A Journey through Revelation, Part 20: The Great Multitude. Revelation 7:9-17

In our last article, we looked at the 144,000, which will be 12,000 from each of the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel.

In the following verses, John describes a great multitude of people standing before the throne of God and the Lamb.

 

Let’s take a look.

 

v.9, “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands”:

·     “after these things” introduces John’s second vision in chapter 7.

 ·     The phrase, “I looked and behold,” gets your attention.

 ·     “a great multitude which no one could count” means untold millions of people!

o   In 7:1-8, the number of people is definite, but here it is indefinite.

o   In the last article, the 144,000 are from the 12 tribes of Israel, but here, they’re from every nation.

o   In the first vision, the people are prepared for upcoming danger and wrath. But here they are victorious and secure.

o   The first vision was exclusively Jews. This one is not.

o   The first group was facing a period of wrath. This one has come out of it.

 

·     “from every nation” means people from every nation will believe and receive Christ during the Great Tribulation.

 

·     “and all tribes, peoples and tongues” means Jews and Gentiles:

o   Salvation, during the time of the Tribulation, just as it is now, remains a free gift from God, based solely upon believing and receiving Jesus Christ as Savior.

o   No one’s excluded due to race, color, or heritage.

o   Never let anyone tell you otherwise!

o   God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow and He has said that the just shall live by faith! (“For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘but the righteous man shall live by faith’” Romans 1:17).

o   This huge crowd represents Gentile and Jewish believers who have died, either a natural or a violent death during the period of the first six seals and they come out of the Great Tribulation.

 

·     They are “standing before the throne and before the Lamb”:

o   This scene is in heaven, before the throne of God and the Lamb.

o   The presence of the elders and the living beings verifies that this is still the heavenly throne room that we read about in chapters 4 and 5, not an earthly setting.

o   This great multitude is in the presence of the Father and, notice, “and before the Lamb.” They are in heaven!

 

·     They were “clothed in white robes”:

o   In John’s day, white robes were symbolic of rejoicing associated with victory.

o   The robes symbolize victory and righteousness obtained through the death of Christ.

o   They’ve been washed clean of their sin, and that’s the reason they’re rejoicing, as all believers should!

 

·     “Palm branches were in their hands.” Why palm branches?

o   The palms carried in their hands verify the victory.

o   According to oriental thought, a palm was a perfect tree because it embodied everything a tree should have:

Ø  Shade, dates for food, and an oasis where water was located.

 

o   Palm branches were regarded as proper at any season of joy and triumph, such as the triumphal entry of Christ in John 12:13.

o   They were important at the Feast of Tabernacle’s, being used to construct the shelters on the housetops.

o   The Greeks and Romans used palm branches with the same symbolism:  triumph and joy.

o   This multitude is celebrating its victory and these palm branches are a part of their celebration.

 

v.10, “and they [the multitude] cry out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb’”:

·     “and they cry out” in the Greek means that they keep on crying out:

o   They never stop; their voices are never quieted. They cry out with a “loud voice.”

 

·     This very strong expression shows the depth of gratitude of the multitude and their resolve to give credit where credit is due, to God and to the Lamb:

o   They realize that this salvation is not of their own achievement, but that of God and the Lamb.

 

·     The words “salvation to our God who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb” recognizes that the victory belongs to Father and the Son.

 

v.11, “And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God”:

·     The angels respond to the cry of the multitude by falling down in worship of God.

 

·     Angels don’t experience salvation in the way humans do:

o   But they still rejoice over every repentant sinner and long to know more about the salvation that is available to mankind (1 Peter 1:12).

 

·     At this point, the angels fall before the throne upon their faces much in the same manner as the 24 elders did in chapter 4:

o   Falling on one’s face is a proper position to worship God.

 

Notice what the angels are saying in v.12.

 

v.12, , “Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen”:

·     The first “amen” is their confirmation of the tribute of the multitude to God because of the victory He has brought.

 

·     What comes next is their angelic tribute in the form of a sevenfold doxology, like we saw from angelic beings in 5:12.

 

·     They use the word “blessing” because this is what is due to God on behalf of the saved ones.

 

·     Then, the word “glory” which refers to the honor earned from earning a good reputation:

o   This glory is the radiance of God.

o   In this case, because of His work of deliverance of humans from eternal death through faith in the Lamb, Jesus Christ.

