In the book of Revelation there are a number of insertions, and chapter seven is the first of them. This chapter is not the continuation of chapter six. It is an insertion between the sixth and seventh seals, showing how God cares for His people while He is about to execute His judgment upon the earth. Chapter eight is the continuation of chapter six. At the end of chapter six we have the sixth seal, and in the beginning of chapter eight we have the seventh. The opening of the seventh seal will bring in the seven trumpets, the last three of which constitute the great tribulation (Rev. 8:1-2). But before this transpires, God will seal the Israelites whom He intends to preserve (Rev. 7:3).
God will preserve His two peoples — the Israelites and the redeemed saints. Why does this insertion regarding God’s preservation of His people come here? Because in the sixth seal we see the warning of the coming tribulation. As we have seen, the fifth seal is the cry of the martyred saints for revenge, and the sixth seal is God’s answer to this cry, which is also a warning to the dwellers on the earth that the tribulation will soon come. Since the ascension of Christ, there have been a great number of earthquakes and other calamities. All these have been natural calamities. However, beginning at the opening of the sixth seal, the calamities will no longer be natural but supernatural. Both natural and supernatural calamities are God’s punishment upon the earth. This rebellious earth deserves God’s punishment, and the punishing hand of God has never been removed from it. To a certain extent, God punishes the earth for His purpose. Since the ascension of Christ, God has been punishing the earth.
One aspect of God’s punishment is seen in the destruction of the city of Jerusalem by Titus and his armies. That destruction was prophesied by the Lord Jesus in Matthew 24:2 where, speaking of the temple, He said to His disciples, “See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Jerusalem was destroyed by Titus for two reasons: because the Jewish religion was rebellious against God’s economy and because this religion was a negative influence on the church in Jerusalem. In Acts 21 we see how much the old Jewish religion influenced the church. By the time of A.D. 70 the Lord could no longer tolerate the rebellion of the Jewish religion and its influence upon the church, so He sent the Roman army to destroy Jerusalem and the temple. That destruction was a terrible punishment which was accompanied by famine, pestilence, and death. After that, throughout the centuries, natural calamities have been and will be used by God to punish the earth until the sixth seal.
At the time of the sixth seal, the calamities will be changed from natural calamities to supernatural ones. The earth will be shaken, and the sun, moon, and stars will be damaged. These calamities will be a preface to the seventh seal. When the seventh seal is executed, the situation will be terrible and no one will be able to bear it. Shortly after the opening of the seventh seal, the first trumpet will be sounded, and “the third part of the earth” will be burnt up (Rev. 8:7). At the sounding of the second trumpet, “the third part of the sea” will become blood (Rev. 8:8). At the sounding of the third trumpet, a great star will fall upon “the third part of the rivers and upon the springs of waters” and “the third part of the waters” will become wormwood (Rev. 8:10-11). At the sounding of the fourth trumpet, “the third part of the sun and the third part of the moon and the third part of the stars” will be smitten “so that the third part of them might be darkened” (Rev. 8:12). God made the earth for man to live on. The sun, moon, and stars all help to maintain life on earth. But because the dwellers on earth have been so insolent toward Him for centuries, the time will come when God will no longer endure it. He will come in to judge the earth, the sea, the rivers, and the sun, moon, and stars. The earth is for human existence, and every form of life on earth is for man’s benefit. The animals, vegetables, and minerals are all for the existence of mankind. These did not come into being by accident, but were planned and created by God. For example, there is no air on the moon, but there is air on earth. Around the globe is a layer of air which the Bible calls the firmament (Gen. 1:7). The earth is the planet with a firmament. God created it in such a way so that it would produce the supplies for maintaining human life. The air, sunshine, and water are all necessary for man’s existence. But after God judges the earth and heaven, the earth will no longer be a suitable place for man to live on.
In Matt. 24:6-7 the Lord prophesied that two kinds of wars would come — wars of people against people and wars of nation against nation, that is, civil wars and international wars. After Christ’s ascension, these wars began to take place. The Lord also prophesied in Matthew 24 that there would be “earthquakes in various places” (v. 7). A recent article said that each year there will be approximately five to six thousand earthquakes ranging from two to eight on the Richter scale. This is the fulfillment of the Lord’s prophecy. In His prophecy the Lord seemed to be saying, “Don’t live on this earth so complacently, not caring for God’s purpose. You must realize that God has a purpose on this earth and that you must turn to Him for the fulfillment of His purpose.” God will warn people again and again with wars and earthquakes until the time of the fifth seal when the martyred souls can no longer tolerate the situation. The martyred saints will then cry out, saying, “How long, O sovereign Lord, holy and true, will You not judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (6:10). God’s answer comes in the sixth seal when the earth will be shaken and the heavenly hosts will be smitten as an introduction to and warning of the coming tribulation. The sixth seal and the first five trumpets are closely related to one another in time.
