✡ Sounding the Shofar ✡


The Shofar, bears such an incredible witness. The hebrew word “Shofar” is usually translated "ram's horn" or "trumphet." As a ba’al tekia (hebrew term for a shofar blower), I consider these things every time I take up the instrument. It’s been a blessing to sound the Shofar for many events and holy days. Yet many do not really understand the message of the blast.

The Shofar begins as a horn. A horn, being the weapon of many animals, is a symbol of strength throughout the Scriptures. But hollowed out, it becomes even more symbolic and more powerful. First of all, the hebrew word shofar means "beauty", while the root of the word means "sense of incising" as in to cut or penetrate. It's a thing of beauty unto the Lord, and known for it's piercing, cutting sound that brings immediate attention from it's hearers.

Jewish tradition (from the Mishnah) tells us Abraham made the first shofar from the horn of the ram that God provided as a substitution for Isaac which occured on Mount Moriah (Gen 22). Thus, the first blast from the first shofar was a proclamation that God provided a substitutional sacrifice for man! It remains the proclamation that God provided His own son, Yeshua (Jesus), as a substitution for all who would believe in Him.

Making a shofar: A shofar horn must be cut from a worthy animal (passing the same approval as a sacrifical animal would- being clean, without blemish or sickness, not strangled, etc.). It's bloody, flesh filled, and it's exterior is dirty and rough. It's internal flesh must be pulled out of it. A hole is cut into the tip. Once the inside is gutted, it's outside is brushed clean. It's then boiled, softening the horn. It's carefully shaped through a process of heating and bending, then it's cooled and hardens to it's final form. It's insides are cleaned again. And then it's outside is polished using sand. The instrument can then be blessed and put into use. However, even then all the flesh is not out of it. An odor remains, and the shofar must be occasionally cleansed by the shofar blower. This is done by plugging the tip, filling the horn with water, salt, rocks, and sand, then plugging the bell. The horn is shaken and the mixture cuts rotting flesh from the inside of the horn. It's then thoroughly rinsed, and dried.

The horn is just like us! It's filled with flesh, like we are full of flesh-nature. That must be taken out of us. Our tips- our fleshly violence, our offense- must be cut off. Then we are cleaned, washed in the Word. We are heated in the refining fire of God, made soft in the wilderness, trials, and hardships. That brings us to a state in which we can be molded into a beautiful shape that the craftsman (Yeshua, the author and finisher of our faith) desires us to be in. We are made beautiful by the Lord, just as the craftsman makes the shofar beautiful, then taking the dull and dirty outside, and making it clean, beautiful and reflective. Only after this can a man or woman be a vessal set apart for noble purposes, a vessal in which the wind of the Spirit of God can flow through and produce a sound. (2 Tim 2:21) The sound of a proclamation that Yeshua is indeed the salvation from God for man!

Uses:
1. To usher in feasts, times of celebration, praise, and worship (Num 29:1; Lev 25:9)
2. Strategic warfare, to rally troops, to confuse the camp of the enemy (Jos 6:4-20; Neh 4:18,20; Ju 6:34; 7:8-20)
3. To usher in the presence of the Lord (Ex 19:16; 2 Sam 6:15; 1 Chron 15:14; 1 Thes 4:16)
4. Anointing of a king (1 Ki 1:34,39,41; 2 Ki 9:13)
5. Taking of an oath (2 Chron 15:14)
6. To announce the Lord's presence and to praise and worship Him (Ps 77:5; 98:6; 150:3; Isa 27:13; 18:3; Rev 1:10)
7. Call people to repentance and fasting (Isa 58:1; Hos 8:1; Joel 2:1, 15)
8. As an alarm to war (Jer 4:19, 21; 6:1,17; 51:27; Joel 2:1)
9. As a warning of danger (Amos 2:2; 3:6; Zep 1:16; Hos 5:8; 8:1) and the prophet's voice is compared to it's sound (Ezek 33:2-9).



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