Podcast Episode 19 (Condensed)
Happy New Year! If you’re reading this, it is an indication that God still has much planned for your life. I pray that 2025 is a year of growth, divine miracles, blessings, and sustainability for your life. We’re still studying the book of Revelation. Things are continuing to intensify. The world is no longer what it once was. This is actually true for our world today. The bible will be fulfilled. The book of Revelation will be fulfilled. What we know as “normal” will not always be that. I believe that God placed a mandate on me to conduct a series on the book of Revelation due to the perilous times ahead.
When I started this series on Revelation back in July of 2024, I stated how a lot was ahead for America. There wasn’t much happening in our country during that time. Since our last bible study in December, there have been terrorist attacks, mass killings, new illnesses, California fires, and so much more happening. My heart goes out to everyone who has been affected by the unprecedented attacks, illnesses, and fires. As I’ve stated since last year, it is important for us to read the book of Revelation. I pray that we extend a little more kindness, grace, and love to others.
Being that I’ve already study the entire book of Revelation, I will be paraphrasing, summarizing, and quoting directly from the scripture. Read along or beforehand (your choice). Today, we’re studying Revelation 7. This chapter describes how God’s people will be preserved. If you haven’t already listened to the Revelation 6 podcast, I encourage you to do so by clicking here.
Keep in mind, John the Revelator has been caught up in the spirit. The Lord is revealing great and mighty things to come to John. Revelation 7:1 NLT states, “Then I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds so they did not blow on the earth or the sea, or even on any tree.” After studying about the “four corners” of the earth, an angel stood at the north, south, east, and west corners of the earth like a compass.
Basically, the angels exercised authority to hold back the four winds. The four winds represent God’s judgement. There are other parts of the bible where God used the wind to describe His judgement. For example, Jeremiah 49:36-38 ESV. It says, “And I will bring upon Elam the four winds from the four quarters of heaven. And I will scatter them to all those winds, and there shall be no nation to which those driven out of Elam shall not come. I will terrify Elam before their enemies and before those who seek their life. I will bring disaster upon them, my fierce anger, declares the Lord. I will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them, and I will set my throne in Elam and destroy their king and officials, declares the Lord.” Just like John, Daniel had a vision as well about the four winds. Daniel 7:2 ESV states, “Daniel declared, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea.”
So, we see how God used other men in the bible to show them a vision or have an encounter of the four winds which represents the judgement of God. Revelation 7:2-3 NLT says, “And I saw another angel coming up from the east, carrying the seal of the living God. And he shouted to those four angels, who had been given power to harm land and sea, “Wait! Don’t harm the land or the sea or the trees until we have placed the seal of God on the foreheads of his servants.” One word that is repeated more than once is seal. We’re familiar with the word seal from the previous chapters. Jesus is the only one worthy of breaking the seven seals. In this sense, it is used differently. The seal of God stands in contrast to those who will take the “mark of the beast” from Satan in later chapters regarding the end times. A seal can be described as security, ownership, or authority. All the true believers of Christ will have a special seal of God with the name of the Lamb written on their foreheads. This seal symbolizes something good. Christ will save those with a seal.
Revelation 7:4 describes how John heard how many would be marked with this seal from the tribes of Israel. 144,000 is the total number and approximately 12,000 will come from each tribe of Israel. Read Revelation 7:5-8 to learn of the specific names. As the chapter continues, it says (Rev 7:9-10), “After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. 10 And they were shouting with a great roar,“Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!”
Revelation 7:9 fast forwards to the end of the tribulation period. The 144,000 evangelized to the world. The number of Jews and Gentiles trusted in Jesus. The 144,000 are a reminder that all people are precious in the eyes of God. No matter the background or ethnicity, God loves all. On the other hand, there is a lot of controversy regarding the details of the 144,000. People have twisted scripture, based religions on the 144,000, and even argued about it. Truth be told, God doesn’t call us to argue about scripture. It is okay to have discourse, but losing your temper or twisting scripture is dangerous (2 Timothy 2:14).
I would like to present two different perspectives about where the 144,000 could possibly be today. You pray and ask God discernment and understanding. Your perspective on this is not a matter of salvation so don’t allow a religious spirit to tell you otherwise. Some scholars say that Revelation 5:6 proves that the 144,000 are already in heaven because of the reference to God’s throne in heaven and the Lamb’s presence. Others say that the 144,000 are still on earth because of Revelation 7:15 since it mentions the temple will stand in the millennium. After deep studying, I believe the latter to be true. The bible doesn’t tell us exactly though.