At this juncture we need to consider the second chapter of Joel. Joel 2 says that certain things will occur before the day of the Lord. If you read New Testament prophecy along with the Old Testament prophecies, you will see that there is a time called the day of the Lord. This is the great tribulation. The day of the Lord means the day of the Lord’s wrath, the day of His coming in to interfere with the world by means of supernatural calamities. The day of the Lord will be terrible. Several prophets of the Old Testament mention the day of the Lord, and they all indicate that it will be a dreadful day (Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11, 31; 3:14; Zech. 14:1; Mal. 4:5). The sixth seal will be before the day of the Lord, meaning that it will be before the great tribulation. The great tribulation will begin at the sounding of the fifth trumpet. The first four trumpets are the preliminary to the great tribulation. It is similar to starting an automobile. First the ignition is turned on, the motor starts, and then the car will run. In like manner, after the warning of the sixth seal, the first four trumpets will be the preliminary to the great tribulation. But, like an automobile which is warming up but has not yet moved, the four trumpets are the preparation for the great tribulation. But even these trumpets will cause severe suffering. The damage to the earth, waters, and the heavenly hosts will be greater than that caused by the earthquake of the sixth seal. From the time of the sixth seal, there will be nothing good for man on earth.
The New Testament indicates that the early overcomers, such as the man-child and the firstfruits, will be taken away from the earth shortly before the sixth seal. However, we cannot calculate the exact time. But according to Revelation, Matthew, and other portions of the Word, we can say that the first kind of rapture, the raptures of the man-child and the firstfruits, will take place before the sixth seal. Recall that the Lord promised to the church in Philadelphia to keep them out of the hour of trial which will come upon all the inhabited earth (3:10). The Lord’s lovers and seekers will be taken away before the sixth seal. Immediately after the opening of the sixth seal, we have chapter seven, an insertion revealing that before the great tribulation God will do two things to preserve His people: He will seal the chosen remnant of Israel and He will begin the rapture of the redeemed ones of the church.
Revelation 7:1 says, “After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding fast the four winds of the earth, so that no wind should blow on the earth nor on the sea nor on any tree.” This is the insertion between the sixth and seventh seals, showing how God cares for His people while He is about to execute His judgments upon the earth. The winds here are for God’s judgments (Jonah 1:4; Isa. 11:15; Jer. 22:22; 49:36; 51:1). The next verse says, “And I saw another Angel ascend from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God; and He cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was given to harm the earth and sea.” The “another Angel” here refers to Christ, as also in Rev. 8:3; 10:1 and Rev. 18:1. In the Old Testament Christ was called “the Angel of the Lord,” who was God Himself (Gen. 22:11-12; Exo. 3:2-6; Judg. 6:11-24; Zech. 1:11-12; 2:8-11; 3:1-7). Here in the New Testament He is again called the Angel.
Although I love Israel, I feel very sad for them because, according to prophecy and their present situation, they have returned to the land of their fathers in unbelief. They still cling to their old religion, and they do not believe in God according to His new testament economy. They are actually in rebellion against Him. When the Lord Jesus came, God changed the dispensation from that of keeping the law to that of believing in the Lord Jesus. But the Jews would not accept this change and they refused to turn from keeping the law to believing in the Lord Jesus. This was their rebellion, stubbornness, and disobedience. God has borne with them for centuries, and according to His sovereignty, they have returned and have been restored as a nation again, but they are still in unbelief. They do not believe in the Lord Jesus. According to some reliable information I have received, the government of Israel is doing everything possible to exclude any type of Christian activity. They do not want any Christian missionaries to carry on mission work. The prophecies regarding Israel indicate that they will remain in unbelief until the last day. God, however, is sovereign and He will always take care of the nation of Israel, not for their sake but for His economy. He knows that among the unbelieving Jews there are some faithful ones, and before He will actually judge the earth with supernatural calamities, He will seal them.
The first trumpet is to harm the earth and the trees (Rev. 8:7), the second trumpet is to harm the sea (Rev. 8:8-9), the third trumpet is to harm the rivers (Rev. 8:10-11), and the fourth trumpet is to harm the heavenly hosts (Rev. 8:12). Before the executing of the first four trumpets, God will seal His chosen Israelites to preserve them from the supernatural calamities which will be carried out by these trumpets.
The first four trumpets will harm only the earth, the sea, the rivers, and the heavenly hosts. It is the fifth trumpet that will torment men directly. God’s sealing of His chosen Israelites is especially to preserve them from the torment of the fifth trumpet (Rev. 9:4).
