Quick Answer
The teaching explains that in Revelation 7, God pauses the judgments to seal 144,000 Jewish believers, 12,000 from each tribe of Israel, protecting them from His wrath much like the Passover blood on the doorposts, before a countless multitude from every nation appears before God’s throne, having come out of the great tribulation.
Key Takeaways
- Revelation 7 serves as an interlude, a pause in the action between the six seal judgments and what comes next.
- Four angels hold back the four winds of the earth, giving a glimpse into unseen spiritual activity happening on our behalf.
- An angel with the seal of the living God stops judgment so that 144,000 servants, 12,000 from each tribe of Israel, can be sealed and spared from wrath, much like the Passover blood on the doorposts.
- The 144,000 should be understood literally as God’s Jewish children, not as a symbolic group.
- A vast, uncountable multitude from every nation, tribe, and language appears in white robes, having come out of the great tribulation and washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb.
- God promises to shelter this multitude, remove their hunger and thirst, and wipe every tear from their eyes.
- Even though the Antichrist may make his last stand, Jesus gets the final word, and believers are called to be mighty harvesters until that day.
What is the interlude in Revelation 7?
We’ve just walked through some sobering things with the first six sealed judgments, and now we’re heading into Revelation chapter 7. In my Bible, the English Standard Version, it actually has a heading for this section that says ‘an interlude.’ So this is an interlude, a pause if you will, inside all of the activity that we’ve just witnessed with the six sealed judgments before God moves on to seal the 144,000.
This chapter gives us a breather in the middle of everything that has been unfolding, and it’s about to show us something that should give us hope in the midst of the heaviness we’ve already seen.
What do the four angels holding back the four winds represent?
Chapter 7 opens with, ‘After this, I saw four angels stationed at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind would blow on the earth, or on the sea, or on any tree.’ Isn’t that an amazing picture of the spirit realm? When we look outside, or in our own home, we have no idea what is going on in the spirit realm on our behalf, or on behalf of a nation, or the world.
So it’s so interesting to me when scripture gives us a glimpse into what happens inside the spirit realm. Here you have these four angels holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind would blow.
After this, I saw four angels stationed at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind would blow on the earth, or on the sea, or on any tree.
Revelation 7:1
Why does an angel stop judgment before the 144,000 are sealed?
Then I saw another angel coming up from the rising of the sun, holding the seal of the living God. With a loud voice, he called out to the four angels to whom it was granted to have authority and power to harm the earth and the sea, saying, ‘Do not harm the earth, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we seal the bondservants of our God on their forehead.’ Remember, this angel has a seal in his hand. So they’re holding back the next unleashing, if you will, because God wants to seal some people with his mark.
Remember when the plagues were on the Egyptians, God told the Israelites for the very last plague to seal their doorpost with the blood of the lamb. That way he would know to pass over them. It’s that same kind of moment. He’s going to seal some people so they will not suffer his wrath, and it will be salvation, a salvatory to them. It also gives this command to stop judgment, like, don’t do anything else, and now we’re going to be told who these people are that God’s going to seal.
Do not harm the earth, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we seal the bondservants of our God on their forehead.
Revelation 7:2-3
Who are the 144,000 sealed in Revelation 7?
In verse 4, I heard how many were sealed: 144,000. Twelve thousand were sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel. Then it says 12,000 from the tribe of Judah, and it goes through every single tribe of Israel. That’s 144,000 of God’s Jewish children.
Dr. Ron Rhodes says, ‘When the plain sense makes good sense, look for no other sense unless you fall into nonsense.’ So this makes plain sense, and nowhere else in scripture have the children of Israel been talked about that it wasn’t the children of Israel. I think it is very safe to make an assumption that this is a literal 144,000 of God’s Jewish people, and they are being sealed. It would be a real stretch to find symbolism here.
Remember, they were his first desire. They were his children. He created them. He told Abraham, ‘I’m going to make your children more than the sands of the sea and more than the stars in the sky.’ And they chose to reject the Messiah. Even with all that had been prophesied to them, God knew they would, but they were still his people, his children all throughout scripture.
And I heard how many were sealed, 144,000. 12,000 were sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel.
Revelation 7:4
When the plain sense makes good sense, look for no other sense unless you fall into nonsense.
Dr. Ron Rhodes
What is the seal placed on the 144,000?
