Gathering the Elect

Reflections on Revelation 7:1-17

The sealing of the tribes of Israel and the great multitude gathered before the throne from all nations corresponds to the gathering of the elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other, in Matthew 24:31 and following verses.

The purpose of this section is to assure the servants of God that they will be kept safe when the Lamb pours out his wrath on the nations. Before that day comes, their number is completed and they are sealed on their foreheads that they might be protected (see Revelation 9:4). This picture is based in part on Ezekiel 9 where those who were distressed by the sins of Jerusalem were marked and protected from those who executed God's wrath against the city. Similarly here, the ones sealed are protected from the wrath of the Lamb.

The 144,000 from every tribe of Israel represent all of the saints of God on the earth at one time. Recall that John said earlier that Jesus has released us from our sins and "made us to be a kingdom, to be priests unto his God and Father" (Revelation 1:6). John takes the language of the kingdom and priesthood referring to Israel in the Old Testament and transfers it to the saints of all nations. The numbering signifies that the Lamb knows all who are part of his kingdom and that his wrath is delayed until their number is completed. The sealing signifies that they are protected.

The great multitude is from all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues gathered around the throne where they praise God and the Lamb. They represent all of God's people of all time gathered at the end of the age. Those living at his return are united with those who died before his return (1 Corinthians 15:50-55; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). The shift from the twelve tribes, representing God's people on the earth, to people of every nation and tribe and tongue emphasizes that Christ's kingdom has been conquering while the nations were fighting among themselves, and that his victory is completed with his coming.

One of the elders who stood before the throne confirms the identity of the great multitutde dressed in white robes. They were those who had washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and come through great tribulation while the the nations were at war. Because they had been cleansed and faithful to their commander, they are before the throne of God in his temple. God dwells with them, trials are ended, tears are wiped away, and the Lamb leads them to the water of life. They live in the eternal kingdom of peace after the last enemy has been destroyed.