The Torah describes the seventh month as one with many holidays which we commemorate: Rosh HaShana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Shmini Atzeret. But the Books of the Neviim and Ketuvim describe other interesting events that happen during the seventh month.
Sadly, we are familiar with one tragic event that happened during the seventh month: the assassination of Gedalya, the governor of the remnant of Judah after the destruction of the First Beit HaMikdash. His blood was spilled, and the murder led to other events that culminated in the exile of the remnant, as well (II Kings 25, 25; Jeremiah 41, 1).
A false prophet, Hananya son of Azzur, died at a time that his false prophecy of triumph and relief from the Babylonians would have supposedly come true, but did not (Jeremiah 28, 17).
On a happier note, the festivals take on added joy during the time of the early monarchy in Israel: King Shlomo gathers the people of Israel to celebrate the dedication of the First Beit HaMikdash during the seventh month, at the time of the “Festival”- of Sukkot (I Kings 8, 2; II Chronicles 7, 10).
During the period of the Return to Zion, joyous and solemn activities occurring during the seventh month.
The prophet Haggai had begun by calling the people to begin to rebuild the Beit HaMikdash, urging them to strengthen their resolve even though times were economically difficult, and in the seventh month- after some small beginnings, he speaks to the people near the end of Sukkot. He urges them to be strong and to continue the building, and tells them not to be afraid- that though it currently pales in comparison with the first Mikdash, this second one will be glorious when it is completed (Haggai 2, 1-9).
The Book of Ezra describes the people setting out from their cities and gathering in Jerusalem to worship at the altar that the Kohen Gadol Yehoshua had built with the Jewish governor Zerubavel, where sacrifices would be offered (Ezra 3).
In the book of Nehemiah, seventh–month holiday celebrations are described with a prohibition to mourn and an obligation to partake in festive meals, but with some surprising features. First of all, the people gathered from their various cities to hear the Torah being read in Jerusalem on the first of the seventh month (what we would call Rosh HaShana), in a ceremony that seemed reminiscent of the “Hakhel” (Gathering) ceremony (mentioned in Deuteronomy 31, 10-13) which was to take place every seven years around Sukkot time (Nehemiah 8).
Following that, the people hasten to prepare for celebrating the festival of Sukkot- but Nehemiah mentions that this was the first such Sukkot celebration since the time of Yehoshua! (Nehemiah 8)
The period of the Return to Zion has other parallels with the book of Yehoshua- such as dealing with unfriendly neighbors, attempting to build a society in the Land, and coordinating the autonomous governing powers with the prophetic and religious leadership.
But on the 24th of the seventh month, the people engaged in fasting and repentance, and they read from the Torah. The Leviim recited a long supplication and prayer, with a historical retrospective remembering and listing the good God had done for the people of Israel since the time of the Exodus from Egypt until their days, pledging to commit themselves to following God’s law, not intermarrying, as well as pledging to contribute tithes and other contributions towards upkeep of the Mikdash (Nehemiah 9-10).
In a hopeful look toward the future, Zekhariah prophesies that one day, the nations of the world will also gather in Jerusalem to celebrate the Sukkot festival during the seventh month (Zechariah 14, 16).