Three years have passed since Rabbi Jonathan Cahn’s powerful prophetic message resounded on the National Mall during “The Return: National and Global Day of Prayer and Repentance.” The message he delivered on Sept. 26, 2020, drawing correlations between ancient Scripture and present circumstances, still reverberates.
As the event commenced with the resounding of trumpets and shofars, echoing the biblical solemn assembly described in Joel 2:15, Cahn, the author of the No. 1 bestseller “The Josiah Manifesto,” urged the assembled crowd to reflect on the grievous sins of our nation and the world. He emphasized how, similar to the people of ancient Israel, we have strayed from God, replacing Him with idols such as prosperity, comfort and immorality.
“We too have become our own gods,” Cahn lamented.
Cahn’s message also touched upon the sensitive issue of abortion. He called for repentance, saying the collective hands of the nation are stained with the blood of millions of unborn lives lost.
Cahn’s message was a stark call to acknowledge the nation’s moral failures. Nearly two years later, the Supreme Court overturned the infamous Roe v. Wade decision that made abortion legal in the United States in 1973.
By smashing a clay vessel, reminiscent of the prophet Jeremiah’s actions in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, Cahn emphasized the gravity of the situation.
“A house that wars against its own foundation cannot remain standing,” Cahn said. “That is why we have come on this ground and have gathered all over America and the world, because the hour is late, and the moment is critical. … We must seek His mercy as never before. We have come here because God has given His ongoing biblical promise of, ‘If my people who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and will heal their land'” (2 Chron. 7:14).
Throughout his message, Cahn repeated the Lord’s call to “Return, return.” He knelt on the stage, inviting those who could to join him in a posture of repentance. Cahn’s message conveyed that God’s voice is calling America and the nations of the world to return, offering the promise of healing and forgiveness.
As he concluded his message, he pondered the future, questioning whether it would bring judgment and calamity or the possibility of a return and revival. His message was a reminder that the choice is ours. He extended an appeal for everyone to come to Jesus, emphasizing the urgency of accepting Christ as one’s savior by saying, “The time for salvation is now.”
That times message is still as poignant as ever three years later. It serves as a call to repentance, a plea for healing and a reminder that the future of the nation and the world hinges on our response to God’s call to return to Him. {eoa}
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Shawn A. Akers is the online editor at Charisma Media.
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