7 After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree. 2 Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, 3 saying, “Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” 4 And I heard the number of those who were sealed. One hundred and forty-four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel were sealed:
5 of the tribe of Judah twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand were [a]sealed;
of the tribe of Gad twelve thousand were sealed;
6 of the tribe of Asher twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand were sealed;
7 of the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Levi twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand were sealed;
8 of the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand were sealed.
Then look at verse four. He says, “And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000 sealed.” Some religious groups have picked up on this 144,000 and have attempted to say that this is the exact number that are going to be saved and going to be living in the kingdom of God and so forth, and folks, it just doesn’t make any sense. It isn’t logical. That’s what happens when you take things literally out of the scripture.
The 144,000 is simply symbolic. It means a wide number of people. It’s going to refer to both Jews and gentiles. Both Jewish Christians and gentile Christians. “A great multitude from every nation,” is what he says down here in verse nine. Go down to verse nine. “After this, I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man could number from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the lamb, clothed in white robes with palm branches in their hands.”
Peoples from all tribes and peoples and tongues. This includes the 144,000 as a reference to all the faithful who are going to be saved. And the symbology has to do with 12 times 12. The 12 tribes and the 12 apostles. 12 carries with it the idea of spiritual completeness. Spiritual completeness. The number of seven sort of carries the same idea; spiritual fulfillment or completion. But the number 12 really means completion in a broader sense, I suppose. Spiritual completion. And it’s simply a symbolic number.
If you take it literally, then we’re all in a lot of trouble, because there are a lot of souls running around on this plain and on other plains. If we say only 144,000 are going to make it, then that’s not very encouraging, is it? When we say that, we miss the whole point. He’s dealing with symbology here. The elect; the 144,000, okay? We see here a form of divine recognition for both the Jews and the gentiles.
The Aions are a symbol of the 12 followers of Jesus and the 12 tribes of Israel a symbol of the 12 Aions which emanated from the Deity Hebrews 11:1-4 cp 2tim 3:16 god breathed the Aions into existence from his substance heb 1:3 emanating forth from him
The Twelve Aions or 12 spiritual attributes of Consciousness
The names of the twelve sons of Jacob form a sentence, conveying an important message. Throughout the Scriptures they are set forth in various orders, changing the message of the names as this is done
The names of the tribes (vv. 5-8) form a sentence as follows:
Judah — Praise; praise Jehovah; meta. prayer and praise faculty.
Reuben — See a son; behold a vision of a son; meta. understanding through seeing.
Gad — Company pertaining to good fortune; meta. power on.the physical plane.
Asher — Blessed; straight forward; faculty of understanding.
Naphthali — Wrestling; wrestling; meta. elimination or renunciation.
Manasseh — Forgetting; out of the forgotten;
Simeon —Hearing; harkening, obeying; meta. understanding through hearing.
Levi — Joining; joining, clinging; meta. the love faculty in human consciousness.
Issachar —Reward; he will bring reward, he who brings recompense; meta. activated zeal.
Zebulun — Dwelling; habitation, dwelling; meta. order faculty.
Joseph —Adding; Joseph - Jehovah shall bring increase; meta. imagination.
Benjamin — Son of the right hand. son of good fortune; meta. active accomplishing faith.
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