Who are the 144,000 Sealed Saints in Revelation?
Blog posts and books present a multitude of ideas relating to the identity of the 144,000 sealed servants mentioned in Revelation 7 and Revelation 14. These ideas go in many directions. They are often the author’s concepts and fail to have a basis in scripture. In this post, I want to share a few scriptures to help readers understand the identity of the 144,000 and the biblical basis for their appearance in the Apocalypse.
Why are the 144,000 Sealed Servants Presented?
John specifically mentions 144,000 Sealed Servants in two places: Revelation 7:4 and Revelation 14:1. In the initial citation, John also mentions, “I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth.“ God sends the quartet of Angels to seal “the servants of our God in their foreheads“ before the coming storm.
John draws the image of the 144,000 servants from Ezekiel’s vision (chapter 37) of the Valley of Dry Bones to present hope. At the time John wrote his Revelation, the land of Judea and John’s homeland in Galilee lay in ruins. The land, the Temple, and Israel’s Priesthood all perished in 586 BC (Ezekiel’s time) and 70 CE (John’s time). Both prophets desired to share a word of hope with his readers.
What does Ezekiel say about Dry Bones?
In Ezekiel’s vision, God asks, “Son of man, can these bones live?“ Breath comes from the four winds (this comes from the beginning of Revelation 7 also, connecting these passages).
Then, as Ezekiel watched, flesh and skin covered the dry bones. Then God gave the order, “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.“ The revived bones “stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.“ A very great army forms in Revelation 7 as well.
Ezekiel received the vision of the Valley of Dry Bones after the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in 586 BCE. John reminds his readers of the vision to share hope following the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 CE. John desires that life in Jerusalem will return just as it did following the first destruction.
Why were only 144,000 chosen?
In his vision, John tells his readers that the 144,000 chosen would come from “all the tribes of the children of Israel.“ He enumerates that 12,000 came from each of the twelve tribes of Israel.
In order to do this, John once again draws a picture from scripture. In Numbers 31, Moses enlists an army to take vengeance on Midian because the Midianite women caused the men of Israel to sin. He orders, “Send into battle a thousand men from each of the tribes of Israel.“ Numbers 31:6 says they went with vessels of holiness. Rashi said, “This serves to tell you in what high esteem the shepherds of Israel were really held.“
Numbers 31:5 states that these troops originated from “the thousands of Israel.” John employed this passage, multiplying the thousand from each tribe by a thousand, to reach the total of 12,000 from each tribe, which then multiplied to 144,000.
Were the 144,000 from Heaven?
No, the Angels were from heaven, and the 144,000 were humans, a very large number, who represented the return of Israel to their land. This is the hope. Once again the Jewish people would live in the land. After the massive destruction, this is John’s hope. You can find more details about who is in heaven and the people in Revelation in “John’s Apocalypse: A Jewish Idea.”
John and the Jewish people also had the dream that the return would happen in a generation, 70 years, according to the prophecies by Isaiah and Jeremiah.
How were the 144,000 Servants marked?
Since the time of Moses, Jewish people have placed God’s words on their foreheads in small boxes called tefillin. (Dt 11:19) You can find more about this online and from other sources. There is also a connection between the letter placed on the box and other symbols in Revelation (my book has more details).
Are there any Gentiles among the 144,000?
The notation of the sealed individuals informs the reader that the 144,000 are Jewish. Some commentators try to explain otherwise. The 144,000 are possibly martyrs (from the 5th seal and Revelation 14:5), and faithfulness defines them; they wear clean white clothing, signifying that purity was important in Numbers 31 and Revelation 14:5.
John does not exclude gentiles from those protected and standing before the throne of God. John writes, “there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. “ 144,000 Jews and a multitude of Gentiles wave palm branches as they sing words of praise to God. (see Revelation 14:6).
The 144,000 and multitude of Gentiles probably join the armies of heaven as they follow the rider of the white horse to bring redemption to earth in Revelation 19.
Where can I learn more about the Book of Revelation?
I have recently completed a book that explains how the 144.000 Jews and the multitude of Gentiles fit into the book of Revelation. This commentary is called “John’s Apocalypse: A Jewish Idea.” Look at this new book. It contains a multitude of scriptural ideas and presents John’s Apocalypse in an understandable and historic first century manner. Click here for more information.