 

·     Next is the word “wisdom” which describes the Divine knowledge of God as revealed in His plan of salvation.

 

·     Then, we see the word “thanksgiving.” This is the thanksgiving of the believers, which is inevitable, when we consider all of God's blessings and accomplishment on our behalf.

 

·     Next, the word “honor” which describes the respect given in recognition of God's provision of salvation:

o   They, and we, have done nothing on our own to earn salvation.

o   It’s purely a work of the Father and His Son, Jesus, the sacrificial Lamb.

 

·     The next word is “power” which describes God's omnipotence, His ability to act effectively against any and all opposition:

o   He has delivered this multitude from some of the most terrifying judgments ever seen by human beings.

 

·     Lastly, they use the word “might,” meaning strength. It refers to a quality that one possesses, whether he exerts that strength or not:

o   In this case, God has shown His strength by delivering this multitude of people from the clutches of the enemy.

 

·     These attributes of God are “forever and ever.”

 

·     The second “amen” means “so be it” or “let it be so.”

 

v.13, “And one of the elders answered, saying to me, ‘These who are clothed in the white robes, who are they, and from where have they come?’”

·     Here’s a conversation between one of the 24 elders and John:

o   This conversation identifies the multitude more clearly.

 

·     We see God using a dialogue to explain John’s visions:

o   Visions were not given for the purpose of spectacular displays.

o   They are given to reveal new things from God, things that, as of yet, were unknown, in this case, future events.

o   The details of these revelations were not, and should not, be ignored, dismissed or trivialized.

 

·     Here, as in 5:5, an elder interprets the vision for John:

o   He anticipates the question that John was getting ready to ask.

 

·     The elder directs John’s attention to the multitude dressed in white robes:

o   The white robes are the focal point, not their number.

 

·     He asked two questions: 

o   "who are they?" and "from where have they come?"

 

Notice John’s response in v.14

 

v.14 “And I said to him, ‘My lord, you know.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the ones who come out of the Great Tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb”:

·     John shows respect by addressing the elder as “My lord.”

 

·     John also tells the elder “you know,” meaning that the elder knows the truth about this multitude.

 

·     The elder answers John, "these are the ones who come out of Great Tribulation."

 

·     The key to identifying who this multitude is lies in the words "those who are coming out of the great tribulation”:

o   This is a vision of the future.

o   The elder describes those who will be coming out of the Great Tribulation.

o   The persecution of the saints will be a long process, which, from John’s standpoint, was partly past because he had seen the first six seals. And partly future, as the trumpet and bowl judgments are still to come.

o   It’s interesting to note from the saints perspective, they enter into heaven immediately after physical death.

o   But the resurrection of their bodies must wait until the personal return of Christ to the earth in Revelation 20:4.

o   So, John sees this multitude coming out from persecution on the earth, from a point just before the persecution of the saints becomes even worse under the leadership of the beast of the sea in Revelation 13:7.

 

·     The elder continues with his description by saying, “and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb”:

o   In Isaiah 64:6 and Zech. 3:3, dirty clothes symbolize sinfulness.

o   This illustration of cleansing and whiteness comes from Psalm 51:7 and Isaiah 1:18.

 

·     In modern times, making anything white by washing it in blood is unheard of, but it was not so with John and those with an Old Testament background:

o   To them, such washing stood for spiritual purity.

o   But not just any blood would achieve this cleansing, however. The martyrs’ blood would not do it.

o   It had to be the blood of the Christ to produce the whiteness, the purity, and the cleanness before God.

 

·     The verb in the Greek looks back to the time when the cleansing occurred in the life of each member of the crowd, and that was while they were still on earth:

o   Through faith alone, they obtained the promise of cleansing through the Lamb’s atoning sacrifice.

 

·     The washing and the whitening are one act of God, not two separate acts:

o   Washing and whitening happens at the moment of salvation, at the moment of saving faith.

o   God washes away the sin which then cleanses the soul.

o   Using figurative language we are, “white,” we are pure; we are sinless because of the atoning work of Christ on the cross. It is His blood that washing away all our sin at the moment of saving faith in Jesus.