Ezekiel prophesied about the millennium (Ezekiel 40-44). Zechariah 14:16 even prophesied that the Feast of Tabernacle will be celebrated during the millennium kingdom. After studying, I discovered, the Feast of Tabernacle was celebrated annually by the Jews and they wore white robes and had palm branches.
Back to Revelation, verses 11-12 states, “11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living beings. And they fell before the throne with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. 12 They sang, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength belong to our God forever and ever! Amen.”Then, one of the 24 elders asked John a rhetorical question. The elder was the one who knew the answer but asked John anyhow. Of course, John had no idea because this entire encounter of foreseeing the end times in this way was new to him.
Revelation 7:13-17 NLT, “Who are these who are clothed in white? Where did they come from?” And I said to him, “Sir, you are the one who knows.” Then he said to me, “These are the ones who died in the great tribulation. They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and made them white. “That is why they stand in front of God’s throne and serve him day and night in his Temple. And he who sits on the throne will give them shelter. They will never again be hungry or thirsty; they will never be scorched by the heat of the sun. For the Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”
Even though John had no idea who the people in white robes were when one of the 24 elders asked him, he still responded in a wise manner. We may not know everything, but we will be held accountable for what we do know (Luke 12:48). In Matthew 24, Jesus prophesied about the end times, famine, major deception, death, religious spirits, rebellion, and global catastrophes. But Jesus also promised in Matthew 24:13 that, “But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” The 144,000 will be saved. They’ve endured to the end. The 144,000 stands in front of God’s throne and serve Him day and night (as they should). What is so wonderful is how the One who sits on the throne (God) gives the 144,000 shelter.
It is amazing to imagine how the ones who survived the test of time get the privilege to stand in front of God’s majestic, holy, and mighty throne to worship Him day and night. Serving God is not boring or tiring for the 144,000. When you know that God rescued you out of darkness, you’ll never grow tired of praising Him. He saved our soul from hell. Therefore, worshipping God on this side of earth should not be tiring or boring for us either. We must follow Psalm 100:2 NLT, “Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy.”
God make sweet promises to the 144,000 in verses 15-17. My favorite verse is the last one. God will wipe every tear away. I remember being young and reading that scripture often during hard times. Of course, the 144,000 are considered the martyred believers. I am certain they will shed tears prior to God rescuing them when they suffer at the hands of the evil ones. They may even cry as they realize certain loved ones refuse to repent. Yet, God is aware of the emotions that the 144,000 will experience. Just like God is aware of the tears that we cry today when we go through heartbreak, loss, disappointment, slander, persecution, and so much more. The beautiful news is that God promises to wipe away every tear. There will be no tears past the heavenly gates. God will comfort the 144,000 just like He will comfort us.
God promises to lead the 144,000 to “springs of life-giving water”. He will do the same for us. Ezekiel prophesied about seeing streams of water flowing from the millennium temple in Ezekiel 47:1. As the scripture continues at the end of Ezekiel 47:9 NLT states, “Life will flourish wherever this water flows.” This correlates to Revelation 7:17 so much. Just like the 144,000 will understand by experience of what Psalm 23:1-3 means, so should we. The Lord is our shepherd.
Revelation 7 is a beautiful reminder of God’s grace and redemption for those who endure to the end of the tribulation period. For us, it is encouragement to continue to fight the good fight of faith. Don’t give up. Don’t grow weary in doing good because at just the right time, we will reap a harvest if we don’t give up (Galatians 6:9). I know that this chapter is very different from the previous one about Jesus breaking the first 6 seals and so much destruction and chaos unfolds. For those wondering why the 7th seal didn’t start with this chapter, I am unsure. God is showing John and us what is happening between the 6th seal being broken and the 7th seal not being broken yet. This doesn’t necessarily mean the book of Revelation is in chronological order though.
I believe this particular chapter is in response to John’s question at the end of chapter 6. Remember, John asked “17 For the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to survive?” Now, we know exactly who will survive. Be encouraged not fearful. Share this with someone that you love. Your act of kindness by sharing this could potentially draw them to repentance, change, or open their eyes to a new perspective on life. Thank you so much for sticking it out to the end. You can find Revelation 7 podcast episode by clicking here. Until next month with Wytinsea Writes. We’ll be diving into Revelation 8. See you then!
