The Hebrew Month of Elul | Gateway to Unlocking Potential

The Hebrew month of Elul leads up to the season of the Fall Feasts. It is a time to be drawn to the Father’s heart for repentance and introspection.  

As such, Elul is considered the designated month of favor and teshuvah. Teshuvah is translated as “return” and reflects more than a remorseful heart but also a heart that has returned to the Lord. 

Teshuvah in the Hebrew Month of Elul

• A teshuvah heart actively confesses and abandons what separates us from Him and embraces complete spiritual transformation. 
• True teshuva is a journey of returning, and Elul marks a time when we return to the Lord as we approach Rosh Hashanah and the Days of Awe. 

According to the Mishnah and Jewish tradition, the first of Elul is the New Year for animal tithes, similar to the New Year for Trees in Shevat. In Biblical times, the instruction surrounding this was that 10% of all animals were rendered sacred to God and sacrificed in the Temple. 

This sanctified the remainder of the flock and showed dependency upon the Father as the true Shepherd.  This month, we sanctify what is inside of us for the service of the Lord and surrender to Him in repentance and deed.

Embracing the Essence of Elul

• “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul…”—Deuteronomy 10:12

The most basic level of service is to serve God out of fear. The next level is to serve Him out of love. In Jewish teaching, delighting to do His will from a place of love for Him and His ways is considered a “merit” that God will reward. 

True transformation takes place from a place of love and relationship, and we begin to ready our hearts for the fall feast season ahead of us. 

• “Then I said, ‘Behold, I come; in the scroll of the book it is written of me. I delight to do Your will, O my God, and Your law is within my heart.”—Psalm 40:7-8 

40 Days and 40 Nights of Repentance

The Bible provides a framework for the following events, but specific dates are not explicitly recorded. Thus, the sequence of events (breaking of the tablets, intercession, and second ascent) is supported in scripture. The specific dates and periods of time come from Jewish interpretation, which has been passed down traditionally through generations.

It all begins in Exodus 32. We read the story of the Golden Calf, where Moses returns from Mt. Sinai after 40 days and nights (Exodus 24:18).  

He angrily breaks the tablets of the law upon seeing the nation worshiping an idol after quickly turning their hearts away from the Father.

According to Jewish tradition, the timeline would have looked something similar to this:

• 17th of Tammuz: Moses breaks the tablets after seeing the Golden Calf  (Exodus 32:19).
• 18th of Tammuz to 29th of Av: Moses intercedes (Exodus 32:30-32). The idolaters are punished (Exodus 32:25-28, 35). Preparation is made for the second set of tablets (Exodus 34:1-3).
• 1st of Elul: Moses ascends Mount Sinai with the second set of tablets and returns on Yom Kippur 40 days later (Exodus 34:28). This second ascent concluded on Yom Kippur when Moses returned with the new tablets, demonstrating not only God’s forgiveness but also a renewal of covenant with His people.

Thus, the first period of 40 days following the Golden Calf is primarily understood to be a time of intercession. 

The second period, from the beginning of Elul to Yom Kippur, is distinguished as a time of divine mercy and repentance, culminating on the Day of Atonement. This is when God’s bond of love was renewed with His people. Once again, they rested in His presence.

When God Offers Us a Change in Identity and Spiritual Transformation

There is a teaching in the Talmud where wisdom and prophecy are asked: “What is a sinner’s punishment?” 

• Wisdom suggests that evil pursues sinners (Proverbs 13:21).
• Prophecy suggests that sin leads to death (Ezekiel 18:4).

When Hashem was asked, He said, “Let him repent, and he will receive atonement” (Psalm 25:8).

When Moses returned with the second set of tablets, it reflected the love of the heart of the Father toward His people giving them a second chance. Therefore, the days of Elul are remembered as a time of love and repentance where we are drawn to the outstretched redeeming arms of our Father–arms that are reaching out to us in mercy. 

Changing Your Spiritual Identity

Repentance marks a change in identity. When we repent, we no longer live as the person who sinned and is seen differently in the spirit (Isaiah 1:18; Hebrews 8:12; Psalm 103:12).

