Lexical Summary
teruah: Shout, blast, alarm, sound of a trumpet
Original Word:תְּרוּעָה
Part of Speech:Noun Feminine
Transliteration:truw`ah
Pronunciation:tuh-ROO-ah
Phonetic Spelling:(ter-oo-aw')
KJV: alarm, blow(-ing) (of, the) (trumpets), joy, jubile, loud noise, rejoicing, shout(-ing), (high, joyful) sound(-ing)
NASB:shout, alarm, shouting, battle cry, war cries, blowing, blowing trumpets
Word Origin:[fromH7321 (רוַּע - shout)]
1. clamor, i.e. acclamation of joy or a battle-cry
2. especially clangor of trumpets, as an alarum
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
alarm, blowing of, the trumpets, joy, jubilee, loud noise, rejoicing, shouting,
Fromruwa'; clamor, i.e. Acclamation of joy or a battle-cry; especially clangor of trumpets, as an alarum -- alarm, blow(- ing) (of, the) (trumpets), joy, jubile, loud noise, rejoicing, shout(-ing), (high, joyful) sound(-ing).
see HEBREWruwa'
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
ruaDefinitiona shout or blast of war, alarm, or joy
NASB Translationalarm (5), battle cry (2), blowing (1), blowing trumpets (1), joy (1), joyful sound (1), resounding (1), shout (10), shout of alarm (1), shout of joy (1), shouted (1), shouting (4), shouts of joy (1), signal (1), trumpet blast (1), war cries (2), war cry (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
; —
Leviticus 23:24 +; construct
Jeremiah 4:19 +; —
alarm of war,war-cry,Joshua 6:5,20;Jeremiah 20:16;Ezekiel 21:27;Amos 1:14;Amos 2:2;Zephaniah 1:16;Job 39:25;Jeremiah 4:19;Jeremiah 49:2;battle-cry of kingNumbers 23:21 (poem in J E).
blast for march:Numbers 10:5,6 (twice in verse) (P; with ; hence)Numbers 31:6 (P) 2 Chronicles 13:12; on day of atonementLeviticus 25:9 (H); 1st of monthLeviticus 23:24 (P; ),Numbers 29:1 (P); GenerallyPsalm 150:5.
shout of joy with religious impulse,1 Samuel 4:5,6 (twice in verse);2 Samuel 6:15 =1 Chronicles 15:28; 2Chronicles 15:14;Ezra 3:11,12,13;Ezra 3:13; in public worship GenerallyJob 33:26; especially + musical servicePsalm 33:3;Psalm 47:6;Psalm 27:6,Psalm 89:16.
shout of joy, in GeneralJob 8:21 ("" ).
(√ of following; = ).
Topical Lexicon
Range of Meaning and Symbolic Resonanceתְּרוּעָה (teruʿah) gathers under a single banner several related ideas: the piercing trumpet blast, the clamorous war cry, and the jubilant shout of worship. Whether voiced by trumpets, rams’ horns, or human throats, the word consistently signals intensity—calling God’s people either to assemble in praise or to awaken for battle, repentance, or celebration. Its thirty-six appearances span Torah, Prophets, and Writings, weaving a texture of sound that marks decisive moments in Israel’s history and anticipates climactic events to come.
Levitical Festivals and Sacred Calendar
1. Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah).Leviticus 23:24 andNumbers 29:1 establish the first day of the seventh month as “a memorial commemorated with trumpet blasts.” The day stands as an audible summons to cease ordinary work, gather in holy convocation, and prepare hearts for the high-holy season culminating in the Day of Atonement and Tabernacles.
2. Day of Atonement and Jubilee.Leviticus 25:9 combines shofar and teruʿah: “Then you are to sound a ram’s horn loudly in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month… throughout the land.” The teruʿah on the Day of Atonement every fiftieth year inaugurated Jubilee, proclaiming liberty, canceling debts, and restoring inheritance—a sonic portrait of redemption and release.
3. Daily Cultic Routine.Numbers 10:5-10 distinguishes short, staccato alarm blasts (teruʿah) from extended tones. Priests used these patterns to break camp, marshal armies, and overlay sacrificial worship with audible prayer, teaching the congregation that every movement—ritual or military—proceeded only at the LORD’s signal.
Processions, Coronations, and Ark Enthronement
Joyful shouts and trumpet blasts escort the symbolic enthronement of God and His anointed:
•2 Samuel 6:15: “So David and the whole house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and the sound of trumpets.”
•1 Kings 1:39-40;2 Kings 11:12-14;2 Chronicles 23:11-13: teruʿah heralds Solomon, Joash, and other kings, affirming that rule in Israel must be publicly acclaimed under covenant oversight.