 

·     We are saved by virtue of receiving God's forgiveness and being given Christ’s righteousness, again, by faith alone.

 

·     The Lamb's blood, Jesus’ blood spilled at Calvary, on the cross, makes it possible.

 

v.15, “For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne shall spread His tabernacle over them”:

·     “for this reason" - the white robes and the cleansing they symbolize are the reason for the position of this multitude before the throne.

 

·     Their purity is derived from their faith in the Lamb and in His sacrificial work:

o   It has prepared them to be in the presence of God and given them the privilege to stand before His throne.

 

·     In this case, standing before God's throne does not mean idleness:

o   Each one has been assigned a task, which they fulfill willingly: "they serve Him day and night in His temple."

o   And they do so continuously, “day and night.”

 

·     Their service is connected with a "temple" in this verse, and that shows that priestly service is in view here:

o   Of course this is not the service of external rites and rituals.

o   This is spiritual worship. This is praise to, and adoration of, God.

o   The same service of worship is referred to in Rev. 22:3.

 

·     This service will be rendered "day and night":

o   It must be presumed that day and night does not exist in heaven.

o   Day and night implies “time” and God is not bound by time:

Ø  He transcends time.

 

o   It means the service of worship by the multitude continues without interruption.

 

·     This worship happens "in the temple":

o   This is a picture of all of heaven as a sanctuary in which God's people are priests.

o   Remember, this is a view of the saints after death, not after the final judgment of all men.

o   They are not yet in their final state of glory, but in the presence of God awaiting the completion of His wrath against mankind.

o   While they wait, they worship and praise God for saving them eternally.

 

·     “and He who sits on the throne shall spread His tabernacle over them”:

o   The Greek word for "tabernacle" has the idea of tent camping.

o   Here it reflects what was symbolized in the Old Testament by the Shekinah, or the immediate presence of God, above the mercy seat, in the tabernacle in the wilderness, and in the cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

o   The immediate presence of God shelters and protects them from all harm.

o   It also corresponds to the Old Testament promise that God will dwell in midst of His people.

 

v.16, “They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; neither shall the sun beat down on them, nor any heat”;

·     Here we see two provisions for the heavenly multitude.

 

·     In the natural world, the first has to do with bodily nourishment, "they will not hunger anymore or thirst anymore":

o   This promise would have been particularly attractive in an ancient land were both hunger and thirst were constant threats.

o   But the deeper meaning is the satisfaction of spiritual hunger and quenching of spiritual thirst.

o   Remember, they don’t have glorified bodies yet.

 

·     The words would be all the more meaningful to those early readers who may have been experiencing severe persecution.

 

·     Another aspect of this figurative language is that the tormenting conditions on earth will have ended for them.

 

·     In another sense, spiritual hunger and thirst for God will never cease:

o   They will just begin to see God as He truly is and long to know more about Him.

o   That’s true of us as well.

o   God’s people will always thirst for Him and that thirst will always be satisfied.

 

·     The other provision stated in verse 16 is, "neither shall the sun beat down on them, nor any heat”:

o   No matter where someone lives, the sun plays a huge factor in his or her lives.

o   Under the fourth bowl judgment of God's wrath (yet to be described), the heat of the sun will become more oppressive than ever before.

o   This multitude will not be subjected to that judgment.

 

·     How God will provide for these things is found in verse 17.

 

v.17, “for the Lamb in the center of the throne shall be their shepherd, and shall guide them to springs of the water of life; and God shall wipe every tear from their eyes”:

·     The Lamb, who is at the center of the throne, will shepherd them and lead them to the springs of the water of life.

·     God will wipe away every tear from their eyes:

o   The Father and the Son will bring the benefits promised.

 

·     Jesus’ function as a shepherd comes into view with the words "shall be their shepherd."

 

·     The idea of Jesus as shepherd is well-known in the rest of the New Testament:

o   But the idea of a Lamb shepherding a flock is quite different.

o   Usually it’s the lambs that follow the shepherd.

o   Here, the Lamb of God will shepherd His followers.

 

·     The four gospels show Christ's shepherding in relation to present life on earth, but here in Revelation, we see this multitude as God's flock in heaven:

o   Jesus will patiently care for the sheep, guarding them from any further persecution.

o   Jesus will "guide them to springs of the waters of life."

