1 Chronicles 16:6

16:6 and the priests Benaiah and Jahaziel were to blow trumpets regularly before the ark of God’s covenant.

Numbers 10:8

10:8 The sons of Aaron, the priests, must blow the trumpets; and they will be to you for an eternal ordinance throughout your generations.

Numbers 10:2

10:2 “Make ¹  two trumpets of silver; you are to make ²  them from a single hammered piece. ³  You will use them ⁴  for assembling the community and for directing the traveling of the camps.

Numbers 5:12-13

5:12 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘If any man’s wife goes astray and behaves unfaithfully toward him, 5:13 and a man has sexual relations ⁵  with her ⁶  without her husband knowing it, ⁷  and it is hidden that she has defiled herself, since ⁸  there was no witness against her, nor was she caught –

Psalms 81:13

81:13 If only my people would obey me! ⁹ 

If only Israel would keep my commands! ¹⁰ 

Joel 2:1

The Locusts’ Devastation

2:1 Blow the trumpet ¹¹  in Zion;

sound the alarm signal on my holy mountain!

Let all the inhabitants of the land shake with fear,

for the day of the Lord is about to come.

Indeed, ¹²  it is near! ¹³ 

Joel 2:15

2:15 Blow the trumpet ¹⁴  in Zion.

Announce a holy fast;

proclaim a sacred assembly!

[10:2]  ¹ tn The Hebrew text uses what is called the “ethical dative” – “make [for] you two trumpets.” It need not be translated, but can simply be taken to underscore the direct imperative.

[10:2]  ² tn The imperfect tense is again instruction or legislation.

[10:2]  ³ sn The instructions are not clearly spelled out here. But the trumpets were to be made of silver ingots beaten out into a sheet of silver and then bent to form a trumpet. There is archaeological evidence of silver smelting as early as 3000 b.c. Making silver trumpets would have been a fairly easy thing for the Israelites to do. The trumpet would have been straight, with a tapered form, very unlike the “ram’s horn” (שׁוֹפָר, shofar). The trumpets were used by the priests in Israel from the outset, but later were used more widely. The sound would be sharp and piercing, but limited in scope to a few notes. See further C. Sachs, The History of Musical Instruments.

[10:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “and they shall be for you for assembling,” which is the way of expressing possession. Here the intent concerns how Moses was to use them.

[5:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “and a man lies with her with the emission of semen.” This makes it clear that there was adultery involved, so that the going astray is going astray morally. The indication in the text is that if she had never behaved suspiciously the sin might not have been detected.

[5:13]  ⁶ tc The sign of the accusative אֹתָהּ (’otah) is probably to be repointed to the preposition with the suffix, אִתָּהּ (’ittah).

[5:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “and it is concealed from the eyes of her husband.”

[5:13]  ⁸ tn The noun clause beginning with the simple conjunction is here a circumstantial clause, explaining that there was no witness to the sin.

[81:13]  ⁹ tn Heb “if only my people were listening to me.” The Hebrew particle לוּ (lu, “if not”) introduces a purely hypothetical or contrary to fact condition (see 2 Sam 18:12).

[81:13]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “[and if only] Israel would walk in my ways.”

[2:1]  ¹¹ tn The word translated “trumpet” here (so most English versions) is the Hebrew שׁוֹפָר (shofar). The shophar was a wind instrument made from a cow or ram’s horn and used as a military instrument for calling people to attention in the face of danger or as a religious instrument for calling people to occasions of communal celebration.

[2:1]  ¹² tn Or “for.”

[2:1]  ¹³ sn The interpretation of 2:1-11 is very difficult. Four views may be mentioned here. (1) Some commentators understand this section to be describing a human invasion of Judah on the part of an ancient army. The exact identity of this army (e.g., Assyrian or Babylonian) varies among interpreters depending upon issues of dating for the book of Joel. (2) Some commentators take the section to describe an eschatological scene in which the army according to some is human, or according to others is nonhuman (i.e., angelic). (3) Some interpreters argue for taking the section to refer to the potential advent in the fall season of a severe east wind (i.e., Sirocco) that would further exacerbate the conditions of the land described in chapter one. (4) Finally, some interpreters understand the section to continue the discussion of locust invasion and drought described in chapter one, partly on the basis that there is no clear exegetical evidence in 2:1-11 to suggest a shift of referent from that of chapter one.

[2:15]  ¹⁴ tn See the note on this term in 2:1.