Chapter 15.9
144,000
The Mark
Ten
Lost Tribes – Twelve Tribes of Ishmael; Muslims - Jehovah Witnesses
Second
Rapture – Tribulation – Seals, Trumpets, Bowls - Mark of the Beast
First
Word
Most
people have heard about the 144,000, but have no clue of what it’s all about. The Apostle John writes in his book “Revelation”,
about Jehovah God setting apart or sealing a few thousand special Israelites to
be His Witnesses in the end times. You
might could just call them, JEHOVAH
WITNESSES.
It can be a little confusing as to when
this will all occur since some chapters in Revelation are “Informational Chapters” and are
given out of chronical order for the purpose of painting a picture
with an overall view about what will happen in the end times. This actual sealing occurs just as the Tribulation
period gets underway.
Background
The
GREAT Tribulation is a title
given to the last 3 ½ years of this seven year tribulation
period of time and was not made
up by some deep thinking Professors, but a name given by Jesus Christ Himself who took it even further, explaining that
the plagues to come during this time will be such as has
not occurred since the beginning of the world up until now, and will not ever be
again.[1] IT’S BAD.
Here’s where we
pick up the story. The period of time,
also known as “Jacobs’
Trouble”[2]
is about to begin; the False Prophet is
already at work on the scene and so is the Antichrist who helps establish the United
States of Europe, but is not yet known as a world leader.
The Rapture of the Saints, both Gentile and Jew has
just occurred and worldwide interest in God has just been revived since
billions of people are now missing.
Here’s
where we are...
The Church; the believing Jews & Gentiles, both dead and alive, are now in
Heaven and only the unsaved are still on earth. Israel is safe in her land, but is
threatened by Egypt (on the South)
and Russia (on the North). The Antichrist will make a covenant with
Israel to protect her land.
God seals 144,000 Israelite Jews in
order to protect them from the wrath that is about to be unloaded during the
seven years of this Tribulation period.
Before the Rapture took place, THESE 144,000 Jews were already “Bond Servants” of the Most High
God, but were NOT YET Believers in Jesus Christ as the MESSIAH.
A Bond Servant is someone who “of their own
volition” (Free Will) have committed themselves to serve their
master; whatever and whoever that master might be.
Misguided Doctrine
Today there are some cults,
some groups as well as some Christian dominations that believe that they are
the sealed 144,000 witnesses.
§
Jehovah
Witnesses believe that within their body is the special
group of 144,000. They will have immortal life and spirit bodies in a place in heaven. All the other members in their denomination
will just have everlasting
life and resurrected bodies which
still need to eat and drink.
§
Mormons claim that they
ONLY have the 144,000 who
will inherit eternal life and the remainder of their denomination will just
live in Paradise.
§
Seventh
Day Adventist point to
prophetess Ellen
G. White who has the exclusive
right to truth and indicates they are the faithful 144,000.
However, scripture says there will NOT be one Gentile
in the whole bunch. NOT ONE !
The Mark
God’s mark on the Jews is
the seal of the living God signifying His OWNERSHIP and guaranteed PROTECTION.[3] His name is literally and clearly written on
the forehead of these Evangelist.
The Mark of
the Beast (the antichrist)
Satan will follow suit with his Copy Cat Corrupt, Counterfeit Seal,[4]
and mark his followers signifying his “OWNERSHIP” and the
guarantee that with his mark that they will be able to get FOOD to eat. It is literally
on the forehead or right hand of his lost unredeemable followers. This is truly SAD; as they cannot change their minds...[5] They are doomed
for eternity.
TWO SEALS
of the Tribulations:
ü The seal of the FLESH guarantees that they will Eat;
ü The seal of the SPIRIT guarantees they will be Delivered.
Who are the 144,000?
They are all Jews; 12,000 from each of the Twelve tribes of Abraham and his son Isaac who was born of Sarah, a “Free
woman” and given the promise of the Covenant.[6]
Some say 10 of the 12 tribes are now lost, but they are not lost to God
who already knows who they are and where they are. By Devine plan, the REMNANT of the Ten Lost Tribes are already in place,
scattered throughout the Nations where they will testify of Jesus Christ- (There has always been a remnant)
True Believers
These special 144,000 Jews
were not “True
Believers” before the Rapture, but the Rapture witnessed to them as
well as the preaching of the Two Witnesses,[7] as
ordained of God.