 

·     Besides protecting the sheep, the Shepherd is responsible to provide for their refreshment:

o   "he shall guide" continues the picture of Jesus leading His flock to the eternal blessedness that awaits all who belong to God. 

 

·     The Shepherd is leading them "to springs of the water of life":

o   God the Father, who is the source of all life, is the One to whom the Lamb will lead His sheep.

 

·     Notice that God, Himself, will remove all their sorrow, "and God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes":

• Tears in the eyes denote the sorrow of God's people because of the pressures of life on earth.
• The Old Testament source of this promise to remove any lingering effect of that sorrow is Isaiah 20:5-8. In Revelation 20:1-3, the promise is restated in practically identical wording.

 

Lessons from John’s Visions

·     The number of believers is innumerable:  “from every tribe, tongue and nation.” That’s why missions are so important.

 

·     God’s revelations are important to us. We’re not just to read them and walk away.

 

·     The message will still be the same at the end of the earth as it has been all along:  it’s the blood of the Lamb that washes us clean from our sin and guilt.

 

·     When we get to heaven, we will:

• Be in God’s immediate presence.
• We will see His glory, the same glory that ancient Israel saw.
• Our spiritual hunger and thirst will be quenched.
• God will wipe away all sorrow, sadness, and tears. We can hardly wait!!!

 

May the Lord bless you as you continue to growth in the grace and knowledge of the Lord.

 

By His Grace,

Gary T. Dromi, Ph.D., D.Min.

A Journey through Revelation, Part 19: The 144,000. Revelation7:1-8.

Review:

Before we begin looking at chapter 7 of Revelation, let’s do a quick review of the events that just took place when Jesus opened the sixth seal at the end of chapter 6.

 

The sixth seal brought:

·     A great, worldwide earthquake.

·     The sky appeared to split and roll back.

·     The sun was darkened and the moon turned blood red, perhaps by all the volcanic dust and debris.

·     The people hid in the mountains, which were falling down, because they realized the great day of God’s wrath, and the wrath of the Lamb had come.

 

An Interlude

In this article, we start with an interlude, or a pause, in what’s been happening:

·     John sees two visions in chapter 7, which separates the sixth and seventh seal.

 

·     Though the world is falling apart, God's restraining and protecting hand is outstretched to protect His chosen ones. 

 

7:1, “After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind should blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree”:

·     These four angels move to center-stage as the new vision begins:

o   We know this is a new vision because of the phrase "after this," which introduces a new scene.

 

·     When does this vision take place?

o   Just after the sixth seal.

o   We know this by the change in the subject of the sixth seal and by the delay, (until Revelation 8:1), in the opening of the seventh seal.

 

·     The “four winds” are controlled by four angels:

o   These angels may be lower rank than the four living beings at the throne in heaven. But they have power over the forces of nature.

o   All we really know about them, from the text, is that they have a particular responsibility assigned to them and that is to hold back the winds.

 

·     Are these “winds” literal windiness, or symbolic of something else?

o   I believe, as we’ll see a little later, that, these “winds” are winds of judgment, the trumpets, which will begin at the opening of the seventh seal.

 

·     The phrase “at the four corners of the earth,” is a term used to describe the four points of a compass, meaning the whole earth is involved:

o   We know that the earth is not a flat square with four corners.

o   So, the language, here, is figurative and shows the worldwide nature of these angels’ responsibility.

 

·     At each compass point, one of the four winds is held back by an angel who is serving the Lord:

o   The mission of the four angels is to prevent these winds of judgment from starting too soon.

 

·     The phrase, “holding back,” in the Greek, implies that the winds are struggling to get loose, but they are being restrained.

 

·     In Jeremiah 49:36-38, Daniel 7:2, and Hosea 13:15, the four winds picture God's destructive action against the earth:

o   So, it's best to see these winds as a figurative way of referring to the judgments that are about to happen on the earth and the angels are holding them back.

 

·     Because of the flowing language found here, there’s no mention of the winds being released:

o   However, we will see the seven angels sounding their trumpets and the judgments fall upon the earth later.

o   The angelic restraint, here, is a delaying of the start of the trumpet judgments.

o   However, the 144,000 must be sealed before the unleashing of these destructive winds.

