The 144,000 Of Revelation

Only 144,000?

Why is it there are only 144,000 chosen out of
4 billion souls on this earth?

NAMES OF THE 12 TRIBES OF ISREAL

Original Meanings:

The first description is given at birth by the mothers.  Gen. 29:31 - 35:18 (KJV).
The second description is the “blessings” by Jacob. Gen. 49:1-27 (KJV).

Reuben:    The Lord looked upon my affliction.
(A Son)    First fruit, my might & the beginning of my strength, dignity. & power.     Unstable as water, shalt not excel.

Simeon:    God has heard me.
(Hearing)    Instrument of cruelty (sword of violence). Self willed.   
        Simeon & Levi are alike as brothers. “The Same”

Levi:        Joined to.
(Attached)    Instrument of cruelty and self willed. 

Judah:    Praise the Lord.
(Praise)    Leader of the people in wisdom.

Zebulon:    Place to dwell.
(Dwelling)    A haven & refuge for ships.

Issachar:    Servant.
(Given for hire)    Strong servant of nations.

Dan:        Judging.
(Judge)    Snake that bites the heel.

Gad:        Good fortune.
(Fortune)    An overcomer.

Asher:    Makes happy.
(Happy)    Provider of bread & royal dainties.

Naphtali:    Wrestled.
(Wrestled/Striving)  Politician, Ambassador.  A hind let loose, giving great promise.

Joseph:    Adding.
(Increaser)    A strong shepherd; the stone of Isreal.

Benjamin:    Son of the right hand.
(Son of the right hand)   A devourer and divider

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The 12 tribal names as set forth in Rev. 7:5-8 were rearranged by God’s inspiration for His specific purpose.

Two tribes are missing in this list (since these are not in the character of Jesus) are:          
                                      Dan:                                             Judge or Judging
                                        Ephraim  (son of Joseph):     Fruitful in affliction.

The added name of:     Manasseh (son of Joseph):    Making to forget.


Judah:    A praiseworthy leader (Praise the Lord).

Reuben:    A (first) son.

Gad:        Good fortune.

Asher:    Provider of royal bread.

Napthali:    Messenger of great promise.

Manasseh:    Making to forget. (Clearing the records).

Simeon:    Swords of violence.

Levi:        Self-willed, and determined.

Issachar:    Strong servant of nations.

Zebulon:    A refuge.

Joseph:    Strong shepherd.  Stone of Isreal.

Benjamin:    Son of the right hand.  Divider of truth and error.

    Taking the description of each name from Rev. 7:5-8 and putting it into a summary, we have:

    A praiseworthy leader, a king, and a Praise to the Lord who is the first & only Son (of God).  
    Who is our Good Fortune (promise of vibrant life), a Provider of Royal Bread (the Word of life), and a Messenger of great promise (of future life).
    Who Makes us Forget (clearing the records) our Swords of Violence (sinful ways), caused by our Self-Willed determinations.
    He is a Strong Servant of Nations, our Refuge, our Strong Shepherd.  The Stone of Isreal (that cannot be moved).
    The One on the right hand of God (the Righteousness of God), who divides between truth and error.


     Thus, we see the description and mission of Christ for us, who are Abraham’s lineage by faith.  Also, we are to be the character and image of Christ reflected in the 144,000 who are able to stand without an intercessor before God during the most terrible tribulations that will have ever occurred on this earth. Most of His people will be of that group that no man can number.

When God sees us He must see His Son reflected in each of us that we may be judged worthy to be with Jesus forever.

     Be willing to be changed into His image that you may be kept in His protective love, filled with the Holy Ghost, willing to let go of all earthly encumbrances so our God and Father may receive all honor and glory by our Lord, Jesus Christ through you.

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A Mystery Question. .

For fun and to invigorate your Bible
knowledge, and understand Jesus’
purpose for His Father’s will in your life.

Please leave your thoughts, and ideas in the comments section below
Question for this week:

Did King Saul really see the ghost/Spirit of  Samuel?

God Bless your search for truth.

Spiritualism

 — Life After Ashes —

Spiritualism is the bringing to life a living form that has no body or substance to it.

When the witch of Endor succeeded in bringing up the apparition of Samuel for  the distressed King Saul to ask of him what he should do about the Philistines. He got his answer and death notice. So King Saul got his just reward and did not like it.—1Samuel 28:15.

He Worshiped The Dead

King Saul not only saw the risen ghostly form of Samuel and spoke to him, but then bowed down and worshiped that spirit. His sin was to worship a ghostly appearance.  How depraved people can get when they presume there is life amongst or in the dead. When we see how the “spirit” is the breath and life of a living soul and without it we are a non-entity or just dead, there will be interpretations applied which can blow out of proportion the truth intended in the Manufacturer’s Handbook (The Bible). 

