Revelation 7

Berean Standard Bible · Compare translations · AD 68 – AD 96 · Late apostolic age · Tap a verse to copy, share or highlight ·

17 verses · 444 words · ~2 min read · ~3 min listen

144,000 Sealed

¹After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back its four winds so that no wind would blow on land or sea or on any tree. ²And I saw another angel ascending from the east, with the seal of the living God. And 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 sea or trees until we have placed a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.”

⁴And I heard the number of those who were sealed, 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel:

⁵From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed,

from the tribe of Reuben 12,000,

from the tribe of Gad 12,000,

⁶from the tribe of Asher 12,000,

from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000,

from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000,

⁷from the tribe of Simeon 12,000,

from the tribe of Levi 12,000,

from the tribe of Issachar 12,000,

⁸from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000,

from the tribe of Joseph 12,000,

and from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.

Praise from the Great Multitude

⁹After this I looked and saw a multitude too large to count, from every nation and tribe and people and tongue, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hands. ¹⁰And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation to our God,

who sits on the throne,

and to the Lamb!”

¹¹And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. And they fell facedown before the throne and worshiped God, ¹²saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”

¹³Then one of the elders addressed me: “These in white robes,” he asked, “who are they, and where have they come from?”

¹⁴“Sir,” I answered, “you know.”

So he replied, “These are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. ¹⁵For this reason,

they are before the throne of God

and serve Him day and night in His temple;

and the One seated on the throne

will spread His tabernacle over them.

¹⁶‘Never again will they hunger,

and never will they thirst;

nor will the sun beat down upon them,

nor any scorching heat.’

¹⁷For the Lamb in 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.’”

Footnotes (4)

a v16 Isaiah 49:10
b v17 See Psalms 23:1.
c v17 Isaiah 49:10
d v17 Isaiah 25:8

Study notes on this chapter · 1

Prophecy & fulfillmentDebated

The 144,000 sealed

John hears the number of those sealed on their foreheads: 144,000 from the twelve tribes of Israel, twelve thousand from each, and then sees a great multitude from every nation that no one can count. The list of tribes omits Dan and includes Manasseh and Joseph. Interpreters differ on who they are.

When: Revelation, c. AD 90s.

Original passageRevelation 7:1–8

Echoed inEzekiel 9:4Revelation 14:1–5

Ways people read this (4)

Ethnic Israel, or Jewish believers, in a future time of tribulation (dispensationalist and some others).
The church, spiritual Israel, as the complete people of God (amillennial and many others).
A symbolic figure: twelve squared multiplied by a thousand, signifying completeness.
The 144,000 and the great multitude are two views of the same people, one heard and one seen.

Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.

See all prophecy & fulfillment notes →

Revelation 7

144,000 Sealedⓘ

Praise from the Great Multitudeⓘ

Study notes on this chapter · 1

The 144,000 sealed

144,000 Sealed

Praise from the Great Multitude