Before we proceed, because this study is very important,
it is recommended that you be comfortable with the Bible version being used.
If you would prefer to use a version other than the King James Version,
go to the top of this page and select one you trust.

Of all the topics related to the end time events, none other seems to create more heated debate than the subject of the 144000.
Who are they?  Are they Jews?, All living?, a select few? Who?
The number 144000 Is it Literal?, Symbolic? What?
Their destiny Are they given special status in heaven?
I have seen some very hot debates over this subject and I can't work out why.
The Bible is very clear about all details, so why is there so much confusion. ...... Ahhh Haaa! That's it.
The word confusion gives it away. I used to think that it was irrelevant what people thought about the subject because it was not a salvation issue, but not any more.
The thing is, if there is so much confusion over something that is clearly described in the Bible, WHERE is the confusion coming from, and WHY?
The author of CONFUSION is none other than satan, so why is he trying to cloud this issue? The answer is that by misrepresenting the number of people in this group, you are, firstly, misrepresenting the very character of God, and secondly, you are discouraging those who should be in this group. We'll see this as we go along.
Also, if it is in the Bible, it is there for a reason. There is so much information that I have found outside the Bible on many topics, and it was not in the Bible because it was not all that important. A couple of examples of note are
"Why was Esau ok with selling his birthright for a plate of lentils?"
"Why did Esau not follow through on his intention to kill Jacob when he came at him with an army?"
 These and many other questions have answers outside the Bible. The reason is simply that they are curiosity items only. The Bible has more important things to tell us.
So, I repeat, the 144000 is mentioned directly several times in Revelation and implied several more, therefore it is important that we understand it.

The 144,000 is first mentioned in Revelation chapter 7, so we'll start there.

And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. 		  
 
Here we see the situation at the end of time right before all hell breaks loose.
Winds are symbolic of strife, so these 4 angels are holding back some major strife waiting for something to happen first.
There is a lot of symbolism here, but other than showing this is happening just before the close of probation, it does not affect our study on this topic.
 

And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, 		  
 
This angel is coming from the east, which is one of the directions that symbolise heaven. (North and East are symbolic directions of heaven).
This angel is coming with the seal of God. Those missing out on this seal will receive the mark of the beast, so it is a very important seal.
This is what the 4 angels holding the winds were waiting for.
 

Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. 		  
 
The angel is warning not to close probation or release the plagues till the servants of God are sealed.
Right here we have our first clue.
How many servants did the angel say were to be sealed?
Was it SOME servants?No
Was it MANY servants?No
Was it 144,000 servants?No
The angel said THE servants.
The angel is going to seal ALL God's faithful servants.
He will NOT be sealing anyone who has died. They get a different seal.
So, the angel is going to seal ALL servants of God that are still alive just before the close of probation.
Notice also, these servants are going to be sealed in the forehead. The mark of the beast can be in either the forehead or in the hand, but the seal of God is only in the forehead.
 

And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel. 		  
 

I am going to prove on this page that it absolutely can NOT be a literal number. If you believe that the sum total of these saints is an EXACT 144,000 then I have a bridge in Sydney I can sell you, only used 2 million times each morning. You will, of course, have to dismantle it and move it yourself.
We now know WHO the 144,000 are. They are all the living servants of God just before the close of probation.
Potentially, this verse 4 could be a very worrying verse. We have already shown that those to be sealed are ALL those servants of God who are still living just before the close of probation. Now this verse makes two worrying statements. Firstly, only 144,000 are sealed. That means that of a population of almost nine billion people, only .0016% are to be saved. In fact, by what we have seen, it means all other servants of God are dead.
This is 16 people alive and sealed, out of every 10,000 people on earth. REALLY?
If all the other saints are DEAD, then they died during the SMALL time of trouble PRIOR to the close of probation, and more importantly, BEFORE THE GREAT TIME OF TROUBLE.
If that many saints died, then THAT would be the great time of trouble, don't you think? It does not compute.
The other worrying factor is that it says all these people are Israelites. What about all the other nationalities who are serving God faithfully?
This means that after striving to qualify for the 144,000, you get there, and find the offer is only open to those of Israel descent.
I was completely unaware that God is racially prejudiced.
Presumably we will find the answer to this situation as we go along.
Take careful note:- This verse starts " And I heard ". At this point, John is being TOLD about the 144,000. He has not yet SEEN them.
 

Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand. 		  
 
WAIT A MINUTE!! The tribe of RUBEN? and the tribe of GAD? Those 2 tribes disappeared about 600BC along with 8 others. The Assyrians deported the northern Kingdom of Israel (containing 10 of the tribes) and mixed them with other captives to break down their national loyalty. This encouraged the Israelites to inter-marry and blur family lines of birth. Later God removed the southern Kingdom of Judah because they continued sinning and did not repent. They were taken away into Babylon by the Babylonian army.
The 2 tribes (Judah and Benjamin), that were taken to Babylon, were returned to Jerusalem after 70 years of captivity, but the other 10 tribes disappeared.
 

Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nepthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand. 		  
 
Now we know for sure something needs looking at. None of these 3 tribes exist today.
To be a literal number of 144,000 there has to be EXACTLY 12,000 from EACH of 12 tribes. If one had 12,001 then it would no longer be a literal number.
Imagine being told:-
"Yes, we know that Dufaus Freutloup is not as qualified as you to be in the 144,000, but all places for your tribe have been filled, so we need to pick some from the other tribes, even if they are not as qualified." Anyone who actually believes this, has no concept of who our God really is.
It is just as ridiculous regardless of whether they are literal Israelites or spiritual Israelites.
Doesn't it say in scripture that "God is not a respector of persons"?
Considering that ONLY Israelites are contained in the 144000, and it contains tribes that no longer exist today, it is apparent that these are not LITERAL Israelites, but SYMBOLIC or SPIRITUAL Israelites
The Bible says that Christians are considered to be "spiritual" Israelites. Paul says that if you are in the Christian faith, you are a child of Abraham and are heirs to the kingdom. Galatians 3:7 Galatians 3:29 Romans 2:28-29
Jesus Himself said that the Jews were losing their "chosen" status. Matthew 21:43 Matthew 23:38
We now know that the 144,000 can NOT be LITERAL Israelites, but SYMBOLIC/SPIRITUAL Israelites (Christians).
If you are skeptical about this finding, don't panic. We will prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt further down the page.
 

Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand. 		  
 
These three tribes are also extinct.
 

Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand. 		  
 
And of these three, only the tribe of Benjamin remains.
 


If I was to ask you at this point
"What are these people (the 144,000) wearing?",
would you be able to answer me? The answer is "No" because we have not been told.
Did John know what they were wearing at this point?
The answer is also "No" because he has not seen them yet and was only told what he has passed to us.
There are 144,000, which we have worked out are made up of spiritual Israelites, and these people represent ALL the servants of God who are alive just prior to the close of probation and the falling of the 7 last plagues.

After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; 		  
 
We are led to believe that this second group is the same group as the 144,000 because it says:-
After this, I BEHELD (meaning he looked).
Looked at WHAT? The 144,000 of course.
So, now he sees the 144,000 and decides the number is so great that no man can number them.
This process of hearing first and then seeing is a normal practice in the book of Revelation. The same thing happens in Revelation 19.
In Revelation 19:1-9, John HEARD the GREAT MULTITUDE but in verses 11-21 he SEES Jesus rescuing the them from Earth.
Also, in Revelation 5:5 John HEARD that the Lion of the tribe of Judah would break the seals, but in verse 6 he SAW the slain Lamb who was qualified to break the seals.
This evidence shows that the GREAT MULTITUDE and the 144,000 are the same group, and the 144,000 is a symbolic number, and not literal, because the Bible would not say there was 144,000 and then say they were unnumberable.
At this point, I am saying, based on the evidence thus far, that the 144,000 and the GREAT MULTITUDE are the same group, but, as with the LITERAL/SYMBOLIC Israelite issue, if you are skeptical, hang on, there is absolute proof further down the page.

Remember I said we would prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Israelites referred to are SYMBOLIC and not LITERAL?
We now know for sure that they are not literal Jews or Israelites because it says they are from EVERY nation, kindred, people, and tongue.
If they are from EVERY nation, kindred, people and tongue, then they are obviously not ONLY Israelites. And those that ARE Israelites are ALSO Christians, and are sealed BECAUSE they are true Christians.
We are told 2 things about this second group:-
They are the GREAT MULTITUDE and the number of them is so great that no man can number them.
And they are wearing white robes as opposed to the first group of which we know very little.
 

And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. 		  
 
The 144,000 are giving praise and thanks to the King who saved them.
 

And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, 		  
 
At this point, the plan of salvation is almost complete, and all the hosts of heaven are celebrating.
 

Saying, Amen:Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen. 		  
 
 

And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 		  
 
They are asking about those wearing white robes.
We do not know what the 144,000 are wearing, remember?
Or do we?
Those wearing white robes are the GREAT MULTITUDE.
Why did they not ask about the 144,000? They did!
The 144,000 and the GREAT MULTITUDE are one and the same.
 

And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 		  
 
So, as we have already seen, these were sealed just prior to the close of probation, and went through the great time of trouble.
The original Greek says "tribulation, the great one", so these came through the great time of trouble. BUT, when were they sealed? We only saw the 144,000 get sealed.
These are the ones who came out of the great tribulation.
It does not say that the 144,000 came out of the great tribulation,
Or did it?
If they are the same group, then yes, the 144,000 DID go through the great tribulation.
We certainly were told that the 144,000 were alive just prior to the great tribulation, because the angel came down to seal them. This means they either died after being sealed, or they went through the great tribulation. So, either the 144,000 and the GREAT MULTITUDE are the same group, or for some reason they died AFTER BEING SEALED???
 

Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 		  
 
THE GREAT MULTITUDE will serve in God's temple in heaven.
 

They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 		  
 
These (those wearing white robes, the GREAT MULTITUDE) came through the great tribulation, through the 7 Last Plagues so have seen incredible heat and thirst and hunger affecting the wicked. They will never again experience any of that.
 

For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. 		  
 
My only comment here is "How beautiful".
 


There is more on the 144,000 in Revelation 14, so we'll visit there.

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. 		  
 
Here are the 144,000 standing on the sea of glass. Notice they have the seal of God in their forheads. They were sealed by the angel in Revelation 7:3
 

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: 		  
 
 

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. 		  
 
Notice that no one could learn that song except for the 144,000.
The reason is that this group came through "the great tribulation", which is "the time of trouble such as never was".
However, we must remember that Revelation 7:13-14 says that it was the GREAT MULTITUDE that came through the great tribulation. This is further proof that the 144,000 and the GREAT MULTITUDE are one and the same.
 



Let's summarise what we have learned:-
Who are the 144,000? They are all the servants of God alive just prior to the close of probation and they are sealed with the Seal of the Living God.
The remainder of the living get the mark of the beast.
Are they literal Jews?No, they are all those living who are recognised as servants of God from all nations, kindred, peoples and tongues.
Is the 144,000 a literal number?No, the number is symbolic and, in reality, is a number too large to count.
Are the 144,000 and the GREAT MULTITUDE different groups? No, The 144,000 and the GREAT MULTITUDE are the exact same group.
Do the 144,000 go through the great tribulation? Yes, they are sealed with the seal of God prior to the close of probation and that protects them during the great time of trouble, the great tribulation.