Who Are the 144,000 of Revelation?

Posted : 3 Dec, 2010 07:13 PM

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Revelation 7 introduces an amazing mystery of great interest to those who want to understand how today�s disunity among God�s servants will be resolved. It is the mystery of the �144,000� described in verses 1-8:

Revelation 7:1-5 � 1 After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the Earth, holding the four winds of the Earth, that the wind should not blow on the Earth, on the sea, or on any tree. 2 Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the Earth and the sea, 3 saying, "Do not harm the Earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads." 4 And I heard the number of those who were sealed. One hundred and forty-four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel were sealed : 5 of the tribe of Judah twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand were sealed;...[12,000 per tribe]

This short passage gives us scant few details about this future unified group and leaves us with big questions. We learn only that they are:

1. 144,000 servants: But can this small number really be all who are left of God�s servants at that point? Is everyone raptured already or does God have others who are not part of the 144,000 also on earth?

2. Sealed with protection: Chapters 6, 8 and 9 tell us what they need protection from: destructive global earthquakes, winds, fires and deep impacts followed by poisoned waters and a �nuclear winter.� But where are they sealed and why do they receive this special protection differently from the rest of God�s servants that may exist? Are they on

some special mission? If so, what?

3. Israelites equally divided among all twelve tribes of Israel (minus Dan): This is most puzzling considering that most of the tribes mentioned are the northern �Lost Ten Tribes�. (The rest are the southern tribes of Judah, Benjamin and Lev or the �Jews�) So, a prediction of a large gathering of all twelve of them is as odd as the citizens of the lost city of Atlantis being reunited in our day.



Literal or Not?

Thus, from a Christian viewpoint, this passage is impossible to take at face value. With one third of the world being Christian today, it is hard to imagine that only 144,000 people will be counted as God�s servants and worthy of protection in the end times. As a result, few accept this passage to mean what it plainly says. Resulting interpretations vary, but they all have one thing in common: resorting to the use of some degree of metaphorical or allegorical interpretation to resolve the contradiction between the plain meaning and the Christian paradigm. When the constraints of the literal interpretation are nullified through using allegorization, the interpretations that can result are only limited by ones imagination. There

always seem to be verses ready to be taken out of context and support such interpretations. This commonly includes claiming that �Israel� does not mean Israel but �represents� the Christian Church, which has �replaced� her as a kind of �spiritual Israel�. Of course, this allows any gentile Christian group to apply the prophecy to themselves. And who is not

going to be tempted to believe that their group is the 144,000 who God is going to favor with protection and call �blameless�?

For example, the JWs believe they will be the 144,000, as did the Worldwide Church of God (WCG). The WCG once even had membership numbers not far off from 144,000. But for any church denomination to fit this prophecy would require ignoring that it speaks literally about a collection of the scattered tribes of Israel, regathered in the end times.

In contrast, as explained earlier, the approach of this is to resist the temptation to go this route of interpretation, even when my preconceived paradigms tell me otherwise. The common practice of interpreting plain passages to mean something different from what they say amounts to breaking Scripture�unless the passage clearly states or requires it be

interpreted that way, such as Jesus� own parables did. Jesus stated that no Scripture can be broken or contradicted (John 10:35) and Revelation 7 is not presented as a parable, thus, however impossible it may seem, we must endeavor to make sense of its plain meaning.

We will see as we proceed that this passage can make perfect sense when taken literally and thereby give us useful insight into God�s plan to bring his servants together in unity before the GT. In fact, instead of a pre-tribulation rapture, this gathering to safety on Earth is the real plan of how God will save his servants through those 3� years. To see it all just

requires bringing all the related passages together and thinking them through critically and carefully with care not to read anything into them. The areas we will cover include, the �other� 144,000 of Revelation 14, the twelve and the seventy who Jesus sent out during his ministry, the Woman of Revelation 12, the Two Witnesses of Revelation 11, and the �end times Elijah� of Malachi 4.

In other words, we will understand the plain reading of the 144,000 account through connecting other big mysteries of the Bible (which will also become plain along the way). When it is done we�ll understand clearly how God will unify us in the end times.

Revelation 14, The Other 144,000 Chapter

The first related passage to look at is the only other chapter that directly talks about the 144,000: chapter 14. People often wonder if this 144,000 is not a second, different 144,000. As we proceed it will become apparent that only one group of 144,000 rather than two, can fulfill the prophecies that require 144,000 firstfruits sent on their special mission in the end

times. We will also find at least one of the questions created by chapter 7 resolved here, but not without careful consideration.

Revelation 14:1-6, 12 � 1 ...there on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with Him were 144,000 who had His name and His Father�s name written on their foreheads. 2 I heard a sound from heaven like the sound of cascading waters and like the rumbling of loud thunder. The sound I heard was also like harpists playing on their harps. 3 They sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders, but no one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4 These are

the ones not defiled with women, for they have kept their virginity. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They were redeemed from the human race as the firstfruits for God and the Lamb. 5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless. 6 Then I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having the eternal gospel to announce to the inhabitants of the earth�to every nation, tribe, language, and people.... 12 Here is the endurance of the saints, who keep the commandments of God and the faith in Jesus.�

While chapter 7 told us that the 144,000 sealed servants of God are made up of 100% descendants of all twelve tribes of Israel, it did not tell us anything more about where they are or for what purpose they are sealed. Now, care must be taken not to assume that if winds are held back over the entire earth that it means the 144,000 must be everywhere at the time of the sealing. That is not what it says. Instead, remember that a single angel rising from the East seals the 144,000 �not the four angels over the four corners of the Earth. This points to them already being gathered somewhere at the time of their sealing where one angel can easily seal them (remember, angels are not omnipresent like God and cannot be

everywhere at once such as we see from the angel held up from reaching Daniel for three weeks�Dan 10:12-13).

In contrast to this, when the rapture or gathering to heaven happens �after the tribulation of those days,� God sends multiple angels to gather �his elect� (defined as the �the Church�, not �Jews� elsewhere�1Pet 1:1-2; Col 3:12; Titus 1:1) because they are spread all over the Earth (Mark 13:24, 27). We will see this state of already being gathered at the time of their sealing confirmed as we look at further verses.



When and Where Are the 144,000 Sealed? Coming next post

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