Revelation 7

1] After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any tree.

The statement “the four corners of the earth” is one of the statements that people opposing the Word of God use to try to prove that there are mistakes in the Bible.

However, we know that the statement is “figurative in nature,” this statement is common enough today that Merriam-Webster defines it in the dictionary.

2] Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea,

3] saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

We are familiar with the idea that during the tribulation period the followers of the Anti-Christ will carry the “Mark of the Beast ”…

However, what you may not be aware of is that the Followers of Christ will be marked by Christ as well.

We see these preferred people marked in verses 4-8:

4] And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:

5] 12,000 from the tribe of Judah were sealed, 12,000 from the tribe of Reuben, 12,000 from the tribe of Gad,

6] 12,000 from the tribe of Asher, 12,000 from the tribe of Naphtali, 12,000 from the tribe of Manasseh,

7] 12,000 from the tribe of Simeon, 12,000 from the tribe of Levi, 12,000 from the tribe of Issachar,

8] 12,000 from the tribe of Zebulun, 12,000 from the tribe of Joseph, 12,000 from the tribe of Benjamin were sealed.

God doesn’t require blood sample or ancestry.com to keep track of His people. His eternal records will reveal the descendents of the 12 tribes who have been set apart for the purpose of the gospel.

The Bible prophecies of this in Isaiah 49:5–6 (ESV)

And now the Lord says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him— for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord, and my God has become my strength— he says: “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

The world will once again be divided up by the tribes of Israel, they will once again be distinct among men having been lost over the centuries.

Who is Israel? Jacob

Who are His Sons? Inherited Canaan

Reuben

Simeon

Levi

Judah

Dan

Naphtali

Gad

Asher

Issachar

Zebulun

Joseph

Benjamin

Matthew 19:28 - Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

However, What is interesting about the tribes listed in Revelation is that they differ from the list of Israel’s [Jacob] sons.

In Revelation 7:5-8 the tribes listed are as follows:

Reuben

Simeon

Levi

Judah

Manasseh

Naphtali

Gad

Asher

Issachar

Zebulun

Joseph

Benjamin

***Note that the Tribes of Dan and Ephraim are missing from the list.

In Revelation 7 we find that Manasseh has replaced Dan in the list of tribes that will rule with Christ in the end.

There are several different theories as to why this is:

Dan’s (and Ephraim) historical embrace of idolatry and immorality, disqualifies them for service in the end times. [Judg 18; 1 Kgs 12; Josh 16:10.]

2. The Antichrist will come from the tribe of Dan [Gen. 49:17; Deut. 33:22; Jer. 8:16.

3. By Solomon, The tribe of Dan had joined the Phoenicians , and lost their identity [2 Chron. 2:14]

4. And once the second most populous tribe, Dan declined in numbers and influence, and had been totally wiped out by the time of Ezra . This would explain why Dan is not listed among the tribes in 1 Chron. 4-7 or Rev. 7.

Which theory do you believe is most accepted? 1

A Great Multitude from Every Nation

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” 13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

This is a great time of praise and thanksgiving by the Gentile multitude that has been saved during the tribulation !

The “Great Tribulation ” has been explained in several different ways…

Some believe it refers to the suffering of believers through the ages

While others believe in a specific time period or 7 years [Rev 11; Dan 12]

15 “Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”