In Rev. 7:4-8 we see that God will seal one hundred forty-four thousand “out of every tribe of the sons of Israel,” sealing twelve thousand out of each of the twelve tribes. These are the Israelites who will keep the commandments of God during the great tribulation (Rev. 12:17; 14:12). Altogether, one hundred forty-four thousand faithful Israelites will be sealed on their foreheads. I do not know what kind of seal this will be, but it will be a mark recognizable to the angels sent to judge the earth. This is God’s way of preserving His chosen Israelites while He is executing His judgment upon the earth.
In verses 6 and 8 we see that Joseph gains double portions (cf. 1 Chron. 5:1-2; Ezek. 48:4-5). Because Manasseh, one of the two sons of Joseph (Gen. 48:5), and Joseph (Gen. 48:8) stand for two tribes, Joseph will still have the double portion of the birthright (1 Chron. 5:1-2) during the millennium (Ezek. 48:4-5).
Reuben was the firstborn of Israel, but due to his sinfulness he lost his birthright and Judah prevailed above his brothers (1 Chron. 5:1-2). Hence, the tribe of Judah is mentioned here first.
In Rev. 7 Dan is omitted. In the account here, as in 1 Chronicles chapters two through nine, the tribe of Dan is omitted because of their idolatry (Judg. 18:30-31; 1 Kings 12:29-30; 2 Kings 10:29; cf. Gen. 49:17). However, Dan will still be counted during the millennium (Ezek. 48:1) because of Jacob’s blessing upon him, that Dan might still be one of the tribes by the salvation of the Lord (Gen. 49:16-18).
In addition to the chosen remnant of Israel, God has another people — the redeemed saints of the church (Rev. 7:9-17). In this insertion we see a vision revealing how God preserves His redeemed saints throughout all the tribulations. The way God preserves the chosen remnant of the children of Israel is to seal them and to leave them on earth. While the Israelites are God’s earthly people, the Christians are God’s heavenly people. God promised to give Abraham people like the stars of the heavens and like the sand of the seashore (Gen. 22:17). The heavenly people, the Christians, are the stars, and the earthly people, the Israelites, are the sand of the seashore. In order to preserve His earthly people, God seals them and keeps them on earth. He will not take them from the earth to the heavens. However, God’s way of preserving His redeemed saints is not to keep them on earth but to take them away by means of rapture. The rapture will not only occur once or be just of one kind. There will be at least two or three kinds of raptures. Eventually, all the redeemed saints in the church will be raptured from earth to heaven. The insertion in this vision concerning the church gives us an overall view from the time of rapture until eternity. In other words, Revelation 7 ends with eternity. For eternity, the whole church will be under God’s care and under the Lamb’s shepherding.
God’s rapture of His redeemed saints will begin with the first overcomers, comprising the man-child in 12:5 and the firstfruits in Rev. 14:1-6. This should be before the sixth seal, because the sixth seal will be the beginning of supernatural calamities executed by God as the “trial which is about to come on the whole inhabited earth, to try them who dwell on the earth” (Rev. 3:10). God’s rapture of His redeemed saints will continue with the two witnesses in Rev. 11:12, the late overcomers in Rev. 15:2, and the harvest in Rev. 14:14-16 (the majority of the believers who will pass through most of the great tribulation), until all the saints will be raptured to participate in God’s care and the Lamb’s shepherding for eternity.
Verse 9 says, “After these things I saw, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number.” The great multitude consists of the redeemed ones throughout all generations from the nations, who are innumerable and who constitute the church (Rev. 5:9; Rom. 11:25; Acts 15:14, 19).
This great multitude consists of those who have been purchased with the blood of the Lamb from every nation, tribe, people, and tongue (Rev. 7:9; 5:9) to be the constituents of the church.
Speaking of the great multitude mentioned in verse 9, one of the elders said, “These are those who come out of the great tribulation and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (v. 14). The great tribulation here is different from the great tribulation mentioned in Matt. 24:21. The great tribulation here is tribulation in a general sense. All of God’s redeemed people have passed through certain tribulations, sufferings, persecutions, and afflictions. No Christian can avoid these things. In our spirit, we Christians are a people of enjoyment. But, on the physical side, we are a suffering people. But one day we shall come triumphantly out of the great tribulation and stand before the throne and before the Lamb. All those in the great multitude in this chapter have palm branches in their hands, signifying their victory over tribulation (cf. John 12:13), which they have undergone for the Lord’s sake (v. 14). Palm trees are also the sign of satisfaction through watering (Exo. 15:27). Palm branches were used for the feast of tabernacles, in which the people of God rejoiced for the satisfaction of their enjoyment (Lev. 23:40; Neh. 8:15). The feast of tabernacles was a type which will be fulfilled by this great multitude of God’s redeemed ones enjoying the eternal feast of tabernacles. This multitude “shall flourish like the palm tree” in the temple of God (Psa. 92:12-13).
