The Hebrew month of Elul initiates a 40 day period called Teshuvah. The point of the season is to prepare for the civil Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. This God appointed feast day is also referred to as Yom Teruah by Jews. Christians may refer to the day as the Feast of Trumpets. The season of Teshuvah concludes on Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement.
Teshuvah is a time to turn toward God. People are called to turn away from their sin, repent, and change course. Let go of the ways of the world. It is a time of inward reflection and sincere self-assessment. The goal is a change in lifestyle away from sin to obedience in God’s word. Return to God and His ways. This is not a warm and fuzzy spiritual word that causes your stomach to flutter or hair to stand on your neck. There should be some conviction. Be honest. Right is right and wrong is wrong. We can all do better. Prepare and turn to God with a joyful heart. The 40 day period starts on Elul 1 and ends on Tishri 10, Yom Kippur.
“Repent” is not a mystical, spiritual word that has some deep and hidden theological meaning. The Greek word for “repent” in the New Testament is μετανοεο/metanoeo. It means: to change one’s mind for better, heartily to amend with abhorrence of one’s past sins.
The ultimate expression of the Teshuvah likely results in Revelation 22 when believers in Christ meet God the Father Himself. Will that event occur on Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement?
Revelation 22:4 They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads.
Elul is the last month of the civic calendar in Judaism. Elul is the sixth month of God’s calendar.
Jewish tradition points to the name of the month to be an acronym of “Ani l’dodi v’dodi li” a quote from Song of Songs 6:3 I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine…
In Aramaic, the vernacular of the Jewish people at the time that the month names were adopted, the word Elul means “search”. Per Strong’s Concordance, Elul means “nothingness” in the Hebrew.
The month is directly mentioned one time in the Bible.
Nehemiah 6:15 So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of the month Elul, in fifty-two days.
~
Of course there is disagreement on when the month of Elul actually begins. On our western Gregorian calendar in the year 2025, this would be at sunset Saturday, August 23rd or Monday, August 25th, as calculated by 21st century time keeping. And then there are those who are waiting on the sighting of the new moon to determine the start of the month. Jewish time keepers cannot agree.
The Essenes followed a solar calendar. A solar calendar has a leap week as compared to a leap month with a lunar calendar. On the Essene calendar, Elul 1st took place on what was Sunday, August 17th, 2025. It is the year 5950 AM. In other words, 5,950 years since creation.
The Essenes also marked the beginning of the year in the spring with the month of Nisan or Abib as described in Exodus.
Exodus 12:1-2 Now the Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall be the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year to you…”
Incidentally, this is a jubilee year on the Essene calendar. There are some who think the resurrection of believers and the rapture will occur during a jubilee year.
https://paulthepoke.com/category/jubilee
One Jewish custom of Elul is to visit a cemetery. This is quite interesting in light of the Jewish belief that the resurrection of the dead will occur during the period of Teshuvah. Specifically, the resurrection is to occur on the new moon holiday of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. Christians refer to this as the Feast of Trumpets. Orthodox Jews do not believe in Christ let alone the New Testament. Apostle Paul’s letters to the Corinthians and Colossians would confirm their tradition.
1 Corinthians 15:52b at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
Resurrection first, then the rapture occurs. The question is the amount of time between the two events.
Am I saying the resurrection of the dead and the rapture is in approximately one month from Elul 1st per identification of the new moon of Tishri? No, but it is possible.
As believers, should we be ready for Christ to gather us into the clouds? Yes, just like any other day.
There is only one New Moon festival, Yom Teruah or the Feast of Trumpets. The Apostle Paul tells us Jesus has big plans for the Feast of Trumpets at some point in the future.
Colossians 2:16-17 Therefore let no one judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a feast, a New Moon, or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the body that casts it belongs to Christ.
