The Mitzvah Shiur # 384 To Blow Trumpets in The Beit Hamikdash

(1) The commandment of blowing the trumpets in the Temple and in war: To blow trumpets in the Temple each day as every sacrifice is offered, and also at a time of troubles, as it is stated (Number 10:9), "When you come to war, etc." and it is written after it also (Number 10:10), "And on your joyous occasions, and your fixed festivals and new moon days, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt-offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace-offerings, etc." And even though the verse warns about a joyous occasion, a fixed festival and a new moon day, this is not precise. As they would blow with the trumpets over the sacrifice every day in the Temple... And they said in Tractate Arakhin 13a that we do not reduce to less than twenty-one blasts in the Temple and we do not increase to over forty-eight.

(2) It is from the roots of the commandment that [it is] since at the time of the sacrifice they would need to properly focus their attention - as it is well-known that it is disqualified by certain thoughts - and also [that] the sacrifice requires complete awareness in front of the Master of all who commanded about them; and also at the time of trouble, a person needs great focus in his supplication before his Creator, that He should have mercy upon him and save him from his trouble; we are therefore commanded to blow the trumpets at these times. As since man is physical, he requires great arousal to these things. For the way of nature is to stand asleep, and there is nothing as arousing as the sounds of music, [as is] well known - and all the more so, the sounds of trumpets, which is the greatest sound of all musical instruments.

And there is also another purpose, aside from arousal to focusing attention, that is realized through the sound of the trumpet; and that is that the sound of the trumpets removes all other worldly concerns from the heart of the listener, such that at that time he will only [direct] his heart to the matter of the sacrifice. But why should I go on so long? This is well-known to anyone who has ever bent his ear to hear the trumpets or the sound of a shofar with focus.

(3) From the laws of the commandment - that which they, may their memory be blessed, said (Menachot 28a) that the trumpets came from a block of silver, as [indicated] in Scripture, and [if it is] from other types of metals, it is disqualified; that which they, may their memory be blessed, said (Arakhin 13a) that we do not ever reduce to less than two trumpets in the Temple and we do not increase above one hundred and twenty; and the rest of its details - are elucidated in Sifrei Bamidbar 77 (in Parshat Behaalotcha) and in Tractate Rosh HaShanah. And also in Tractate Taanit (Taanit 19a), the Sages elucidated that we are commanded to blow the trumpets at a time of trouble (see Mishneh Torah, Laws of Fasts 1).

(4) The commandment is practiced by priests at the time of the Temple, as the commandment to blow the trumpets is incumbent upon them, and like the matter that is written about them in the movements of the encampments (Numbers 10:8), "And the sons of Aharon, the priests, will blow with the trumpets." And lest you say that they did not blow over the sacrifices, but rather the Levites, this is not so. As behold, they explicitly said (Mishnah Tamid 7:3), "They gave him the wine to pour [for the libation]. The assistant stood on the horn [of the altar] with two handkerchiefs in his hand. Two priests stood in the table of (used for) fats and two trumpets were in their hands. They blew a teki'ah (long steady sound), then a teruah (a series of very short sounds) and then again a teki'ah." Behold, it is elucidated that this commandment was performed by the priests, and that it was a constant commandment to them, meaning to say that they would blow every day, and not only on a holiday or the day of the new month. However, I have seen that Rambam wrote (Mishnah Torah, Vessels of the Sanctuary and Those who Serve Therein 3:5), "On all the festivals and on the the new moon days, the priests would sound the trumpets and the Levites would sing." It seems from his words that his opinion is that on other days, even the Levites blow the trumpets. And if the priests transgressed this and did not blow at the time of a sacrifice, and so [too,] if they did not blow at a time of trouble, they will have nullified this positive commandment.

(4) Notwithstanding that the blowing of the ram's horn trumpet on Rosh ha-Shanah is a Scriptural statute, its blast is symbolic, as if saying: "Ye that sleep, bestir yourselves from your sleep, and ye slumbering, emerge from your slumber, examine your conduct, turn in repentance, and remember your Creator! They that forget the truth because of the vanities of the times, who err all of their years by pursuing vanity and idleness, which are of neither benefit nor of salvation, care for your souls, improve your ways and your tendencies, let each one of you abandon his evil path and his thought which is not pure!

(1) It is a positive commandment from the Torah to cry out and to sound trumpets for all troubles that come upon the community; as it is stated (Numbers 10:9), "upon an enemy who attacks you and you sound trumpets." That is to say, [with] every matter that troubles you — such as famine, a plague, locusts and that which is similar to them — cry out about them, and sound the trumpets.

(2) And this thing is from the ways of repentance. For when a trouble comes and they yell out about it and sound [trumpets], everyone will know that it was because of their evil deeds that this bad was done to them. As it is stated (Jeremiah 5:25), "It is your iniquities that have diverted, etc." And this is what will cause them to remove the trouble from upon them.

(3) But if they do not cry out and sound [trumpets], but rather say, "What has happened to us is the way of the world, and this trouble is merely happenstance" — it is surely the way of cruelty, and it causes them to stick to their bad deeds. And the trouble will add other troubles. About this is it written in the Torah (Leviticus 26: 27-28), "but walk arbitrarily with Me. Then I will (also) walk arbitrarily with you in fury." That is to say, "When I will bring upon you troubles — if you will say that it is arbitrary, I will increase the fury of this arbitrariness."