“Standing before the throne” indicates that the great multitude of the redeemed ones must have been raptured to the presence of God. “Standing before the Lamb” corresponds to “stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:36), which clearly indicates the rapture. Since this is mentioned immediately after the opening of the sixth seal, it also implies that the rapture of the believers should begin to transpire before the sixth seal. The record in verses 9 through 17 composes in a general way a scene from the rapture of the believers to their enjoyment in eternity.
In verse 9 we see that this great multitude is “clothed in white robes,” for they “have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (v. 14). Robes, being plural, signify the righteousness of their conduct. White indicates that their conduct is pure and approved by God through the washing in the blood of the Lamb.
Verse 10 says, “And they cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb.” The loud praise mentioning only salvation indicates that the praisers are the saved ones. The great multitude, those who are saved, are grateful for God’s salvation.
Verse 15 says, “Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple.” This great multitude has come out of the great tribulation into a heavenly state, into the temple of God where they serve Him day and night.
Verse 15 also says that “He who sits upon the throne shall spread His tabernacle over them.” The great multitude will enjoy God and His care. He will spread His tabernacle over them, meaning that He will make His dwelling place their dwelling place. God will cause all His redeemed ones to dwell together with Him. In a very positive sense, God will even be our dwelling place, our tabernacle. As He spreads Himself over us as a tabernacle, we shall enjoy Him to the uttermost. Christ is the tabernacle of God (John 1:14), and the New Jerusalem as the ultimate enlargement of Christ will be God’s eternal tabernacle (Rev. 21:2-3) where all God’s redeemed ones will dwell with Him forever. God will overshadow them with Himself as embodied in Christ. Christ, as the embodiment of God, will be their tabernacle. The portrait in verses 15 through 17, similar to what is portrayed in Rev. 21:3-4 and Rev. 22:3-5, is of eternity.
Verses 16 and 17 say, “They shall not hunger any more, neither shall they thirst any more, neither shall the sun beat upon them, nor any heat; for the Lamb in the midst of the throne shall shepherd them and shall guide them to springs of waters of life.” Here we see that the Lamb will shepherd them and guide them to springs of waters of life. Shepherding includes feeding. Under the shepherding of Christ, “I shall not want” (Psa. 23:1). The Lamb will also lead us to springs of waters of life. In eternity, we shall drink of many springs and enjoy many different waters. How good this is!
Verse 17 also says that “God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Tears are a sign of dissatisfaction. Waters of life are for satisfaction. Because the Lamb will supply them with waters of life for their satisfaction, they will have no tears of dissatisfaction. The waters of life shall be supplied, and the water of tears shall be wiped away. There will be no tears, hunger, or thirst — just enjoyment.
Verses 11 and 12 say, “And all the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and worshipped God, saying, Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen.” This is similar to the word in Luke 15:7, where there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents. Here the angels say, “Amen” to the redeemed ones’ praise of salvation.
In this chapter we see how God takes care of His people. When He is about to judge the earth, He will seal His earthly people and rapture His heavenly people. While the chosen remnant of Israel is sealed, the believers are regenerated, for God has put Himself into us as life. He does not simply put a mark on our forehead; He puts Himself into us as life. Thus, we are not His earthly people but His heavenly people. Would you rather be a regenerated Christian or a sealed Israelite? We Christians do not have this seal — we have God in us, which is much better. Unlike the chosen remnant of Israel, we shall not remain on earth. Rather, we shall be preserved by being taken away to the presence of God. We shall be in that eternal state enjoying God’s divine and eternal care and also enjoying the Lamb’s eternal shepherding. How pleasant that will be! The sealed remnant of Israel will be the better people, but we shall be the best people.
However, if we would be taken away to God’s presence, we must be mature. If we are still tender and unripe, God will not take us away. Instead, He will leave us in the field to suffer until we have ripened. While all the church people will be taken away, there is nonetheless a condition, the condition of maturity and of ripeness. We all must ripen and mature. This is the condition of our being taken away from this earth by God. This is fully and adequately revealed in the book of Revelation. In chapter fourteen, for example, we clearly see the firstfruits and the harvest. In that portion of the Word, we are told definitely that after the field has ripened, the harvest comes. Thus, we all need to grow. It is impossible for people to grow in religion because there is no food or nourishment there. In a sense, there is not even a field there. The only place where Christians can grow today is the church, for in the church is the pasture — Christ — for the flock to feed on and receive nourishment for growth. By the Lord’s sovereign grace, we are enjoying this pasture. We all can testify that since coming into the church life, we have been in the green pasture with the tender grass. Day by day we are feeding on the tender grass which is Christ Himself. Here in the church life we feed on Christ and grow. Here we take all the tender nourishment into our being. Thank the Lord that we are growing day by day. Praise the Lord that we are growing and that He is preparing us for our rapture. We do not expect to face the tribulation. We are growing into maturity, growing into rapture, growing into His presence. One day, we shall be there.