Repentance–teshuvah–is woven into the very fabric of creation. But the fact that the Father draws us to Himself to repent is quite simply based on love and mercy. In other words, it is the Hebrew word tzedek, which means “an act of charity, an act of generosity.” For God to forgive us is an amazing gift, but He steps beyond that when He calls on our hearts to be drawn toward His–that is mercy. That is the month and season of Elul. 

Daily Jewish Traditions: Reading Psalm 27 and Sounding the Shofar

During the month of Elul, it is a tradition to read Psalm 27 daily and to sound the shofar every morning. Our physical ears outwardly hear the shofar, but it is the inner response that God is seeking– the awakening of what is within and drawing us to Himself. 

When we are drawn to God in true repentance, offered transformation rooted in a sincere desire to change our ways. It is not simply spoken words but rooted in a heart position with action to support a new identity with single-minded devotion.

Single-minded devotion to God is key to living a lifestyle that follows God’s instructions and yields in repentance; there cannot be any Golden Calves in our lives. In the Hebrew month of Elul, we are offered an opportunity to repent for any idols we built so that we can enter the new year from a transformed place. 

Generosity. Love. Repentance. Transformation. 

According to Rabbinical teaching:

• Generosity leads to love
• Love leads to repentance
• Perfect repentance leads to complete transformation 

This is the embodiment of the journey of the Hebrew month of Elul: Repentance that leads us to a complete transformation where we are no longer the person who sinned but have exchanged our identity and embraced the best God has for us.

Hebrew Letter: Yud and Building Spiritual Foundations

The Hebrew month of Elul is also associated with the Hebrew Letter “yud.”

Yud is basically a dot, creating the basis from which all other shapes are formed. If you were to take a pen to paper to write a short note, draw a sketch, or write a complete novel, a small dot would be “the first mark” so to speak. “A dot” cannot be divided into various components and creates a building block/foundation for ais to come.

The Hebrew month of Elul is, therefore, a foundational month supporting the season and year to follow. 

The Hebrew letter Yud is the tenth letter of the alphabet.

• Ten means completion or perfection. 
• In Jewish tradition, ten is considered a “hidden number” and deeply symbolic.  
• There were 10 utterances to create the world.
• Ten men create a “minyan” (a quorum of ten Jewish adults required for certain religious services, practices, or rituals and can be the smallest number to form a congregation). 
• Ten plagues.
• Ten commandments.
• Ten tests of Abraham. 
• Abraham was 10 generations from Noah; Noah ten generations from Adam. 
• Ten “I am statements” in the book of John.
• Ten virgins, ten talents, ten minas.

We see a pattern through scripture that “ten” represents God’s authority, completeness, divine perfection, or God’s order, which is deeply symbolic.

According to Rabbinic teaching the number ten symbolizes a state of holiness that touches upon the sacred and supernatural world—one might say the “Fourth Dimension.” There “is something more” something “hidden within” the number ten that moves beyond the surface level of initial perception. 

Living with a Hope and a Future: The World to Come 

• “Oh, how great is Your goodness, which You have laid up for those who fear You, which You have prepared for those who trust in You In the presence of the sons of men! You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the plots of man; You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues.”—Psalm 31:19-20 (emphasis added)

The Hebrew letter “yud” implies intent for the future and, therefore, points to the hope of promise. The smallest of letters represents what is concealed and cannot be expressed with words or fully conceptualized. Even the greatest of books and works of art began as a foundational “first dot” and, from this place, changed the world’s future. A humble beginning–a transformative end. 

Similarly, the world to come, the future of God’s Kingdom, is also a hidden thing; it is not yet possible for us to fully grasp what it looks like through our current limited human understanding. We cannot fully comprehend it. As stated in Ephesians 3, God’s love for us is beyond our understanding. 

• “… so that you, with all God’s people, will be given strength to grasp the breadth, length, height and depth of the Messiah’s love, yes, to know it, even though it is beyond all knowing, so that you will be filled with all the fullness of God.”—Ephesians 3:18, 19 (CJB)
  

As a small dot, the Hebrew letter yud creates a starting point or a building block for other letters and words that give life and create. Likewise, the Hebrew month of Elul is foundational and full of potential waiting to be actualized.

Hebrew Tribe of Gad: Hidden Thoughts and Desires

In the Hebrew month of Elul, there is a focus on the connection between the hidden thoughts of the mind, the desires of the heart, and actions performed in wisdom to unlock hidden potential.

