Revelation 14:1-5 “Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His Father's name written on their foreheads. (2) And I heard a voice from heaven, like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of loud thunder. And I heard the sound of harpists playing their harps. (3) They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living creatures, and the elders; and no one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. (4) These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These were redeemed from among men, being first fruits to God and to the Lamb. (5) And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the throne of God.”
In this section we want to discuss the one hundred and forty four thousand, i.e. who are they and where do they fit into God’s timeline of end time events. The first time the one hundred and forty four thousand are mentioned in scripture is in the book of Revelation, where it is revealed to us that these are all Jewish believers whose number is made up of twelve thousand saints from each of the twelve tribes of Israel. The above quoted passage of scripture gives us some further insight into who these particular saints are, for we see that they are virgin males who are the first fruits to God and the Lamb. In other words these saints will be among the first of the Jewish disciples to be born again under the ministries of Moses and Elijah. Moses and Elijah are the two witnesses of God who will minister to Israel during the reign of the anti-Christ (Revelation 11). Clearly these saints will be zealous for God, for this passage declares that no deceit will be found in them and they will be without fault before the throne of God. These saints are destined for great glory in the kingdom of God, for this passage declares that they are the only ones allowed to sing a new song before God’s throne, and for all eternity these saints will follow the Lamb wherever He goes. This passage also declares that God the Father’s name, i.e. the seal of God, will be written on their foreheads.
Revelation 7:2-8 “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; of the tribe of Gad twelve thousand were sealed; (6) of the tribe of Asher twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand were sealed; (7) of the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Levi twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand were sealed; (8) of the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand were sealed.”
On the day that the church is removed from the earth there will be a remnant that will be left behind. The remnant that will be left behind is the one hundred and forty four thousand. We know that to be the case because in the above quoted passage of scripture the angels to whom it is granted to harm the earth and the sea are prohibited from doing so until the one hundred and forty four thousand are sealed on their foreheads. Clearly they will be left on the earth when God’s wrath is poured out; nevertheless they will be unaffected because God’s seal will protect them from the various plagues that will take place during that time. So why will God leave these individuals on the earth during that time? We can answer that question by looking at a similar event that took place in the Old Testament. The event I am referring to is when God judged the nation of Egypt. On that occasion, prior to each plague, God sent Moses to Pharaoh to warn him of God’s impending judgement unless he repented and allowed the children of Israel to leave Egypt. In each case, until the last plague, Pharaoh refused to repent thus subjecting Egypt to the judgement of God. And so we see that in a similar manner the one hundred and forty four thousand will go into all the earth during that time to proclaim to the inhabitants of the earth the various judgements that God is about to bring upon them, unless they repent. As an aside it is important to note that the one hundred and forty four thousand will receive their spiritual bodies at the same time as the rest of the church, because of which they will easily be able to travel to all cities and towns throughout the earth as they move about in the spirit realm. As we will see when we discuss each judgement in turn, the inhabitants of the earth will nevertheless refuse to repent even though they know they will experience God’s wrath as a result. As in the case of God’s final judgement pronounced on Egypt, there is a limit to God’s warning however, for on that occasion Moses told Pharaoh that he would never see is face again (Exodus 10:29). In a similar manner we will see that the one hundred and forty four thousand will warn the earth’s inhabitants during the first stage of God’s wrath i.e. the sounding of the seven trumpets; nevertheless when the seven bowls of God’s wrath are about to be poured out, the one hundred and forty four thousand will be removed from the earth, thus bringing to an end their warning and calls to repent. A period of approximately eighteen months would have elapsed by the time the one hundred and forty four thousand are finally removed from the earth, which means that they will most probably be the last of the saints to stand before the judgement seat of Christ to receive their eternal rewards. It is at that point that the one hundred and forty four thousand will ascend into heaven to stand before the throne of God to sing the new song that only they are allowed to sing. After that, as part of the church, the one hundred and forty four thousand will also partake in the marriage supper of the Lamb.
Michael E.B. Maher
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