“After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, restraining the four winds of the earth so that no wind could blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree. Then I saw another angel, who had the seal of the living God, rise up from the east. He cried out in a loud voice to the four angels who were empowered to harm the earth and the sea: “Don’t harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we seal the slaves of our God on their foreheads.” And I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 sealed from every tribe of the Israelites… After this I looked, and there was a vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, which no one could number, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were robed in white with palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb! All the angels stood around the throne, the elders, and the four living creatures, and they fell facedown before the throne and worshiped God, saying: Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen. Then one of the elders asked me, “Who are these people robed in white, and where did they come from?” I said to him, “Sir, you know.” Then he told me: These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. For this reason they are before the throne of God, and they serve Him day and night in His sanctuary. The One seated on the throne will shelter them: They will no longer hunger; they will no longer thirst; the sun will no longer strike them, nor will any heat. For the Lamb who is at the center of the throne will shepherd them; He will guide them to springs of living waters, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:1-17 HCSB)
Note: I omitted the verses that enumerate the 12 tribes and the number of each tribe who are sealed from the above quote only for brevity. You may click the link to read the passage in its entirety.
One of the struggles we have with reading and studying different sections of scripture is that we often fail to relate the passage we’re studying within its context of the whole. I would encourage you to go back and read the previous chapter as you read the passage quoted above. I believe our current study in chapter seven answers that final question given to us at the conclusion of the previous chapter: “…the great Day of Their wrath has come! And who is able to stand?” So that will really be our focus as we study and work our way through this passage.
Who’s able to stand?
Just who is able to stand when the judgment of God and the Lamb begins to unfold (or unroll, since it flows from the divine scroll with seven seals)? So far, we’ve heard the contents of six of the seven seals as Their wrath is revealed as the scroll is unsealed. We saw the four horsemen as their respective judgment authority and tasks are given to them. We heard the cries of those under the altar who sought for God to avenge their blood and how His vengeance would be withheld until their number was completed. Then we heard last week how the kings, the nobles, the military commanders, the rich, the powerful, and every slave and free man on the earth sought to hide from the wrath of the One seated on the throne and from the Lamb. Who can possibly stand when it comes forth or flows from the divine scroll? John begins to tell us…
John sees four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, restraining the four winds of the earth. At first, it is easy to miss the reason for their restraint of the winds. Throughout scripture, wind has represented the judgment of God blowing through people’s lives and over the landscape of their culture. So, an angel who rises out of the sun (east) and carries God’s divine seal instructs the four angels to hold back the winds of judgment until the slaves (Gr: doulous – bond servants) of God are sealed on their foreheads. I believe the wind of judgment that’s being restrained are the very things flowing out of those six seals we’ve discussed in previous weeks.
Who’s able to stand?
The next verses are among those known by most people who’ve ever read or even heard anything about the book of Revelation: “And I heard the number of those sealed: 144,000 sealed from every tribe of the Israelites. 12,000 sealed from the tribe of Judah…” and it continues for 11 more tribes. The math is really simple: 12 x 12 x 1000 = 144,000. While the math may be simple, the results have caused debates for the past 2,000 plus years. The primary questions surrounding these verses seem to be: 1) who constitutes the 144,000 sealed by God; and 2) am I among them and, if not, how do I get my name included on that list? While I intend to try and confidently answer those questions, I’m just as confident that my answer will not satisfy many.
The mark on the forehead is certainly not new. It certainly seems that this mark is given to God’s bond slaves in clear and stark contrast to those who receive the mark of the beast on their foreheads in Revelation 13. Ezekiel mentions this same mark in reference to the prophecy of a “man clothed in linen” marking those in Jerusalem who “sigh and groan over all the detestable practices committed in it (see Ez. 9).” God’s glory would then pass through the city and those without the mark would be slaughtered by six “men” who had been sent to carry out His judgment. It is certainly easy and reasonable to see these six “men” of Ezekiel’s prophecy as John’s six seals of divine judgment being released from the scroll. Regardless, the 144,000 sealed are identified in our passage as those who are bond slaves of our God.
Now here’s where we hit this wall of symbolism, again. It seems apparent, to me, that the numbers are symbolic and should not be taken literally. This book is a book of symbolism and you must let the symbols speak without trying to force a literal interpretation of them. First, there are the twelve 12 tribes of the Israelites. If you look at the list of tribes from the Old Testament, this list is certainly different. That’s not entirely surprising because the list of the 12 tribes used throughout the Old Testament rarely matches the historical list of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel from Genesis 35 (Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, Benjamin, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher). The main point is that the number John heard of those sealed (144,000) is symbolic of the full and complete number of ALL the bond slaves of our God. Absolutely NOBODY is left out!
But why are they listed in this manner? Why specify the 12,000 from each of the tribes? It is reminiscent of the census in Numbers, and I believe it is like this because of how they will go into battle with the Lamb in Revelation 14. They are 12 regiments of 12,000 each who have not defiled themselves with the world’s corruption, and they stand with the Lamb on the Mount of Olives (see Rev. 14). When the Lamb returns and stands on the Mount of Olives, and all 144,000 who bear His name stand with Him, they stand there in stark contrast to those who bear the mark of the Beast and stand with Him (see Rev. 13). Pay close attention! Do you see what’s about to unfold?