So what is the seal? It doesn’t say. It could be a mark on their forehead, which would be interesting, because the Antichrist has a mark on the forehead and the hand too, since he loves to counterfeit things.
Who is the great multitude in white robes before God’s throne?
In verse 9, after these things I looked, and this is what I saw: a vast multitude, which no one could count, gathered from every nation and from all the tribes and all the peoples and languages of the earth, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, Christ, dressed in white robes with palm branches in their hands. In a loud voice they cried out saying, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne and to the Lamb.’ Our salvation is the Trinity’s to give, and to God the Trinity we owe our deliverance.
All the angels were standing around the throne and around the 24 elders and the four living creatures, and they fell to their faces before the throne and worshiped God saying, ‘Amen. Blessing and glory and majesty and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might belong to our God both now and forever.’
A vast multitude, which no one could count, gathered from every nation and from all the tribes and all the peoples and languages of the earth standing before the throne and before the lamb, dressed in white robes with palm branches in their hand.
Revelation 7:9
Amen. Blessing and glory and majesty and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might belong to our God both now and forever.
Revelation 7:12
What does the elder say about those in white robes?
One of the elders responded to me saying, ‘These who are dressed in the long white robes, who are they and from where did they come?’ I said to him, ‘My lord, you know the answer.’ John was saying, ‘I don’t know who they are.’ And he said to me, that’s why this is called an interlude, because of what he’s about to say.
These are the people who come out of the great tribulation, the persecution. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb because of his atoning sacrifice. For this reason they are standing before the throne of God and they serve him in worship day and night in his temple, and he who sits on the throne will spread his tabernacle over them and shelter them and protect them with his presence.
They will hunger no longer and they will thirst no more, nor will the sun beat down on them nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb who is in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life. And God will wipe every tear from their eye, giving them an eternal comfort. When John was given the letters to the churches, he didn’t have to ask who they were. Here he doesn’t know who they are, but the angel tells him these are they who have come out of great tribulation.
These are the people who come out of the great tribulation, and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb.
Revelation 7:14
He who sits on the throne will spread his tabernacle over them and shelter them and protect them with his presence. They will hunger no longer and they will thirst no more nor will the sun beat down on them nor any scorching heat.
Revelation 7:15-16
The lamb who is in the center of the throne will be their shepherd and he will guide them to springs of the water of life. And God will wipe every tear from their eye.
Revelation 7:17
What hope does this passage give us?
It’s wonderful to know that in the middle of all the horrors that will transpire at the end of time, there is going to come a mighty harvest. So the Antichrist may make his last stand, but it’s wonderful to know that Jesus gets the final word. Until that day, may you and I be mighty harvesters in this field we are called to live in.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does it mean that 144,000 will be sealed in Revelation 7?
It means an angel holding the seal of the living God commands four other angels to hold back harm to the earth, sea, and trees until 144,000 of God’s servants, 12,000 from each tribe of Israel, are marked so they will not suffer His wrath.
Why is Revelation 7 called an interlude?
The English Standard Version gives this section the heading ‘an interlude,’ marking it as a pause inside all the activity of the six seal judgments before the story continues.
Who are the 144,000 in Revelation 7?
They are described as a literal 144,000 of God’s Jewish people, 12,000 sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel, including the tribe of Judah and all the others.
What is the seal placed on the 144,000?
Scripture doesn’t say exactly what the seal is; it could be a mark on their forehead, which would be interesting since the Antichrist later counterfeits this with his own mark on the forehead and hand.
Who is the great multitude in white robes in Revelation 7?
They are a vast multitude that no one could count, gathered from every nation, tribe, people, and language, who came out of the great tribulation and washed their robes white in the blood of the Lamb.
What comfort does God give to those who come out of the tribulation?
God spreads His tabernacle over them and shelters them with His presence; they will no longer hunger, thirst, or be scorched by the sun, and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Watch the full teaching to see this hopeful interlude in Revelation 7 unfold in detail.
About Epic Life Creative
Speaker: Denise Jones
https://www.epiclifecreative.com/
Read the full transcript
The Sealed Judgments and Chapter 7 Interlude
Well, we’ve just walked through some sobering things with the first six sealed judgements. And now we’re going to head into Revelation chapter 7. In my Bible, in the English Standard Version, it actually has a heading for this section that says an interlude. So, this is an interlude, a pause, if you will, inside of all the activity that we’ve just witnessed with the six sealed judgements.
