Devotional 25 February 2025

Revelation 7:4-9 ESV “And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel: 12,000 from the tribe of Judah were sealed, 12,000 from the tribe of Reuben, 12,000 from the tribe of Gad, 12,000 from the tribe of Asher, 12,000 from the tribe of Naphtali, 12,000 from the tribe of Manasseh, 12,000 from the tribe of Simeon, 12,000 from the tribe of Levi, 12,000 from the tribe of Issachar, 12,000 from the tribe of Zebulun, 12,000 from the tribe of Joseph, 12,000 from the tribe of Benjamin were sealed. 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.”

I’ve mentioned before that Revelation has motifs. This is one of them: John hears something, then he looks and sees what it actually means (this also happened in Revelation 5:5-6).

John hears the number of the sealed—144,000 from the tribes of Israel—but the list is not what we would expect. Judah, not Reuben, is listed first, pointing to Christ as the true firstborn, the Lion of Judah (Genesis 49:10, Revelation 5:5). Dan is missing, because of its history of idolatry (Judges 18:30-31), and Ephraim, associated with rebellion (Hosea 4:17-19), is replaced by Joseph, emphasizing faithfulness over heritage. Levi, the priestly tribe, is included, though they had no land inheritance, emphasizing the priestly nature of this new list, separating the list from the land itself. This is no ordinary list of Israel’s tribes—it is a reordered, transformed Israel- true Israel, pointing toward the fulfillment of God’s covenant people in Christ (Romans 11:25-26).

Then John looks—and what he hears as 144,000, he sees as a great multitude no one could number, from every nation. The number 144,000 is now understood to mean, 12 multiplied by 12 (the Old Covenant saints and the New Covenant saints) all multiplied a thousand fold! This is the true people of God, not defined by ethnicity but by the Lamb’s redemption, true Israel (Romans 2:28-29). This vision fulfills God’s promise to Abraham: “In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). The sealed remnant of Israel finds its fulfillment in the worldwide church, the one new man in Christ, not two (Ephesians 2:14-16).

This passage reminds us that God is building His Kingdom through Christ, not through earthly nations or bloodlines (John 1:12-13). The gospel is unstoppable. Though the world rages and opposes Christ’s reign, His people are sealed, and His church will not fail (Matthew 16:18). Whether through persecution or trial, we are held fast, counted among those who will one day stand before the throne, clothed in white. The Lamb has conquered, and His redeemed people—Jew and Gentile together—will praise Him forever. Who can number them? Only God.