144,000, and the Seventh Seal

Revelation 7 and 8

In last week's blog, we discussed Revelation 6 and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Having moved through the Six Seals, one more remains. But there is something that occurs before the Seventh Seal. Revelation 7 begins with the Sealing of the 144,000 and the Great Multitude in White Robes. Who are they, and how does this fit into End Times catastrophism?

REVELATION 7 - Four Angels / Four Corners

1 After this, I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea, or on any tree. 2 Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. 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 the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.”

Once again, symbolism is brought forth to describe what John is seeing. Christian Scientists would say the holding back of the four winds could describe the Earth's magnetosphere - the shield that protects the Earth from the radiation brought by solar winds. At this point, we know our magnetosphere is weakening with every coronal mass ejection (CME/solar explosion) aimed at Earth.

Universetoday.com quoted, "In the past 180 years, the strength of Earth’s magnetic field has decreased by about 10 percent. During that same time, the size of the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA) has grown. Scientists have speculated that these events might be related to a geomagnetic reversal.

NASA describes the Magnetosphere as - "A region around a planet dominated by the planet's magnetic field. The Earth's magnetosphere is a vast, comet-shaped bubble that plays a crucial role in our planet's habitability. The magnetosphere shields our home planet from solar and cosmic particle radiation, as well as erosion of the atmosphere by the solar wind - the constant flow of charged particles streaming off the sun. Constant bombardment by the solar wind compresses the sun-facing side of our magnetic field.

Do these four angels on the four corners of the Earth represent our magnetosphere? Are they protecting the land, sea, and trees by holding back destructive solar winds? We know the Seventh Seal ushers in a terrifying cosmic event. In preparation for that, God instructs the angels to protect the Earth until such time as the 144,000 are sealed.

But who are the 144,000?

REVELATION 7:4 --- 144,000 Sealed

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

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

from the tribe of Reuben 12,000, from the tribe of Gad 12,000, 6 from the tribe of Asher 12,000, from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000, from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000, 7 from the tribe of Simeon 12,000, from the tribe of Levi 12,000, from the tribe of Issachar 12,000, 8 from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000, from the tribe of Joseph 12,000, from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.

There is much speculation on who the 144,000 include. Some people of "alternate" faiths (not naming names) believe they are vying for a spot as one of the 144,000 to be selected as co-rulers with Christ Jesus over the inhabitants of the paradise Earth. They do not know that a married mother or father cannot be one of these blessed people selected by God. This includes a young girl, teen, or unmarried woman. They must be male, a descendant of one of the Twelve Tribes, and of Jewish descent.

REVELATION 14: 1 - 5 states - The Lamb and the 144,000

14 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.

2 And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps.

3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.

4 These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they remained virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among mankind and offered as first fruits to God and the Lamb. 5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.

This verse gives us important clues as to the characteristics of this chosen group.

They are undefiled by women - virgins.
They follow the Lamb of God (Jesus) wherever he goes.
They were PURCHASED from among mankind and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb (Jesus).
No lie was found in their mouths - they were blameless.

Doesn't this verse seemingly describe the innocence of children? Primarily babies? They are UNDEFILED. If no lie was found in their mouths, does this mean they have not yet SPOKEN a word? They were BLAMELESS - meaning PURE of HEART. (without fault/sinless)

NOTE: 1st Corinthians 15:20-23 makes a connection to Christ's death/resurrection and the FIRSTFRUITS

20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ, all will be made alive. 23 But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

In recent years, theologians have tied the 144,000 to the Massacre of the Innocents - the horrific Holocaust of King Herod, described here in Matthew 2: 13-18 as Mary and Joseph's Escape from Egypt.

13 When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”

14 So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night, and left for Egypt, 15 where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:

18 “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more.”

The Massacred baby boys could be considered the FIRSTFRUITS, taken from mankind days after Jesus was born. These baby boys died at the hands of King Herod after he ordered all of them, newborn to age two, to be killed. Herod was threatened by the Christ child (Son of God) having been born and was determined to get rid of him. Not knowing his identity, Herod slaughtered all these children to save his Kingdom and secure his throne. These children were killed to protect Jesus.

The Massacre of the Innocents is the subject of two paintings by Peter Paul Rubens depicting the episode of the biblical Massacre of the Innocents of Bethlehem, as related in the Gospel of Matthew (2:13-18). The first, measuring 142 x 182 cm, was painted after his return to his native Antwerp in 1608, following eight years spent in Italy.

Coptic sources (Middle Eastern/Egyptian Christian) state that 144,000 children died days after Christ's birth. (12,000 from each tribe's bloodline) Are the innocents that were murdered being resurrected/sealed as the 144,000 mentioned in the Book of Revelation?

Jeremiah 31: 15 - 17 speaks of that fateful day and offers another clue tied to the innocent boys.

15 This is what the Lord says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more.”

16 This is what the Lord says: “Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,” declares the Lord. “They will return from the land of the enemy. 17 So there is hope for your descendants,” declares the Lord. “Your children will return to their own land."

