“Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.” (Rev 7:3-4)

Who are the 144,000? Bible prophecy enthusiasts have answered this question in different ways. For those who hold a literalist and futurist view of Revelation, this is usually an exact number of Jewish believers from each tribe who are saved during the tribulation. Some religious cults interpret this as the total number of Christians that will be part of the kingdom of heaven. Others believe that this number only refers to the number of martyrs throughout history. In this blog, I will share a simple insight that provides a better answer to this question.

Revelation and Numbers

To understand the identity of the 144,000, One must first understand how the Book of Revelation uses numbers. As a work of Jewish apocalyptic literature, the imagery is symbolic and so is the use of numbers. Numbers usually represent an idea or concept. It was very common for Jewish literature to use numbers to represent physical or spiritual realities. For example, judgments are always in sevens because it is symbolic of completeness. A student of Revelation must resist the urge to make the numbers in Revelation too literal. Though in general we interpret the Bible literally, when symbolism is used one must recognize it or run the risk of misunderstanding the text.

The number twelve is a very biblical number that is used in reference to identifying God’s people. For example, Jacob had twelve sons who became the twelve tribes of Israel, or the people of God. Yet, each time the twelve tribes are mentioned in the Scriptures, there are different names of the tribes are given. The tribes/families were identified in different ways, but the number is always twelve. Twelve is also the number of disciples that Christ chose to follow him. Paul refers to the group of disciples who saw the risen Christ as “the twelve,” even though Judas died and he was replaced (1 Cor 15:5). The number twelve is a number that represents the people of God.

Who are the 144,000?

The number 144,000 is a twelve-based number that contains another important symbolic number: 1000. This number is used only once: in chapter 20 for the reign of the people of God. Therefore, 144,000 can be broken down this way:

• 12 (a people of God number) x
• 12 (a people of God number) x
• 1000 (the time the people of God reign).
• = The number of God’s servants who are sealed

All these numbers have similar themes. They all point to the theological concept of the people of God. This number has a theological significance, not necessarily a numerical significance. The issue is not how many; the real issue is identity, or “who”.

One of the keys to understanding Revelation is to understand that it is revealing Jesus as the Messiah. This is why the book opens with “A revelation of Jesus Christ,” not “A revelation of the end times.” Its purpose is often to present Jesus as the Messiah and to re-interpret Jewish messianic images in this light. I believe Revelation 7 is redefining John’s understanding of who constitutes the people of God.

In Revelation 7, the angel declares a group of people will be sealed because they are God’s servants. John, knowing that the children of Israel were God’s people, is not surprised when he hears that there are 12,000 from each of the twelve tribes of Israel (144,000). When John heard this number, he may have thought that this was a census of either a remnant from each tribe or a full representation of each tribe.

Yet something very different takes place. Expecting to see only Jewish people, he sees a “great multitude that no one could count, from every nation.” To further make sure John understands, the “elder” from around the throne asks John, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from” (Rev 7:13)? To the question, their identity is not their race but by their identification with the “blood of the Lamb.” (Rev 7:14).  

The people John sees are not members of the select tribes of Israel; they are people of every nation. They are not a specific number of elect; they are a multitude no one can count. They are not God’s people by national origin; they are God’s through being washed “in the blood of the Lamb.”  Whereas the 144,000 represents an Old Testament image of the people of God, the multitudes are identified by a New Testament image of the people of God.

Re-interpreting the People of God

This passage is an example of Revelation re-interpreting OT messianic expectations in light of Jesus. The Jews had always prided themselves as God’s chosen people. But when their Christ came, they did not receive him. Through Christ, the seed of Abraham, men of every nation have been included in salvation and have the blessing of Abraham. The mystery of the two groups (144,000 vs. Multitudes) is solved when you realize that Revelation is portraying them as one group!

God’s people are defined as people who have put their faith in Jesus the Messiah and who are “washed in the blood,” whether Jew or Gentile. In Christ, the limitations on God’s family have been expanded from the 12 tribes to the multitudes of every nation. The image here is not removing or replacing Israel, but expanding our understanding of Israel to include people of all nations that accept the Jewish Messiah, Jesus. This is Paul’s point about “not all Israel being Israel” in Romans 9. “Israel” are those who are “children of the promise,” meaning those who have faith in Jesus as Messiah.

In John’s gospel, he has a similar theology.  He says ,“He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God” (John 1:11-13). This does not imply that the church replaces Israel; it is that all nations are God’s people through faith in the Jewish Messiah. Paul argues that Gentiles were once “excluded from membership in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise” are now included (Eph 2:12).

The 144,000 is not giving us a number of future people saved in the tribulation, it is a theological explanation of who constitutes the people of God in light of Jesus as Messiah. Who are the 144,000? You are, if you have received Jesus, the Messiah and Savior of the world.