John now sees four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, Revelation 7:1 / Psalm 104:4 / Hebrews 1:7. The number four represents the Earth or physical things, as opposed to being spiritual.
There are four directions: north, south, east, and west. There are four elements: earth, fire, wind, and water. The number four often represents earthly things, Isaiah 57:13 / Jeremiah 18:17 / Jonah 1:4.
They are depicted as holding back the four winds of the earth to stop any wind blowing on the land, the sea and any tree, Revelation 7:1 / Isaiah 11:12 / Ezekiel 7:2. This implies that there is judgment coming. John now sees another angel, coming up from the east with a seal of the living God, Revelation 7:2.
McGuiggan, in his commentary, says the following concerning this other angel.
‘This is good news. There is mercy implied here. The sun, among other things, symbolises the attributes and goodness of God, Psalm 84:11 / Malachi 4:2 / 2 Peter 1:19 / Revelation 16:12 / Revelation 22:16.’
This angel calls out to four other angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea, but these angels are told not to harm the land, the sea or the trees, until we put a seal on the servants of our God, Revelation 7:3. This implies there was a waiting period, they had to wait until all of God’s righteous people were sealed, Ezekiel 9.
The sealing on the foreheads of God’s people isn’t to be taken literally, as we will see in Revelation 7:4. This sealing is a picture of spiritual protection, security, ownership, and preservation, Revelation 7:9-17 / 2 Timothy 2:19.
Here we’re introduced to the 144,000, but who are they? The number twelve represents God’s people. In the Old Testament, there were twelve patriarchs, and thus the twelve tribes of Israel constituted God’s nation, and in the New Testament, the twelve apostles were the ambassadors of Christ.
The number ten came to mean completeness. When multiplied by itself three times, in other words, 10 times 10, times 10, the number becomes 1000 and signifies complete fullness. 144,000 is a multiple of the number representing fullness and the number representing God’s people; in other words, 12 times 12 equals 144. Multiply these together, and 144,000 is reached, signifying the full number of God’s people or the total number of God’s faithful servants.
It never ceases to amaze me how some people are so inconsistent when it comes to interpreting the Scriptures. We’ve all met these sincere people who want nothing more to convince us that Christians can’t go to heaven where God dwells because that space is for the elite, it’s for the 144,000, but we can possess second best, heaven on Earth and remain here on Planet Earth after it has had its fiery cleansing process.
When it comes to the Book of Revelation, we have to remember that it’s highly figurative and highly symbolic, and when we come to understand what John wrote, we need to be consistent with what is literal and what is figurative; otherwise, we end up with all kinds of wonderful ideas.
Now, if the number 144,000 is literal, then we must conclude that its composition must also be literal, which means the number is composed of 12,000 Jews from each tribe mentioned, and none from Dan, Judges 18:14-31.
If the tribes of Revelation 7 are to be literally taken, then that would mean that not one person from the tribe of Ephraim or Dan will enter heaven, because they’re not included in this list.
And if we take this literally, that would mean that the Old Testament heroes like Joshua, who was from the tribe of Ephraim, and Samson, who was from the tribe of Dan, won’t be in heaven.
Notice also that even though ‘tribe of Joseph’ is mentioned, we know that Joseph wasn’t a tribe in the literal sense, which again helps us see that the whole context is figurative.
In Revelation 7:9-10, we will read about the ‘great multitude’. John later will identify the great multitude as in heaven, not on earth, Revelation 19:1, and if Revelation 19:1 is to be taken literally, then those who believe it’s only the 144,000 who will be in heaven must exclude the ‘great multitude, which no one could count’ from heaven.
Those who argue for a literal translation have a get-out clause for this, which is to create yet another group of people; they say this group represents the ‘earthly class.’
They tell us that only the 144,000 will be in heaven and everyone else will be on earth, but notice what the text actually says, this multitude was described as ‘standing before the throne’, and where is the throne, it’s in heaven, Revelation 1:4 / Revelation 4:2-10.
Again, we read these saints were ‘before the throne’, and they are serving God in ‘His temple’, Revelation 7:15 / Revelation 11:19. The 144,000 are mentioned again in Revelation 14:1-5, and again, the number is grouped with several other prominent symbols. Notice in Revelation 14:1, there is the ‘Lamb,’ which is a figure representing Christ, John 1:29 / Revelation 5:6.
In Revelation 14:1, there is Mount Zion, a symbol of divine government, as in Isaiah 2:2-4. In Revelation 14:3, there is the number 144,000, suggestive of the heavenly complement of God’s people.
In other words, no one will be missing who is supposed to be there. And then in Revelation 14:4, we have the saints who are depicted as ‘virgins,’ which descriptive emphasis emphasises their purity, 2 Corinthians 11:2.
And so, once again, when we read these passages, we must be consistent with our interpretation, if we’re going to say that the 144,000, is a literal number, then to be consistent, we should also argue that a literal Lamb was literally standing on literal Mount Zion with a group of literal men who had never been intimate with literal women, hence, were literal virgins!
If this whole thing were to be taken literally, this is what we would end up with. Only men will be in heaven; hence, Deborah, Naomi, Mary, Dorcas, and women of like faith are without that hope.
Only unmarried men who are virgins will gain heaven. This would exclude Abraham, Moses, Peter, and a host of other Bible characters. Surely, we can see how crazy this could get!
