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The Hundred Forty And Four Thousand Defined!
Who are the 144,000 people who are mentioned in Revelation 14? First, let’s read the appropriate section:
1 And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads.
2 And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:
3 And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.
4 These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.
5 And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.
6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Revelation 14:1-12 KJV
A “Biblical Sandwich”
You should always interpret this passage by considering that verses 1-12 act as a “single unit” or “single idea.” You can think of this as a “Biblical sandwich”! The two slices of bread refer to the 144,000, and the inner part of the sandwich is the 3 Angels’ Messages! So the 3 Angels’ Messages are presented by the 144,000! And verse 12 describes what these 144,000 people are like!
Keep The Faith Of Jesus!
Please notice that verse 12 uses the common English practice of “not repeating the verb” because of the “and.” So, if we put the extra verb back into the verse, it would read: “Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and KEEP the faith of Jesus!”
So, what does it mean to “keep the faith of Jesus”? It means that their own faith is equivalent to the faith that Jesus had in His Father while He was on Earth! And that requires a very special relationship with God! (See Desire Of Ages, Chapter One, “God With Us”) This is also a very clear reference to the Melchizedek Priesthood!
Verse 13 acts as a “separator” between the only two living groups on Earth during this time period. It describes those who were killed in persecution during the “Great Tribulation” or the “time of Jacob’s trouble.”
13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.
Revelation 14:13 KJV
Let’s Be Consistent!
Then, since we are treating the first 12 verses as a “single unit,” we need to be consistent in treating the last verses (14-20) also as a “single unit”! And this is “a description” of the only other living group of people on the Earth at this time…just before the Second Coming! In fact, the “reaping” described in these verses really is the Second Coming!
14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.
15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.
16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.
17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.
18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
20 And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.
Revelation 14:14-20 KJV
Now, we can see that “the 144,000” could be a very literal number! However, it could be considered “a minimum requirement” by God. One possibility is that this number represents the literal number of those who are still living and being faithful to God just before the Second Coming of Christ! Another possibility is that those in this group are SDAs who are faithful members of the Melchizedek priesthood! Regardless of which is true, the 144,000 will be members of the Melchizedek Priesthood!
One thing is very certain: there will be a time called “Jacob’s trouble” when many faithful SDAs will be killed because of their refusal to obey the Sunday Law.
When the killing finally stops, it will be approximately 3 days before the Second Coming! How do we know this? Because of the following Bible reference:
1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
Revelation 8:1 KJV
Here, we see that this event happens when the “seventh seal” is broken, which occurs just before the Second Coming! The “silence in heaven” is quite natural since all of the angels, along with all 3 members of the Godhead, are traveling to this Earth for the Second Coming! Notice the word “about”, please! It does NOT say exactly “half an hour,” but “about half an hour”! How long is “a half-hour” of prophetic time? It is exactly 7.5 days! But that little word “about” means that we should shorten it to 7 days!
Logically, that means that the trip to this Earth will account for half of that time, while the other half will be taken up by our return trip to heaven!
What will be happening on this Earth during those approximately 3 to 3.5 days? The wicked will be facing the worst possible torture that ANYONE can imagine! Weapons will NOT WORK! The faithful SDAs can no longer be killed! Guns will “turn to straw”! Bullets will be stopped in mid-air when the faithful simply raise their hands!
And the wicked will suddenly realize their folly! They will realize that they have been fighting against God! They will realize that Jesus is ON HIS WAY! And they will DREAD His appearance!!! This is God’s perfectly JUST “payback” for the persecution they have brought against His bride, the real SDA church! (See all of Song Of Solomon, 8 chapters!)
Let’s summarize all of this!
1 Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,
2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
3 If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.
4 To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,
5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
6 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.
7 Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,
8 And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.
9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;
10 Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.
1 Peter 2:1-10 KJV
Here, we see a complete summary of what it means to be one of the 144,000! It means that you will pass through almost all of the fiery trials that Jesus faced (except for the second death)! It means that you are to become a “Melchizedek priest” or “priestess,” with Jesus as the High Priest of that same order!
All of this does not make those who are killed any “less than” those who survive! It simply means that they know what Jesus went through for them! They are bound to Jesus by a special bond that will never be broken!
So, you see, everything ties perfectly together! It is ALL related!
Another Resource: The 144,000, according to EGW
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