Their devotion to God was TRUE[8] in contrast to
the others around them who claimed to be followers of Jehovah God, but whose lives
indicated something entirely different;[9]
those who were “Liars,
Thieves and Cheaters; Bigots and Mistreaters”.[10] (I borrowed that line from Glen Campbell’s
song, “The Four
Horsemen of the Apocalypse”.)
You would do well to listen to
this song... Turn it up loud with an awesome sub-woofer
All Virgins
It
is possible that the 144,000 did not
marry,[11]
but more probable it means they did not whore after other god’s, but were true
to the ONE God of Israel. Anyway at face value, they are all saved,
Jewish unmarried men without family responsibility; without fault before God.
Missing Tribes of Israel
Historical Note: Joseph had two sons; Ephraim and Manasseh which were adopted into
the tribes of Israel and were known as the half tribes;
that gives us a new total of 14 tribes.
The tribe of
Dan is
missing from the sealed 144,000 as
mentioned in Revelation 7:4-10, because it is possibly that this tribe is
the source of the Antichrist as implied in scripture.[12] At any
rate, the half
tribe of Manasseh seems to take Dan’s place in the lineup of the 12 Tribes of
Israel.
The half tribe of Ephraim is also missing
from the lineup because this tribe led the way in causing the civil war which
divided the ten tribes of the north from the two tribes in the South. They also had become addicted to idolatry. With the tribes of Dan and Ephraim missing, we are now back
down to 12
Tribes of Israel being sealed and
thus protrected.
Side Bar
Ishmael: Abraham also had a son named Ishmael,
his first born of Hagar; a bondwoman, a servant. Ishmael did
NOT receive the promise of the Covenant, but because
of Abraham’s petition, he was also blessed of God with 12 tribes. (The Muslims) It’s in the Book
Ishmael’s Twelve Tribes:[13] They are Nebaioth,
Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, Kedemah and
Massa; who we know as the Midianites, Edomites, Egyptians and
Assyrians; the great desert people of the Middle East. They
lived in hostility
toward the other twelve tribes of Abraham and
still do today.
Purpose 144,000
The nation of Israel HAS NOT accepted Jesus as the Messiah
and is basically a religion of humanism; a religion of “works”, but in the end, a multitude will accept Christ. The occurrence of the rapture of the “Believing
Christians” will witness to the Jews who remain on the earth.
The angel of God seeks out 144,000 blameless Jewish bondservants of the Most High God. 144,000 is only .01% of the total 14 million KNOWN Jews that are in the world today. These Jews are sealed in order to be protected
from the plagues that are to come on the earth with the breaking of the 7 Seals; and the sounding of the 7 Trumpets and the pouring out of the wrath of God with the 7 Bowls.
God pours out his Spirit on the 144,000 and they testify of Him and become His messengers,
His Evangelist;[14]
that will present the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the rest of the JEWS throughout the world.
The message will NOT be about God asking them to do something;
but about what God has already done for them; and for us.
These same sealed Jewish Missionaries
will bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the rest of the whole world
during the tribulation period. Every
nation and tribe will hear them speaking in their own language and dialect, endued with the same power as on the day of
Pentecost; the
gift of tongues. 144,000 life changers with
the zeal of the Apostle Paul. Everyone will have
a chance to hear the Gospel.
Multitudes: In our Belief System, we look to the Broadcast Media of Radio
and Satellite Television to be the end time tool that takes the message of the
Gospel to the entire world, but scripture says it’s the 144,000 who
in only 3 ½ short years will have Multitudes of Jews, Gentiles and people from
every nation saved;[15]
who will lose
their earthly life, only to gain eternal life with Christ. There will be
so many saved that no one man will be able to count them all. The 144,000 will be the
FIRST FRUITS of the Jewish
Nation during what is known as “Jacobs Trouble”; the tribulations.