Who’s able to stand?
Now, John looks and sees a “vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, which no one could number, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.” I need you to notice something that is really easy to miss. In the previous verses, John didn’t see the 144,000 from the 12 tribes but only HEARD the number of those who were sealed. As mentioned, I believe that number is symbolic. But when he looks, he SEES a vast multitude which no one could number from every nation, tribe, people, and language STANDING before the throne and before the Lamb. He hears the completeness of those sealed by God’s mark but then he sees the vastness of the multitude bearing that mark standing before the throne and the Lamb. He needs to hear the proclamation of assurance that God’s work of redemption is complete before he sees the fulfillment of it in a way that is beyond human comprehension.
We need to hear the promise of God’s complete care over us before we see its fulfillment in the midst of our trial.
If you haven’t done so yet, stop a moment and let that statement above settle down deep into your soul. Our fellow believers in the churches of Asia Minor needed to hear the promised fulfillment and completion of God’s promises before they faced the grim reality of the great tribulation they were told was coming. The hope that these horrific circumstances were still under the complete sovereignty and control of God is what gave these Christians the ability to remain faithful. If you struggle to stay faithful, pay close attention to God’s promises and listen to the rest of this.
This vast multitude is wearing white robes and waving palm branches as they cry out: “Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!” Then all the angels, elders, and the four living creatures fell facedown before the throne and worshiped God, saying: “Amen! Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen!” One of the elders asks John, “Who are these people robed in white, and where did they come from?” John didn’t speculate as to who they are; he simply says, “Sir, you know.” In like manner, we shouldn’t speculate but just listen.
“Then he told me: These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. For this reason they are before the throne of God, and they serve Him day and night in His sanctuary. The One seated on the throne will shelter them…” (Revelation 7:14-15 HCSB)
First, notice who they are and where they come from: they are coming out of the great tribulation and they are those who’ve washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Who’s able to stand? Only those who bear His name on their foreheads and are coming out of the great tribulation having washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Many modern Christians tend to reserve the idea of “the great tribulation” for some future time just before Christ’s return. I believe that John teaches us that we’ve been living in “the great tribulation” since Jesus’ ascension. He certainly indicates that the only hope for the churches of Asia Minor to stay obedient and faithful in the face of their great tribulation is found in his vision as related to them in Revelation. I believe it’s our only hope, too.
When we wash our robes in the blood of the Lamb, then His Spirit does a work in us and through us, and He keeps it up until the day Christ returns (see Phil. 1:16).
Next, notice how their worship and of God’s promise to shelter them is full of imagery from the Feast of Tabernacles. You can find a description of the feast in Leviticus 23. The basics are that the people were to construct a booth or tabernacle from items they could gather and then live in it for a week of worship and celebration. The feast was to remind them of God’s provision and care during the time of their wilderness wandering. That is precisely what we’re seeing in our focal passage, God’s promised provision and care in the midst of their wilderness wandering. At the end of verse 15, it says: “The One seated on the throne will shelter them: They will not hunger; they will not thirst; the sun will not strike them, nor will any heat.” The word “shelter” in this verse is the word for tabernacle (Gr: skenosai) and would be simply translated: The One seated on the throne will tabernacle over them.
There’s no longer a need for God’s people to build a booth out of branches and palm fronds that they gather. The One seated on the throne will place Himself as the protection over them and their lives. This is no longer a reminder of what God has done for them in the past during their wilderness wandering; this is now the fulfillment of what God does for them now and throughout all eternity! God tells them: You will no longer hunger, no longer thirst, no longer suffer under tribulation for I will place Myself over you like a tent. I will be your provision and your protection forever!
Finally, the Lamb who is at the center of the throne will shepherd them. In words reminiscent of the great psalm of David: “He will guide them to springs of living waters, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” I don’t think these are separate promises, one from God and one from the Lamb. I think this is classic Hebrew poetic parallelism. I think God pitching His tent of protection and provision over them is repeated as the Lamb shepherding them to living waters and God wiping away their tears.
Who’s able to stand?
Don’t speculate; listen. The one who will be able to stand when God’s wrath is being poured out upon man’s rebellion is the one who is sealed with the name of God on his forehead. He’s counted among those whom God has numbered as His people, that full and complete list of true Israelites. He’s in that vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language who stand before the Lamb wearing robes washed white by the Lamb’s blood. He’s waving a palm branch in worship of the One who has pitched His tent over him. And he’s among those who cry out: “SALVATION belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
Who’s able to stand? Only those who are shepherded by the Lamb and drink from the spring of living waters as God wipes away every tear from their eyes. That’s who can stand when God’s wrath is poured out.
Who’s able to stand? Only those who stand in HIM for salvation belongs to our God! Where do you stand?
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