•Psalm 47:5-7 aligns human teruʿah with divine kingship: “God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the LORD with the sound of a horn… Sing praises to our King.” The psalmist locates Israel’s political ceremonies within the larger reality of God’s cosmic reign.
Battle, Alarm, and Deliverance
Teruʿah frequently rings across battlefields as both rallying cry and prophetic warning.
•Joshua 6:5, 20: the united shout topples Jericho’s walls, displaying Yahweh’s victory achieved through obedient sound rather than military might.
•Judges 7:20-22: Gideon’s 300 combine trumpet blast and battle cry, sowing panic among Midianites.
•2 Chronicles 13:12-15: when Abijah’s priests blow trumpets and Judah raises the teruʿah, “God routed Jeroboam.”
•Hosea 5:8;Amos 1:14;Zephaniah 1:16 paint the darker side: the same sound warns of coming judgment, “a day of trumpet blast and battle cry against the fortified cities.” The auditory imagery leaves no neutrality; the listener must choose between repentance and ruin.
Worship and Covenant Joy
Several psalms recast teruʿah as exuberant praise:
•Psalm 89:15: “Blessed are those who know the joyful shout, who walk, O LORD, in the light of Your presence.”
•Psalm 100:1: “Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!”
•Psalm 98:4-6 calls every instrument, voice, and wave to join the chorus. These texts teach that covenant joy is not subdued but resounds, proclaiming God’s steadfast love to the nations.
Oracles and Theophany
Numbers 23:21 attributes the “shout of a king” to Israel even in wilderness wanderings—an oracle revealing that divine presence, not geography, grants royal status. Prophets later pick up the motif: the piercing teruʿah accompanying the Day of the LORD (Joel 2:1; while Joel uses qeren for horn, the conceptual overlap remains) underscores that ultimate judgment and salvation arrive with unmistakable sound.
Eschatological Echoes
New Testament writers draw on this sonic tradition. “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God” (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Paul’s imagery depends on the Old Testament pattern: a decisive, heaven-sent teruʿah gathers God’s people, defeats enemies, and inaugurates final jubilee.Revelation 8–11 amplifies the motif through seven trumpets announcing progressive judgments and the climactic reign of Christ.
Pastoral and Ministry Implications
1. Call to Worship. Corporate gatherings still open with song and proclamation that mirror the ancient teruʿah, inviting the congregation to conscious, audible joy in God’s presence.
2. Watchfulness. The battle-alarm function warns believers to remain spiritually alert (cf.Matthew 24:31’s trumpet imagery).
3. Celebration of Redemption. The Jubilee teruʿah shapes Christian teaching on forgiveness and freedom in Christ, encouraging ministries of reconciliation and social restoration.
4. Hope. Every funeral, Lord’s Supper, or Advent service gains added depth when framed by the promise of the final trumpet that will raise the dead and consummate the kingdom.
Summary
תְּרוּעָה gathers Israel to worship, rallies armies, enthrones kings, inaugurates festivals, and warns of judgment. Its blast reverberates from Sinai to the Psalms, from Jericho to future Zion. Whether signaling joy or alarm, it insists that history moves at God’s command and that His people must respond with wholehearted, audible faith.
Forms and Transliterations
בִּתְרוּעָ֑ה בִּתְרוּעָ֖ה בִּתְרוּעָ֥ה בִּתְרוּעָֽה׃ בִּתְרוּעָה֙ בתרועה בתרועה׃ הַתְּרוּעָ֔ה הַתְּרוּעָ֖ה הַתְּרוּעָ֧ה התרועה וּבִתְרוּעָ֑ה וּתְרוּעַ֥ת וּתְרוּעָ֑ה וּתְרוּעָ֖ה וּתְרוּעָֽה׃ ובתרועה ותרועה ותרועה׃ ותרועת תְּרוּעַ֖ת תְּרוּעַ֣ת תְּרוּעָ֑ה תְּרוּעָ֖ה תְּרוּעָ֣ה תְּרוּעָ֥ה תְּרוּעָה֙ תְרוּעָ֑ה תְרוּעָ֨ה תְרוּעָֽה׃ תרועה תרועה׃ תרועת biṯ·rū·‘āh biṯrū‘āh bitruAh hat·tə·rū·‘āh hattərū‘āh hatteruAh tə·rū·‘āh ṯə·rū·‘āh tə·rū·‘aṯ tərū‘āh ṯərū‘āh tərū‘aṯ teruAh teruAt ū·ḇiṯ·rū·‘āh ū·ṯə·rū·‘āh ū·ṯə·rū·‘aṯ ūḇiṯrū‘āh ūṯərū‘āh ūṯərū‘aṯ uteruAh uteruAt uvitruAh
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