Four Angels Holding Back the Winds 1 min mark
So, let’s start with chapter 7 verse 1. After this, I saw four angels stationed at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind would blow on the earth, or on the sea, or on any tree. Boy, isn’t that an amazing picture of the spirit realm?
You know, when we look outside, or um, in our home, we have no idea what is going on in the spirit realm on our behalf, or on behalf of a nation, or the world. So, it’s so interesting to me when scripture gives us a glimpse into what happens inside the spirit realm.
The Angel with God’s Seal 1 min mark
So, here you have these four angels holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind would blow. Then I saw another angel coming up from the rising of the sun, holding the seal of the living God. And with a loud voice, he called out to the four angels to whom it was granted to have authority and power to harm the earth and the sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we seal” So, remember this angel has a seal in his hand, “until we seal, or mark, the bondservants of our God on their forehead.”
So, they’re holding back the next unleashing, if you will, and because God wants to seal some people with his mark. Remember when the plagues were on the Egyptians, God told the Israelites for the very last plague to seal their doorpost with the blood of the lamb. That way he would know to pass over them. It’s that same kind of moment. He’s going to seal some people so they will not suffer his wrath. And it will be salvation of a salvatory to them.
It also, um, gives this command to stop judgment. Like, don’t do anything else. And now we’re going to be told who these people are that God’s going to seal.
The 144,000 from Israel 3 min mark
In verse four. And I heard how many were sealed, 144,000. 12,000 were sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel. And then it goes and says 12,000 from the tribe of Judah, and it goes through every single tribe of Israel. That’s 144,000 of God’s Jewish children.
Now, Dr. Ron Rhodes says, “When the plain sense makes good sense, look for no other sense unless you fall into nonsense, okay?” So, this makes plain sense. And nowhere else in scripture have the children of Israel been talked about that it wasn’t the children of Israel. Okay? So, I think it is very safe to make an assumption that this is a literal 144,000 of God’s God’s Jewish people. And they are being sealed. It would be a real stretch to find symbolism here.
Remember, they were his first desire. They were his children. He created them. He told Abraham, “I’m going to make your children more than the sands of the sea and more than the stars in the sky.” And they chose to reject the Messiah. Even with all that had been prophesied to them, God knew they would. But he still they were his people, his children all throughout scripture.
So, what is the seal? It doesn’t say. It could be a mark on their forehead. Um which would be interesting if the Antichrist has a mark on the forehead and the hand cuz he loves to counterfeit things.
The Vast Multitude in White Robes 4 min mark
And then it goes on in verse 9. After these things I looked and this is what I saw. A vast multitude, which no one could count, gathered from every nation and from all the tribes and all the peoples and languages of the earth standing before the throne and before the lamb Christ dressed in white robes with palm branches in their hand. And in a loud voice they cried out saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne and to the lamb.”
Our salvation is the Trinity’s to give and to God the Trinity we owe our deliverance. And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the 24 elders and the four living creatures. And they fell to their faces before the throne and worshiped God saying, “Amen. Blessing and glory and majesty and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might belong to our God both now and forever.”
The Great Tribulation and God’s Promise 5 min mark
And then one of the elders responded to me saying to me, “These who are dressed in the long white robes, who are they and from where did they come?” I said to him, “My lord, you know the answer.” John was saying, “I don’t know who they are.” And he said to me, “That’s why this is called an interlude because of what he’s about to say. These are the people who come out of the great tribulation, the persecution. And they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb because of his atoning sacrifice.”
For this reason they are standing before the throne of God and they serve him in worship day and night in his temple and he who sits on the throne will spread his tabernacle over them and shelter them and protect them with his presence. They will hunger no longer and they will thirst no more nor will the sun beat down on them nor any scorching heat. For the lamb who is in the center of the throne will be their shepherd and he will guide them to springs of the water of life. And God will wipe every tear from their eye. Giving them an eternal comfort.
You know when John was given the the letters to the churches, he didn’t have to ask who they were. Here he doesn’t know who they are. But the angel tells him these are they who have come out of great tribulation. So, it’s wonderful to know that in the middle of all of the horrors that will be that will transpire at the end of time there is going to come a mighty harvest.
So, the Antichrist may make his last stand but it’s wonderful to know that Jesus gets the final word. So, until that day may you and I be mighty harvesters in this field. We are called to live in.