I think it
is important to continue to remind you that these posts are building on one
another from a foundation established in all previous posts, and they need to
be read in order for the best understanding.
With the
opening of chapter seven, we find God sealing 144,000 Jewish witnesses to testify
to His truth after the removal of the body of believers in the true
church.
Revelation 7:1-8 “And after these things I saw four
angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the
earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any
tree. And 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
given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the
sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their
foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
Of the tribe of Juda were
sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand. Of the
tribe of Aser were sealed
twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nepthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand. Of the
tribe of Simeon were sealed
twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi
were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand. Of the
tribe of Zabulon were sealed
twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph
were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.”
As will be seen
throughout the Revelation record, angels function as God’s agents for carrying
out God’s will concerning events on planet earth. In light of the glimpses provided in the
biblical record, I believe they have been just as busy behind the scenes
throughout history as they will be in the future; it’s just that in the
Revelation record their work is being more publicly proclaimed.
Four angels are
identified as having the authority to prevent further acts of judgment on
planet earth until 144,000 Jewish witnesses (12,000 each from the twelve tribes
of Israel) have been sealed for supernatural protection during this time of
judgment. I think it is significant that
these angels are identified as controlling the winds, a force of nature that
often causes destruction widely recognized as an “act of God.”
It comes to my mind that every time there is a
pause, there is another golden opportunity for salvation. The church has fulfilled its purpose and has
been removed; however, God always ensures that He has a witness on earth.
In light of the preceding rapture, this 144,000 along with God’s two special
witnesses (introduced in chapter 11, but clearly identified as testifying during
the first 3.5 years of the 7-year tribulation period) become the primary
witnesses of the gospel and the truth of scripture.
The events of the sixth seal judgment have
evidently resulted in many Jews finally accepting the truth of scripture and
turning to the Lord Jesus in faith. It is also fitting that God’s primary
witnesses during the tribulation period be Jewish, since the purpose of that
time period is to produce a purified remnant of Jewish believers through whom
God will fulfill His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob.
In contrast to his attempt to express the number
of angels he saw in Revelation 5:11, John is very specific about the number of
servants sealed; it is 144,000. Many
struggle with the different listings of the twelve tribes of Israel throughout
scripture. The important thing to note
is that twelve tribes are always designated as representing the whole of the
Jewish people.
In this listing the tribes of Dan and Ephraim are not
named, the two tribes that were noted for establishing idolatry in Israel. The wonderful thing is that the tribes of Dan
and Ephraim will be restored to a place of blessing in the millennium according
to Ezekiel. God will fulfill His promise to Abraham. Romans 11:29
states that “the calling of God is without repentance.”
Ezekiel
47:13 Thus saith the Lord GOD; This shall be the border, whereby ye shall
inherit the land according to the twelve tribes of Israel:
Ezekiel
48:1 & 5 Now these are the names of the tribes. From the north end to the
coast of the way of Hethlon, as one goeth to Hamath, Hazarenan, the border of
Damascus northward, to the coast of Hamath; for these are his sides east and
west; a portion for Dan….And by the border of Manasseh, from the east side unto
the west side, a portion for Ephraim.
Although the Jewish people have been scattered
throughout the world for almost 2,000 years, God has no problem in identifying
the physical lineage of the 144,000 witnesses.
(to be continued…)
No comments:
Post a Comment