part 31: Mystery and Message of Revelation 7
Puzzled About Revelation, july 14 2022
“Tonight’s message is going to be an introduction and an overview... a look at the chapter in a sweeping view before we dive into some of the details.”
main text: revelation 7:1-17
“After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. 2 Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea: 3 “Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” 4 Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.
5 From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed,
from the tribe of Reuben 12,000,
from the tribe of Gad 12,000,
6 from the tribe of Asher 12,000,
from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000,
from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000,
7 from the tribe of Simeon 12,000,
from the tribe of Levi 12,000,
from the tribe of Issachar 12,000,
8 from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000,
from the tribe of Joseph 12,000,
from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.
9 After this I looked, and 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. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice:
“Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”
11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”
13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”
14 I answered, “Sir, you know.”
And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 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 ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’ nor any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’
‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’”
A. THE MYSTERY OF REVELATION 7
1) The Content:
Are the 144,000 sealed from the 12 tribes of Israel to be taken literally or figuratively? Who are the “great multitude”? What is the connection between the two?
Pre-Trib Rapture: Teaches that the “Church” has been removed from the earth in the “rapture”, so the 144,000 are “Jewish evangelists” and the great multitude are “tribulation saints”.
Dispensationalism: Teaches that the “Church” and “Israel” are not the same and never will be. Once the “Church Age” is over with the “rapture” of the Church to heaven, then God’s focus is on Israel during the time of Jacob’s Trouble (“Tribulation”).
Reformed/Amillennial (Replacement) Theology: Teaches that the Church has replaced Israel and is now the Kingdom of God on the earth because of an overly realized eschatology that spiritualizes and allegorizes many Scriptures that are yet to be fulfilled in a literal way on the earth.
All of these have elements of truth but fall into error regarding the question. I believe that the key to correctly identifying the two groups cab be found in the OT Scriptures and specific promises that God made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
WHO IS ISRAEL?
The KEY to UNLOCKING the MYSTERY of ISRAEL is the
2) The Connections:
Revelation 7 is not a theological island! It draws from numerous Old testament passages and “types”.
The Genesis Connection: Abraham, Jacob/Israel, Joseph/Ephraim
The Exodus Connection: Deliverance from the plagues of God on Egypt
The Isaiah Connection: The future of the redeemed. Isaiah chapters 4, 49 are specifically referenced in Rev. 7
The Ezekiel Connection: Babylonian exile
The Revelation Connection: The “Mark” (ch. 14) and the New Jerusalem (ch. 21)
3) The Context, Chronology, and Consummation of Revelation 7:
How does this chapter fit within the greater context of the Book of Revelation? When do these events occur?
“Who can stand?” (6:17) The visions of chapter 7 were given to ENCOURAGE John (and us!) following the catastrophic events of chapter 6 (Seal judgments) and the lingering question of the lost: “Who can stand (endure) the Day of His wrath?”
“After this I saw…” (7:1).This statement refers to the sequence of events John was shown while in the Spirit in heaven (4:1-2), not the order of events unfolding on the earth. Though there is chronology and progression in Revelation, the book is also written out of order according to themes or “layers” (e.g. “layer cake”).
Like a movie, the Book of Revelation moves back and forth between scenes, pausing and adding details, and retelling sections using different imagery. This technique is used in many other sections of Scripture.
Revelation 7 goes over the same ground as Revelation 6 (the final ½ “week” of Daniel 9:27 or 42 months of Rev. 13:5), but from a different (“zoomed-in”) perspective to add more detail. It begins at the mid-point of Daniel’s 70th week (5th Seal) and culminates on the Day of the Lord (6th Seal). Since the 7 trumpets are happening during the time of the reign of the Beast and concurrent with the 5th Seal, it makes sense that this vision comes as an explanation before the narrative continues in chapter 8.
o Rev. 7:1-8 occurs before the trumpet and bowl judgments, which are concurrent with the timing of the Beast kingdom and the 5th Seal.
o Rev. 7:9-17 occurs after the 5th and 6th seal, at the same time as the 7th trumpet which announces the arrival of the millennial kingdom.
o Genesis 2 is a recapitulation of Genesis 1 but is a “zoomed in” account giving us greater detail.
o Genesis 11 actually precedes Genesis 10, but thematically it makes sense to include the genealogies after chapter 9, then explain how they were dispersed in chapter 11.
o Genesis 38 is a “pause” in the Joseph narrative to give us greater detail and insight into Judah and why his redemption was so dramatic in Genesis 44.
o The Book of Daniel: Daniel 1-6 is chronological, but then chapters 7-8 are dated as having occurred before chapter 5, chapter 9 likely occurred around the time of the lion’s den in chapter 6, and then chapters 10-12 were given 2 years later. The visions of chapters 7-12 were all retellings of the same vision of chapter 2, but with different imagery and detail so that each adds to the greater picture of the final Beast and the hour of his reign. This is how Revelation should be understood!
B. THE MESSAGE OF REVELATION 7
1) There is a Greater Exodus coming that is patterned after the 1st Exodus from Egypt.
2) God knows how to rescue the godly from trials while punishing the wicked (2 Peter 2:4-10). He will once again make a distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not (Mal. 3:17-18).
3) The saints must go through tribulation to enter the Kingdom of God (Acts 14:22).
4) The Kingdom of God will come in its fullness and the saints will find rest during the Millennial Sabbath and a “New World Order”! (Heb. 4:8-11; Rev. 20:6; 21:3).
Next Week:“The Seal of the Living God” (Rev. 7:1-3)