The Gospel will be preached to the entire world and then the end
will come.[16]
There will be remnants of Jewish Believers from
ALL ages of time that will finally make up the whole saved Nation of
Israel, plus the no good, stinking now believing GENTILES that have been
grafted into the vine.[17] Thus, according to scripture; “ALL the
Believers” in Israel will be saved.[18]
NOTE: In scripture everybody that was not a Jew
was called a Greek or a Gentle.
There are three basic divisions of families mentioned
in the NT; 1) The Jews, 2) The Gentiles and 3) The Church. In the CHURCH
OF GOD there
are both Jews and Gentiles, there are no divisions.
We are ALL
in ONE Fold; ALL
baptized by ONE Spirit and ALL
with ONE Shepherd.[19]
The Sealing - When
This is far more than you want to know. Revelation reports that the wrath of God will be poured out in segments; first Seals,
then Trumpets
and then finally Bowls. (Vials)
The 144,000 are sealed
at the beginning of the first 3 ½ years
of the Tribulation
period.[20] More exactly they are sealed between the 6th and 7th SEAL, before the Trumpets begin to sound their
wrath. There is Silence in Heaven for about 30 minutes[21]
between the 6th and 7th seal
while the 144,000 are all being sealed with His Mark of protection and ownership.[22]
The seven trumpets are
under the seventh
seal and expand and enlarge what
has already happened under the other six seals.
The Trumpets
sound during the first 3 ½ years;
the Bowls
or Vials
are poured out during the last 3 ½ years. The Trumpets and Bowls are the SAME, except the Bowls intensify
what occurred with the Trumpets, so in essence with the bowls,
THINGS ARE GETTING WORSE.
Imagine the 7th seal
is like fireworks;
like shooting a sky
rocket into the air, then SEVEN MORE burst out from that rocket (Trumpets), then SEVEN
MORE burst
from each of those
(Bowls) Everything now speeds up like a trip
hammer.
Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam.
What happens to them?
First
Fruits:
John sees Christ briefly back on earth with the 144,000 evangelist on Mount Zion and suddenly they are all then before the throne of God singing the song of the redeemed.[23]
They
have been “Raptured” ... taken before the throne of God in Heaven.
This Tribulation Rapture will occur just
after the First Trumpet is sounded in the middle of the “tribulation Week” or 3 ½ years into the 7 year tribulation
period.
Sidebar
The Jewish Vine: Most of the
Jewish nation DID NOT BELIEVE that Jesus Christ
was their Messiah; they were NOT Believers and “symbolically”
their branches were broken off the Jewish Vine and
the believing GENTILES were grafted
in. Did you see it? Now all Believing Gentiles have JEWISH ROOTS.
However, it does not stop there; when the 144,000 missionaries preach to the Jews whose limbs were
broken off the vine; “IF they will believe”; GOD with EAGERNESS will graft them back into the vine of Christ again where they belong.[24]
NOTE: The 10 tribes of the Northern kingdom
of Israel were all carried off into captivity and scattered among the nations,
lost, vanished. The remaining two tribes
in the Southern kingdom that were not carried off was Dan and Judah. With Judah being the largest tribe the term “JEW”
for Judah
became synonymous with all of the people of Israel.
JUDAH is the tribe from which our Messiah Jesus Christ was born; thus Jesus is a JEW.
Lesson Observed
Because
of the extremity of sin in the two tribes of Dan[25] and Ephraim,[26]
their tribes are missing in the lineup of the tribes of Israel. None of the 144,000 missionaries were selected from their tribes to serve; but don’t
write them off just yet.
Although they lost out in “the end time”
on the honor
of being selected to be God’s witness, they are not hopeless lost;
they are still part of the chosen nation of Israel FOREVER. God just can’t give up on them; He loves them
and they will endure and make it through the tribulation period.
This is good news for the BELIEVER that slips into
sin; you might not get in an all the things God has in store for the Church,
but you are still His FOREVER; you are part
of HIS
vine.
God says; “How can I give
up on you,”[27]
His compassion will not let Him; that’s who He is.
ONCE THE LORD’S... ALWAYS THE LORD’S
The Take Away
The
angel of God will SEAL 144,000 Jewish
missionaries that are still “living” right after the rapture of the Saints
and just as the Tribulation period is beginning. They are not the saints of old or others that
have been resurrected from the dead or reincarnated from another life, they are
living Jews.