 

v.2, “And I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God; and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea”:

·     John sees a fifth angel. It has been suggested that this angel could be Christ, the Holy Spirit, an archangel, a special messenger from Christ, or the prophet Elijah.

 

·     There are two reasons why this would be incorrect:

o   First, "another" is the Greek word, “allon,” which means another of the same kind:

Ø  This angel is of the same character as the first four.

 

o   Second, by using the word “we”, notice he says, “until we have sealed,” in v.3, this angel identifies himself with the other four in the same mission.

 

·     John sees him "ascending from the rising of the sun" from the east:

o   It’s important for us to ask why this angel came from the east?

o   The east is the direction of the land of Israel and it’s appropriate, here, because in this section, the 12 tribes of Israel are the ones about to be sealed, but this is only part of the significance.

o   Also, God has chosen to reveal His salvation from this area of the world: Jesus came from Israel! 

 

·     Notice what the fifth angel has with him, "the seal of the living God":

o   "the seal" was usually a signet ring that the king would stamp something to validate official documents or to mark his property.

o   It was also used to authenticate and to protect.

o   The text does not explicitly say what the seal is, but Revelation 14:1 (which we’ll see later) suggests that it’s the name of the Lamb and that of His Father.

 

 An interesting Side Note

·     “mark,” in the Greek, is the word charagma. It’s the word used to describe the label placed on the followers of the beast in Revelation 13:6-7:

o   It carries the connotation of branding, or tattooing, as was practiced by pagan religions.

o   “seal,” in the Greek, is the word sphragis, used here. It has a rich meaning in Christian usage, including that of ownership (2 Corinthians 1:22), authentication (John 6:27), and protection leading to final salvation (Eph. 1:14; 4:30).

 

·     It’s the seal “of the living God.” This is a familiar expression of both the Old and New Testament:

o   This kind of reference to God emphasizes the contrast between the one eternal God, and the many temporary gods of the pagans.

o   The title, “living God” also adds seriousness and strength to the seal.

 

·     “He cried out with a loud voice”: 

o   This loud cry shows the urgency of his mission. His first concern is the protection of the 144,000.

o   Before the four angels release the winds, the judgments, which will wreak havoc on the earth, these saints must receive their seal of protection.

 

v.3, “saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God on their foreheads”:

·     The phrase, "do not harm," tells the four angels to continue their restraint of the four winds a little longer.

 

·     The judgments cannot begin until the sealing work is done:

o   Until they seal the “bond servants,” literally, “the slaves of our God upon their foreheads.”

o   The seal is a pledge of security.

 

·     Are we sealed? Yes, with the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1:13-14, “In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed [same Greek word as Rev. 7:2] in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.”

 

What about these bondservants?  Who are they?

·     They are a remnant of nation of Israel:  144,000 of them.

 

v.4, “And I heard the number of those who were sealed, one hundred and forty-four thousand sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel”:

o   John heard the number of the ones identified by the seal from an unnamed source, maybe the fifth angel.

 

·     There are two approaches to interpreting this 144,000:

o   The question is:  “Is this a literal, or symbolic number?”

 

·     The symbolic approach believes that it’s impossible to take the number literally: 

o   They see it as simply a vast number, unable to be determined.

o   The primary reason for this view is their tendency to make the 144,000 into a group that represents the Church, because there can be no exact number of believers.

o   But there’s no justification for seeing this number as a figurative.

 

·     These are not the Jehovah’s Witnesses who say that this text speaks of 144,000 “Witnesses” who have been chosen by God to be special leaders.

 

·     This number, 144.000, is to be taken literally:

o   It’s a definite number, in contrast with the infinite number of Rev. 7:9 (which we’ll see next time).

o   The problem is, if this number is taken symbolically, then which numbers in Revelation are literal and which are figurative?

o   Just as God reserved 7000 in the days of Ahab, He will reserve 144,000 for Himself during the future Great Tribulation.

 

·     The text is clear. It says, "from every tribe of the sons of Israel”:

o   This phrase, along with the naming of each individual tribe and the repeated number 12,000, gives us the strongest possible evidence that these will come from every division of God's chosen people, “Israel.”

o   There are some, however, who disagree.

