Midrash on Rosh HaShanah

(23) YHWH spoke to Moses, saying: (24) Speak to the Israelite people thus: In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe complete rest, a sacred occasion commemorated with loud blasts. (25) You shall not work at your occupations; and you shall bring an offering by fire to YHWH.

(1) In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a sacred occasion: you shall not work at your occupations. You shall observe it as a day when the horn is sounded. (2) You shall present a burnt offering of pleasing odor to YHWH one bull of the herd, one ram, and seven yearling lambs, without blemish. (3) The meal offering with them—choice flour with oil mixed in—shall be: three-tenths of a measure for a bull, two-tenths for a ram, (4) and one-tenth for each of the seven lambs. (5) And there shall be one goat for a sin offering, to make expiation in your behalf— (6) in addition to the burnt offering of the new moon with its meal offering and the regular burnt offering with its meal offering, each with its libation as prescribed, offerings by fire of pleasing odor to YHWH.

(5) And when a long blast is sounded on the horn—as soon as you hear that sound of the shofar—all the people shall give a mighty shout. Thereupon the city wall will collapse, and the people shall advance, every man straight ahead.”

With regard to the same verse, Rava said: After departing from this world, when a person is brought to judgment for the life he lived in this world, they say to him in the order of that verse: Did you conduct business faithfully? Did you designate times for Torah study? Did you engage in procreation? Did you await salvation? Did you engage in the dialectics of wisdom or understand one matter from another? And, nevertheless, beyond all these, if the fear of God is his treasure, yes, he is worthy, and if not, no, none of these accomplishments have any value.

(2) At four times the world is judged: On Pesach, for the crops. On Shavuot, for the fruits of the tree. On Rosh Hashnah, all the world passes before Him like sheep, as it says, "He that fashioneth the hearts of them all, that considereth all their doings." (Psalms 33:15) And on Sukkot, they are judged for the water.

(4) Even though the blowing of the shofar on Rosh HaShanah is a Biblical decree, it hints at something, i.e., “Wake up, sleepers, from your sleep! And slumberers, arise from your slumber! Search your ways and return in teshuvah and remember your Creator! Those who forget the Truth amidst the futility of the moment and are infatuated all their years with vanity and nothingness that will not help and will not save, examine your souls and improve your ways and your motivations! Let each of you abandon his wicked ways, and his thoughts which are no good."

and then sound again a tekia and a terua while they are standing in the Amida prayer? He answers: In order to confuse the Satan, for this double blowing of the shofar demonstrates Israel’s love for the mitzva, and this will confuse Satan when he brings his accusations against Israel before the heavenly court, and the Jewish people will receive a favorable judgment. And Rabbi Yitzḥak said, playing on the double meaning of the word meri’in, which can mean either sound a terua or cause misfortune: Any year during which, due to some mishap, the shofar was not sounded at its beginning will suffer evil and misfortune at its end. What is the reason? Because Satan was not confused, and he was able to put forward his accusations, so that the Jewish people would be punished. § The Gemara brings a series of statements in the name of Rabbi Yitzḥak, all of which relate to judgment: And Rabbi Yitzḥak said: Any year that is poor [rasha] and troubled at its beginning will be made rich at its end, for it is stated: “From the beginning [mereishit] of the year” (Deuteronomy 11:12). The word meireishit is written defectively, without an alef, so that it may also be understood in the sense of rashut, poverty. The verse continues: “And until the end [aḥarit] of the year,” which means that the end of the year will have expectations of good things in the end [aḥarit].

R. Yoshiya opened: “Happy is the people who knows the sound of the blast O God, they shall walk in the light of Your countenance” [Ps 89:16]. R. Abahu explained this verse as referring to five elders who have gathered to add a month to the year (a 2nd month of Adar). What does the Holy One blessed be God do? God leaves his council and descends and contracts his Presence among them below. The Ministering Angels say: O Mighty One! O Mighty One! O God! O God! Shall He of whom it is written, “God who is adulated in the council of the holy ones” [ibid. v. 8] leave his council and contract his Presence among those below? Why so? [Our midrash explains the angels’ question] That if they erred in a matter of halakhah, the Holy One blessed be He enlightens their face. As is written there: “O YHWH, they shall walk in the light of Your countenance.” R. Yoshiyah said: It is written: “Happy is the people that know the trumpet blast” [interpreted to mean: who know how to makes these sounds with the trumpet, or shofar]. And do not the nations of the world know how to blow wind instruments? How many horns they have! How many trumpets (buccina) they have! How many bugles (salpirgasi) they have! And yet you say: “Happy is the people that know the trumpet blast?!” Rather, that they know how to seduce their Creator with the blast of the ram’s horn. So that He rises from the Throne of Judgment and goes to the Throne of Mercy, and He is filled with compassion for them, and turns the Aspect of Judgment to the Aspect of Mercy. When? “On the seventh month” [Lev 23:24].