God clearly states for those mourning their children to restrain their tears, for they will be rewarded (for their child's great sacrifice). These children did not die in vain. There is hope for their descendants - that their children will return to their own land. What a moment this will be when the 144,000 are sealed. This prepares us for the next event in the Book of Revelation - the RAPTURE.

The Great Multitude in White Robes

9 After this, I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen!”

13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

14 I answered, “Sir, you know.”

And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Therefore, "they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. 16 ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’ nor any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb at 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.'”

Oddly enough, many churches today preach that the RAPTURE happens BEFORE the SEVEN SEALS and that God's chosen people will ESCAPE the torment and destruction that comes with Rev 6, 7, and beyond. This is not the case. Revelation 7: 9 - 17 talks of a multitude arriving in heaven with robes washed clean by the Lamb of God. (These are Faithful Believers redeemed from the earth.) This multitude came out of the Great Tribulation - The RAPTURE that happens AFTER the 3 1/2 years discussed in Revelation 6 & 7. (Happens after the Seven Seals and before the blowing of the Seven Trumpets.)

Matthew 24 tells of a timeline of events leading up to the Second Coming of Jesus. (Rapture) Do you see the parallels between this and Revelations 6 and 7?

4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains. (Describes Second, Third, and Fourth Seals)

But see that you are not alarmed is a crucial line. As faithful believers, we must endure these things. Our faith will be put to the ultimate test. Only those who are fully immersed in scripture will understand what is happening. He warns that Such things must happen, but the end is not yet.

9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

We will be persecuted for our faith in the last days. This is repeated in Revelation 6:9. (Fifth Seal) It will be a terrifying time. We will be forced to choose. Stay and conform to the rising Beast Kingdom and cling to life here on Earth, or die and choose everlasting life with Jesus in Heaven. Those who stand firm, in the end, will be saved, but that does not mean we will escape the catastrophe coming.

15 “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let no one on the housetop go down to take anything out of the house. 18 Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. 19 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 20 Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.

22 “If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time.

26 “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

29 “Immediately after the distress of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’

This verse resembles Revelation 6:12 (Sixth Seal) We must survive and endure these things before JESUS returns. Are you prepared to give up your life willingly to live with God in heaven?

30 “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. (JESUS RETURNS/Rapture Event) And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

Matthew 24:30 states when Jesus returns. As we have just shown, it coincides with the Seven Seals timeline leading to the Multitude In White Robes.

32 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33 Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. 34 Truly, I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

This is a lot for anyone to process. But those who stand strong in Christ and do not waiver - will be gifted eternal life. On the other hand, those left behind will not escape the Seventh Seal and the Trumpets.

Revelation 8 introduces the Seventh Seal - the beginning of a great catastrophe.

Revelation 8 - The Seventh Seal and the Golden Censer

1 When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

We assume this is to settle those in heaven, brought forth by the rapture.

2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.

3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all God’s people, on the golden altar in front of the throne. 4 The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of God’s people, went up before God from the angel’s hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

God uses his power to warn the people of the wrath he is about to unleash upon the world. This is meant for those who have not listened. Those who do not believe. What comes next, once again, is being described symbolically in the best way John knew how. He was tasked to record something unfathomable.

Revelation 8 : 6 - The Trumpets

6 Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them.

7 The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth.

In order to understand what is being said in this verse, we must ask the question - What could cause hail and fire to be hurled upon the earth? Scientifically speaking, we first look at the fiery sun since Revelation 7:16 states, "The sun will not beat down on them, 'nor any scorching heat." This gives us reason to suspect the sun may interfere with the world, especially since it is in an active stage right now.

On March 15th, 2023, unbeknownst to most of the populous, the sun fired off a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) on the far side of the sun worse than the one captured here on March 9th. Its intensity is still being calculated, but heliospheric scientists have attached an X-Class rating. (X - is the highest CME level) An X-Class flare's severity is measured from 1 - 100. They have deemed that CME was between an X-10 to X-50 level and have clocked its solar wind speed at 3,000 km/second.
It hurled solar winds and ultra-dense filaments into space. Thankfully, it was not fully earth-facing, but we did sustain a glancing blow causing bright auroras to blanket the north and south poles and the Schumann Resonance graph to spike. (Pictured below -It measures the frequency of the earth and any disruptive vibrations hitting it.)

Those of you familiar with the Carrington Event of 1859 (Sept 2) know that the sun produced an X-Class flare that day at a rating of X-45, causing the 6th largest geomagnetic storm in history. It caused sparking and fires in multiple telegraph stations, electrical disruptions, blackouts, and extensive damage to the power grid.
Now, fast forward to 2023. Can you imagine something this severe hitting our technology-dependent civilization? Practically everything that we use runs on electricity and computer systems. A few days ago, we literally dodged a bullet that could have put us back into the stone age within two hours of the explosion (CME) leaving the sun. Not a lot of time to prepare for such as event. How did this not make the news, you ask? Think of an event of that magnitude and the chaos that would ensue if they told the public this would happen. There would be riots, looting, and violence. It would be pandemonium. Thus, the crickets heard from the government and mainstream media.
So, back to the question, where will the fire and hail come from? Would a solar explosion have the power to unleash fiery hail?
Isaiah 28:2 refers to God's Wrath as a storm of hail. Is this what was intended here? "Behold, the Lord has one who is mighty and strong; like a storm of hail, a destroying tempest, like a storm of mighty, overflowing waters, he casts down to the earth with his hand."
Or will the fire and hail be that of space debris falling to earth? Since the world has been suffering through drought, could one-third of it be dry enough to be burned up by this fiery hail?