 

·     But the answer lies in determining the proper meaning of the word "Israel":

o   A tremendous amount of debate has tried to build a case that the term “Israel,” used here, refers to “spiritual” Israel, which they would say, is the Church.

o   We don’t have enough time to examine all the passages, which they use to argue for this idea.

o   But when examined correctly and in context, those passages do not prove that the Church is the new Israel anymore than this passage.

o   No clear-cut example of the Church being called, or being equated to, "Israel" exists in the entire New Testament.

o   The term "Israel" refers to the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 

o   This is the natural understanding and the word’s normal usage in the New Testament as well as the Old Testament.

o   Paul is very clear about the distinction between the two groups of God's people, Israel and the Church, especially Romans chapters 9-11.

o   Israel has not, and will not, lose her distinctive national identity before God, regardless of human proposals to the contrary. 

o   Another argument against this being the literal 12 tribes is that the identity of the tribe members is lost to mankind:

Ø  However, they are still known to God, who will be in charge of the sealing when it takes place.

 

o   This is not the entire total of the faithful remnant of Israel, but a special group, charged with a special responsibility of witnessing for Christ during the world's darkest hour, as will be shown later in chapters 12 and 14.

o   The 144,000 are a special remnant that will be a testimony to God’s grace and mercy during this time of judgment. 

o   They will carry God's message to the world during these difficult days.

o   These will not face God’s wrath, but they will have to face the wrath of those who hate God.

 

·     One thing about this list, notice that the tribe of “Dan” is excluded:

o   The best explanation for why the tribe of Dan is omitted is that they left their inheritance and moved north to Laish and practiced idolatry.

o   This tribe was given an inheritance, like all the rest of the tribes, but they chose to move away and settle in the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon, thereby rejecting the word of the Lord.

o   Being the only tribe that failed to conquer its territory, it turned to idolatry as an alternative to obeying God.

o   Deuteronomy 29:18-21 requires the blotting out the name of anyone who introduces idolatry in Israel.

o   The other tribes were guilty of the same sin, but Dan was the leader in idolatrous practices.

 

·     Ephraim is also missing from the list of tribes: 

o   Ephraim was also addicted to idolatry.

o   Ephraim was also foremost in the defection from the house of David and was an ally of the enemies of Judah.

o   Because Joseph was the father of Ephraim and Manasseh, some see the inclusion of Joseph in the present list as the inclusion of Ephraim, without the unpleasant reminder that the name carried.

 

·     Another peculiar characteristic of this list is the inclusion of Manasseh and Joseph in the same list. Remember, Joseph was the father of Ephraim and Manasseh:

o   This is not some sort of the mistake.

o   It must be significant because John included this list in his prophecy.

o   One explanation is that Manasseh was the faithful son of Joseph. And because Joseph was given a double-portion by Jacob, in recognition of his favoritism toward Joseph, this would be a fitting tribute to Manasseh’s faithfulness.

 

v.5, “from the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand were sealed, from the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand, from the tribe of Gad twelve thousand”:

·     The name “Judah” means, “praise”:

o   He was the fourth son of Jacob and Leah.

o   It was out of this tribe that Jesus, the Messiah, came.

 

·     The name “Reuben” means “behold the son”:

o   He was the first son of Jacob and Leah.

o   Leah had named her son Reuben because the Lord had looked upon her sorrow at being unloved by her husband.

o   By giving a son to Jacob, she hoped he would respond to her in love.

 

·     The name “Gad” means “good fortune”:

o   He was the seventh son of Jacob by Leah’s maid, Zilpah.

o   Gad was the firstborn of Zilpah.

 

v.6, “from the tribe of Asher twelve thousand, from the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand, from the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand”:

·     The name “Asher” means “happy”:

o   The eighth son of Jacob by Leah’s maidservant, Zilpah.

 

·     The name “Napthali” means “my wrestling”:

o   Napthali was the sixth son of Jacob by Leah’s servant Bilhah (Gen. 35:25).

o   Because Jacob’s wife, Rachel, was barren and her sister Leah had borne four sons to Jacob, Rachel was distraught. She gave her maidservant, Bilhah, to Jacob. Any offspring of this union were regarded as Rachel’s.

o   When Bilhah gave birth to Dan and Naphtali, Rachel was joyous.

o   She said, “with great wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister and indeed I have prevailed” (Gen. 30:8).

o   So, she called his name “Naphtali,” which means “my wrestling.”