The 144,000 of Revelation 7 and Revelation 14 are to be identified with ‘the great multitude’; they are the same group viewed from different standpoints, and they all signify the entire body of the redeemed.
This group represents a body of people who were ‘purchased’ from among men, Revelation 5:9. The only purchase price ultimately available for human salvation is that of the blood of Jesus Christ, Acts 20:28 / 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 / 1 Peter 1:19-21.
Make no mistake about it, there’s not a person alive or who has ever lived will go on to live on planet Earth because when Christ returns, the Earth will be totally and utterly destroyed, Matthew 24:35 / 2 Peter 3:10 / Revelation 21:1.
Wherever we look at the 144,000, we must remember that John is using figurative language, and the Bible plainly teaches that there’s ultimately one hope, Ephesians 4:4, and that hope is reserved in heaven for the faithful, 1 Peter 1:3-5. The Scriptures teach nothing about an earth class and a heaven class in eternity.
Also in Revelation 7, we find a scene where God’s people are being sealed. God is unleashing His wrath upon the ungodly Roman government, but Christians are going to be sealed and safe. They will be taken care of because God knows those who are faithful to Him.
An important principle that we can learn from this has to do with the fact that during times of ungodliness, or at times when the world is immoral, as it is in our day-to-day, we can be sure that God knows those who are faithfully serving Him will be taken care of.
John now sees before him a great multitude which couldn’t be counted from all over the world, Genesis 15:5 / Genesis 32:12. The number was sealed, indicating God’s protection of all His people on earth.
They stood before the throne, and the Lamb, Revelation 5:6, and they were wearing white robes, indicating victorious saints in the keeping of God, Revelation 7:9 / Revelation 6:2 / Revelation 7:4.
They are also holding palm branches, which indicate a time of celebration and thanksgiving, John 12:13, as they did for the Feast of Tabernacles, Leviticus 23:40.
They would sing the ‘Ascent Psalms’, Psalm 120-134, and the great Hallal Psalms, Psalm 113- 118. They would praise God for His great salvation, who sits on His throne and to the Lamb, Revelation 5:6 / Revelation 2:26-27 / Revelation 3:21.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘God the Father, and He who is the Lamb of God, alike claim the honour of salvation. It is observable here that the redeemed ascribe their salvation to the Lamb as well as to Him who is on the throne.’
John later will identify the great multitude as in heaven, not on earth, Revelation 19:1, and if Revelation 19:1 is to be taken literally, then those who believe it’s only the 144,000 who will be in heaven must exclude the ‘great multitude, which no one could count’ from heaven.
Here we read that all the angels, the elders and the four living creatures were standing around the throne. All of them fell down on their faces before the throne and worshipped God. ‘Amen,’ they cry, all the praise, glory, wisdom, thanks, honour, power, and strength are to God forever and ever, Amen. These verses show us who is in control. It is God who is all-powerful; it is God who is in control, not Rome, not people, but God.
One of the elders asked John who are these in the white robes, Revelation 3:4-5, and where did they come from? John didn’t know, and so the elder told him. These are the ones who served God and who worshipped Him; these are the Christians who suffered but came out the other side victorious. What was the great tribulation they survived? The great tribulation in view here is the persecution of the saints under the Roman Empire.
McGuiggan, in his commentary, says the following.
‘In Revelation 6, we hear of one coming. In the first part of Revelation 7, we have the 144,000 sealed as protection during it. This clearly implies they were to go through it. And now we have a host who are the ones who ‘come out of the great tribulation.’ Manifestly, it is the tribulation of Revelation 6.’
Why did God allow them to suffer first? If we’re going to endure and be victorious, we must be faithful to God! We must make sure that we’re one of God’s children and that we’re living as we ought to live. We must be sure that our robes have been ‘washed in the blood of the Lamb,’ Hebrews 9:14 / 1 John 1:7.
How does that take place? If our robes are going to be washed in the blood of the Lamb, that means we must obey God’s teaching regarding the plan of salvation. We come into contact with the blood of Christ when we are baptised in order to wash our sins away in the blood of the Lamb, Acts 2:28 / Acts 22:16. That is where we come into contact with Jesus’ blood. These Christians in Revelation had endured, and they were the ones who would be victorious, not Rome!
The survivors of the great tribulation are totally devoted to God; they are before the throne, they serve Him day and night, Revelation 7:15 / Luke 2:37. God Himself is their shelter, Psalms 15:1-2 / John 17:21 / John 17:23 / Revelation 21:3.
Notice the blessings they receive because of their faithfulness: they will never hunger again, they will never thirst again, and they will be protected from the heat of the sun, Revelation 7:16 / Isaiah 49:9-10.
They will receive all these blessings because Jesus, the Lamb of God who is at the centre of the throne, will be their shepherd. Jesus the Good Shepherd, John 10:11. Jesus the Great Shepherd, Hebrews 13:20. Jesus the Chief Shepherd, 1 Peter 5:4.
He is the Shepherd who provides for all our needs, Psalms 23:1-2 / Psalms 23:5 / Psalms 36:8 / Isaiah 40:11. He will lead them to springs of living water, Isaiah 49:10 / John 4:13-14 / John 7:38. Now that their suffering is over, God Himself will wipe away every tear from their eyes, Isaiah 25:8 / Isaiah 60:20.