist and making atonement for Israel, which we will examine in the next article on Yom Kippur.
If that is indeed the case, then the traditional sense of foreboding and fear during the Ten Days of Awe – the rehearsal – would precisely match the final events at the end of this age.
Think about it…
As the entire earth witnessed Messiah’s coming in great glory with his angels to gather His elect on Yom Teruah (Matthew 24:29-32), the wicked who remain would be gnashing their teeth as they now knew that Jesus really is the Messiah, and He did come. The Antichrist’s fury and violence will explode as he seeks to prevent Jesus from claiming His kingship on earth. The armies of the nations would already have surrounded Jerusalem, ready to overrun and destroy Israel (Zechariah 12:3,9; Joel 3:1-2; Revelation 16:12). The entire earth will know clearly that the final judgement is at hand.
In that context, the words of the prophet Isaiah resound with incredible clarity as he foretells of this time in Isaiah chapters 24 – 29:8:
“See, the Lord is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; he will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants… Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth’s inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.” Isaiah 24:1, 6
“My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness. Though grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil and regard not the majesty of the Lord. O Lord, your hand is lifted high, but they do not see it. Let them see your zeal for your people and be put to shame; let the fire reserved for your enemies consume them.’ Isaiah 26:9-11
And especially these verses for the Ten Days of Awe:
“Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed upon her; she will conceal her slain no longer.” Isaiah 26:20-21