 

·     The name “Manasseh” means “causing to forget”:

o   Joseph’s firstborn son who was born in Egypt to Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, the priest of On, or Hieropolis (Gen. 41:50–51).

o   Like his younger brother Ephraim, Manasseh was half Hebrew and half Egyptian.

o   Manasseh’s birth caused Joseph to forget the bitterness of his past experiences.

o   Manasseh and Ephraim were both adopted by Jacob and given status as sons just like Jacob’s own sons, Reuben and Simeon.

 

v.7, “from the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand, from the tribe of Levi twelve thousand, from the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand:”

·     The name “Simeon,” means “to hear”:

o   The second son of Jacob and Leah (Gen. 29:33), he and his brother Levi tricked the Hivites of Shechem and massacred all the males because one of them had raped Dinah, their sister (Gen. 34:2, 25, 30).

o   Simeon was the brother whom Joseph kept as security when he allowed his brothers to leave Egypt and return to their father, Jacob, in the land of Canaan (Gen. 42:24).

 

·     The name “Levi” means “to join”:

o   He was he third son of Jacob and Leah (Gen. 29:34).

o   He was famous for the Levitical priesthood.

 

·     The name “Issachar” means “to hire”:

o   The ninth son of Jacob and the fifth by his wife Leah.

o   Before his death, Jacob described Issachar as “a strong donkey lying down between two burdens” (Gen. 49:15).

o   In other words, Jacob saw that Issachar could be a strong fighter but that his love of comfort could also cause him to settle for the easy way out.

 

v.8, “from the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand, from the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand, from the tribe of Benjamin, twelve thousand were sealed”:

·     The name “Zebulun” means honor or exalt.

o   He was he tenth son of Jacob and the sixth and last son of Leah.

o   Jesus’ hometown, Nazareth, was located in the heart of Zebulun.

 

·     The name “Joseph” means “may he (God) add”:

o   He was the eleventh son of Jacob and the first child of Rachel.

o   Joseph was sold into slavery and later rose to an important position in the Egyptian government.

o   Joseph was the first child of Rachel and his father’s favorite son. This is most clearly shown by the special coat that Jacob gave to Joseph.

o   Joseph’s ten older brothers hated him because he was Jacob’s favorite and because Joseph had dreams that he interpreted to his brothers in a conceited way.

o   It is no surprise that Joseph’s brothers hated him enough to kill him.

 

·     The name “Benjamin” means “son of the right hand” or “lucky”:

o   Jacob’s youngest son, born to his favorite wife, Rachel.

o   After giving birth to Benjamin, the dying Rachel named him “Ben-oni,” which means “son of my sorrow.” But Jacob renamed him Benjamin.

o   When Jacob lost his beloved son Joseph, he became very attached to Benjamin because Benjamin was the only surviving son of Rachel.

o   When his sons went to Egypt in search of food to find relief from the famine, Jacob was reluctant to let Benjamin go with them.

 

Lessons from Their Names

·     As Judah’s name means, “praise,” that’s what we should do, praise God, especially when we understand that the bride of Christ, the Church, will not be here for these judgments.

 

·     Just as Rachel’s wrestling with her sister was from a wrong motive, when we wrestle with God, it’s from a wrong motive.

 

·     As Manasseh caused Joseph to forget his bitterness, we should let go of our bitterness when we realize how much God loves us.

 

·     Jacob saw that Issachar could be a strong fighter, but that his love of comfort could also cause him to settle for the easy way out. We need to guard against choosing the easy way as opposed to the right way, the God-honoring way, to live our lives.

 

·     Sometimes, in our comfort, we settle for the easy way out; we shortcut our quality and we don’t give God our best. We shouldn’t be like Issachar.

 

Let me close this article with a reading from Psalm 122:

·     Psalm 122:6-9, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: ‘May they prosper who love you. 7 May peace be within your walls, and prosperity within your palaces.’ 8 For the sake of my brothers and my friends, I will now say, ‘May peace be within you.’ 9 For the sake of the house of the Lord our God I will seek your good.”

 

May the Lord bless you as you continue to grow in God’s grace and truth.

 

By His Grace,

Gary T. Dromi, Ph.D., D.Min.