“The Ten Lost Tribes” have already been spread
throughout the entire world according to His marvelous plan. Their purpose is to be missionaries to the
Jews and to the Gentiles throughout the world.
They will have the gift of tongues and
endued with the power of the Holy Spirit as
was poured out on the day of Pentecost; sharing the Gospel of Jesus
Christ with the vigor of the Apostle Paul and Peter.
They will be protected from the plagues of God by HIS SEAL and they will
evangelize the world for about 3 to 3 ½
years and then they will be “Raptured”. They will be the First Fruits of the Tribulation period. Some of the 144,000 selected
could be within your own church if they are descendants from one of the twelve
tribes of Israel. Otherwise… not so
much; but good luck. SELAH
The sealing Mark of God on the 144,000 and the sealing Mark of the Beast whether visible or invisible, will be obviously
different. Both will be doing the Will of their Father,
and on the DAY OF THE LORD; one will
receive eternal
damnation with levels of torment and the other will receive eternal salvation with levels of
blessings.
You will recognize both of them
by their FRUITS.[28]
What’s on your tree?
It’s in the Book
[1] Matthew 24:21 – Great Tribulation such as
has never been since the beginning of the world
until now, nor ever will.be again
[2] Jeremiah 30:7 – Tribulations – Jacob’s Trouble Alas! For that day is great, so that none is
like it
[3] Revelation 7:2-3 – The Angel of God does the sealing
[4] Revelation 13:16-17 – The seal or Mark of the Beast
[5] Revelation 14:9-11 – Taking the mark of the beast - Unpardonable Sin
[6] Revelation 7:4-8 – Tribes of Israel - 144,000
– ALL JEWS
[7] Revelation 11:3 - There will also be two
Special Witnesses
[8] Revelation 14:5 – True Believers; they were blameless, no lie was found in
them
[9] Revelation 21:27 –Nothing
impure; the Ungodly - will not enter Heaven
[10] Revelation 22:15 – Liars, Thieves & Cheaters, Bigots & Mistreaters --
Romans 1:25 – The Ungodly exchanged the truth for a lie
[11]
Revelation 14:3-4 –
They were All Virgins -- Jeremiah 31:4 – Virgin Israel -- 2 Corenthians 11:2 – Pure Virgin presented to Christ
[12] Genesis 49:17 – Dan will be a serpent by the roadside and Strike his heel -- Genesis 3:15 –Satan will strike at the heel of
Christ
[13] Genesis 25:13-18 –
Ishmael had Twelve Tribes also
[14] Acts 2:16-21- God will
pour out His Spirit in the last days and everyone who calls on the name of the
Lord will be saved
[15] Revelation 7:9 – A great
multitude; every nation people and language were wearing white robes
[16] Matthew 24:14 - The Gospel will be preached as a testimony to the whole world and then the End will come
[17] 1 Corinthians 10:32 – Jews and Gentiles make up the Church of God
[18] Romans 11:26 – All of Israel will be saved as it is written:
[19] John 10:16 – The Gentiles are also a part; ONE fold, ONE shepherd
-- 1 Corinthians 12:13 - we were
all baptized by
ONE Spirit
[20] Revelation 9:1-4 - Fifth Trumpet; Those
sealed are now protected from the plagues
[21] Revelation 8:1 - SILENCE IN HEAVEN for
about half an hour during the sealing
of the 144,000
[22] Revelation 7:2-3 - Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees
until we put a seal of protection on
the 144,000 evangelist.
[23] Revelation 14:1-3 – 144,000 are standing on Mount
Zion with Jesus and then raptured
before the throne of God singing a new song
[24] Romans 11:17-24 – If the people of Israel turn from their
unbelief, they will be grafted in again
into the Vine where they belong
[25] Genesis 49:17 – Dan will be a serpent
[26] Hosea 4:17 – Ephraim is addicted to Idols
[27] Hosea 11:8 – The Lord will not give up on YOU; if you are a BELIEVER
[28] Matthew 7:20-21 – You will RECOGNIZE
them by their fruit.
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