7 A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

The sun is currently approaching the peak of solar maximum (most active stage) for this solar cycle (25). If the sun is capable of destruction, remember "the angels at the four corners of the globe, holding back the winds?" (Rev.1 - 3) Have they really been our magnetic field protecting us from the sun's wrath, possibly unknown objects from hitting all along? What happens when they are no longer there?
If Earth's magnetic field disappeared tomorrow, a large number of charged solar particles would bombard the planet and take out our power grids and satellites while increasing human exposure to higher levels of cancer-causing ultraviolet radiation. But would this be enough to burn all the green grass and a third of the trees?
Scientifically, we know that the following verse speaks of a huge fiery mountain to be hurled at the earth. Before it arrives, a series of smaller particles (1 foot to 5+ m in width) will rain down on us first. These particles, ranging in size from basketballs to cars to buses, will breach the atmosphere and be set ablaze.

8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood.

Keeping with the theme of Cosmic Signs from Revelation 6, the huge mountain in this verse describes a fair-sized asteroid flaming through the sky. Given that our ocean covers almost 70% of the planet, this asteroid is poised to hit the sea.
But what would make the water turn to blood? Not to be taken literally, blood is used to describe the color of the water. Most asteroids contain 80% concentrations of iron, along with other materials. Would this turn the ocean red, considering its size?
Would the impact of the fiery asteroid cause a widespread rise in ocean temperature? When environmental conditions, like temperature, nutrient levels, and wind, are right, RED ALGAE explodes to form huge blooms. (Pictured below)

9 a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

An impact of this magnitude would cause a devastating loss of life in the sea solely based on the impact alone. The percussion of the wave would reverberate through the water causing blunt-force trauma to anything standing in its path.
With it, a massive tsunami wave would move across the globe, causing a third of the ships to be destroyed or cap-sized.

In Revelation 8:10, we read that the third angel sounds his trumpet to continue the apocalyptic events.

10 The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water— 11 the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter.

Once again, using symbolism, John describes a great fiery star falling to earth. (Meteorite-smaller than an asteroid) It falls on a third of the fresh waters and rivers, meaning it hits a large swath of land.
It turns the fresh water and rivers bitter.
Asteroids and meteors contain arsenic. It has no color, taste, or smell in water, so nobody would know it is tainted/poisoned.
We know this from the Carancas impact event on September 15, 2007, near the village of Carancas in Peru, close to the Bolivian border and Lake Titicaca. The meteorite impact created a small crater in the clay soil and scorched Earth around its location. A local official, Marco Limache, said that "boiling water started coming out of the crater, and particles of rock and cinders were found nearby" as "fetid, noxious" gases spewed from the crater. After the impact, villagers who had approached ground zero grew sick from a then-unexplained illness with a wide array of symptoms. Two days later, Peruvian scientists confirmed that there had indeed been a meteorite strike, quieting widespread speculation that it might have been a geophysical rather than a celestial event. At that point, no further information on the cause of the mystery illness was known. The groundwater in the local area is known to contain arsenic compounds, and the illness is now believed to have been caused by arsenic poisoning incurred when residents of the area inhaled the vapor of the boiling arsenic-contaminated water.
From Revelation 8:10, we know that the freshwater will become bitter or poisoned, and many people will die from drinking the water.

12 The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night.

The fourth angel then sounded, and a third of the sun, moon, and stars were struck, turning them dark. Given the two impacts that Earth has sustained in the previous verses, both objects would have had tails of debris following them. It is plausible to assume that this debris is what hits a third of the solar system causing catastrophic damage.

If a third of the moon is gone (broken off/impacted), it will not reflect the sun's light at night. We might only see a third of its light depending on where we live on Earth and our rotation.
If a third of the sun is impacted, it could cause its fire to extinguish, therefore only providing light for a third of the day.
Remember that our solar system is surrounded by floating rock - the Kelper Belt and the Asteroid belt. An incoming object (asteroid and meteor in this case) could disrupt/impact this belt on the way through and bring a shower of debris raining down on neighboring stars and planets.

Now, we have come to the end of Revelation 8, but the Wrath of God is just beginning for those left behind.

13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!”

An eagle warns the inhabitants of the Earth that there are three more angels/ trumpets left to come. Look at the destruction brought upon the earth thus far. Given what we discussed today, would you have the courage and strength to survive being left behind?

Read your Bible. Stay immersed in the Word of God. Be mindful, educate yourself on the things coming upon the earth, and pray for the gift of discernment to understand it all. We are in the last days.