We see this reflected when Moses blessed the tribe of Gad:

• “And of Gad he said: ‘Blessed is he who enlarges Gad; He dwells as a lion, and tears the arm and the crown of his head. He provided the first part for himself, because a lawgiver’s portion was reserved there. He came with the heads of the people; He administered the justice of the Lord, and His judgments with Israel.”—Deuteronomy 33:20-21

According to various Rabbinical sources, those killed in battle by a Gadite were identifiable and were eliminated by a single blow that cut off the arm and the head. Thus, the tribe of Gad rejected the idea that there was any form of disconnection between a man’s mind and his actions–they were inseparable, and this belief was reflected in this action.

The Gadites believed strongly in the union of the body and the mind and saw the connection between the actions of the arm, which is opposite of the heart, and represented the source of longing and intention.  

Sounding the Shofar and the Inner Awakening

As mentioned previously, during the Hebrew month of Elul, part of the daily tradition is the sounding of the shofar. The shofar is more than physically heard; it is also spiritually reacted to inspiring a call toward the heart of God and repentance. 

The outward sound ignites an inner response, teshuvah, which is to return to the service to the Father. When what is hidden within us is drawn upon and realized in its full potential, it is ultimately done so for the sake of Heaven and God’s Kingdom purpose.

In the Hebrew month of Elul, we focus on removing all hindrances through repentance and actionable change so that we can fully serve in excellence from a place of love and bring His Name glory (Matthew 5:16). 

Wisdom in Elul

This month, we can take what is considered dormant within and create action–transformation, change, and embracing a new identity.  We use this time to choose to go from dormant to deed, leaning into wisdom as our guide, knowing that wisdom is developed and practiced.

The word “wisdom” is mentioned over 200 times in the Bible and is the correct application of knowledge. It is taking what we “know and understand” and applying it to our daily thoughts, actions, and decisions. True wisdom unlocks our mind’s eye to see things from the Father’s perspective. 

• “How much better to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.” —Proverbs 16:16

The foundational Hebrew letter yud is connected to action rooted in wisdom that unlocks what is hidden within a person and manifests strength. 

• “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”—Jeremiah 29:11 

According to the Jewish sages, when we unlock what is hidden in us in this lifetime, it merits blessings in the world to come–the Kingdom. As Believers, we can liken this to the principle of living our lives focused on laying up treasures in Heaven:

• “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal;  but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”—Matthew 16:19- 21

In the Hebrew month of Elul, we would be wise to focus on the discipline of living with a heavenly perspective. We can further this by unlocking the Kingdom destinies concealed within us as wisdom-based action gleaned through the refining fire of strict justice. This is destiny birthed in repentance.

Seeking Our Full Potential 

In Psalm 27, recited daily through this month, we see that David had found his “one thing,” and what he deemed most important was dwelling in the presence of God. Nothing else matters if we are somehow separated from God and hindered in our relationship with the Father–recognizing that sin separates us from this place and that forgiveness restores us.

Jewish commentaries emphasize an understanding that David, even as a king and a prophet, contended with his spiritual journey. Psalm 27 was written from a place of reflection acknowledging the limitations of humanity and one’s desire to fully align ourselves with God’s will and purpose for us.

David recognized the power of teshuvah and the power of acknowledging areas he had fallen short by making an effort to return to the path God had for him—this discipline allows one to fulfill and unlock God-given potential. 

Psalm 27 is a consideration of this journey common to all humankind, where we live in the awareness that sin introduced at the fall through human weakness hinders the fulfillment of reaching our true potential and spiritual destiny. 

To unlock that which is within us—true potential— we must live in a constant state of returning to the heart of the Father—teshuvah.

Creation of the World: You Are Seeded with Potential

The creation of the world began on the 25th of Elul. On this day and in the days that followed, potential was seeded into all created things—“ten utterances” that unlocked destiny and purpose and set the world as we know it in place. 

The days of Elul are days when our Creator draws us close to His heart to return to His original intended purpose and our original design to live in His presence. As our hearts draw near to His, it is a picture of the ultimate form of mercy. And in turn, we serve Him with our full potential from a place of love, bringing glory to His Name.