Some have taken the plain words and applied their own thoughts and misconceptions to “make alive” that which is dead or inanimate. Essentially it is a “concern with things of the spirit.”—WordNet

How To Communicate

There are those who hold “seances” or meetings where alleged non-corporeal intelligences would supply communications through a spirit medium, coded tappings, sounds, Ouija Boards, or other means. At many sessions the assumption of spirit communication was validated by many contemporaries, among them many scientists and philosophers who attended séances and studied the phenomena. It's a lie and a deception to communicate where there is no life. Might as well talk to a stone ( there are those that do just, too).


Trying to communicate with the dead is mentioned in the Bible when King Saul went to the witch of Endor, to find an answer to his problem, while masquerading as someone else.  The ‘witch’ found out through the apparition who he really was. It seems that back then they were wanting to talk to the dead.  This is an evil deception by the father of lies.

We might presume that God answered him, but we are told that God is a God of the living and not of the dead. So his answer must have come from the father of lies, the devil, who was impersonating Saul. Besides, Saul had already been told by God what would become of him because of his disobedience and sins.

Since even a king such as Saul would die because of his disobedience, what does this mean to us who also do not believe and obey what we already know is right. As the hymn says: “Trust and Obey, for There’s No Other Way . . .”
"What Kind Of King Will You Choose?"

God Bless

A Mystery Question. .

For fun and spruce-up your Bible knowledge, and understand Jesus’ purpose for His Father’s will in your life.
Please leave your thoughts, and ideas in the comments section below
Question for this week:

How does the Spirit dwell in us?

God Bless your search for truth.

Introduction To Evil

Sin Lives Within

Genesis 2 & 3

“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day

God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day (Sabbath)

from all His work which He had made.” —Genesis 2:1.

Evil and sin includes their effect also on food - plants and herbs of the field, as well as our character.

“And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.”—Genesis 2:7.   Eve also must have been made from the dust of the earth including a rib from Adam so they would be one flesh; needing each other for support and companionship.  Living alone is no fun.

So we have Adam and Eve together in the Garden of Eden getting acquainted with life as one person, and with their Father, God, the one person to look up to and to trust for all the answers to their needs.

We aren’t told how long this bliss lasted, until another element was introduced into their domain. A wonderful awesome being was found by Eve in that tree of the knowledge of good and evil of which she and Adam were not to eat, as their test of obedience to God.

This tree of the knowledge of good and evil in our understanding must be symbolic rather than physical, but whatever it was, they were not to eat of that tree, because when they did they would “surely die (or begin dying).”  Eventually they died.

Did you notice that the word ‘devil’ uses the four letters of ‘evil’.

In Genesis chapter 3 an evil serpent comes upon the scene.  From other Bible texts we understand this serpent to be the devil, a dragon, a deceiver, the father of lies, Satan and Lucifer. To Eve he was more subtle and deceptive than any beast of the field.  Thus his character and purpose was not easy to understand. So he was a different beautiful creation to her or them.

He then proceeds to deceive Eve by telling her God will not allow her to ”surely die,” and if she eats of this tree she will be as a god knowing good and evil.  She looks again and the fruit seems beautiful, good for food, and something desirable to make one wise.

Now do you think God would supply everything and then withhold something from His most perfect Creation?  She evidently thought so for she thought “to be wise” was important for her and them.  She knew the command not to eat of that tree. But wanting more self gratification than God allowed at that time, she disobeyed God and ate that delicious fruit.

Eating the fruit was alright.  But her disobedience was not. Feeling she needed someone to join in her disobedience she turned to Adam who took some too, because he loved her too much to let her die alone.

“For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived. but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.”—1 Tim 2:13, 14. She already sinned, but Adam did not trust God to work out a solution to the situation.

Thus through Satan (our author of death), we have the same problem from the Garden of Eden today.  SIN begins in disobedience to God, and, then a lack of trust for Him to solve our problems without Him.

It is interesting to note that SIN (pronounced ‘seen’) in Spanish means without. Making this easy for our understanding, we might conclude that sin is the same as doing anything apart and without God’s intervention or help.  We choose to be our own god (“I’ll do it my way”) just as Adam and Eve did in that paradise garden. 

When we find we have no solutions to our dying through selfishness, greed, hate, “lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes and pride of life” (1 John 2 15-17), we SIN and are worthy of death (for the wages of sin is death, but the GIFT of God is eternal life throught Jesus Christ, our Lord—Rom 6:23), because we could not live in God’s holy atmosphere of love, trust and with obedience to Him. 

One last thought for today, God did not give us SIN.  He gave us the fruit of His Spirit: “. . love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22,23).  The only laws that were ever given were against SIN, and not against God’s love, peace and grace.

Find your salvation in Jesus for yourself and LIVE forever.  It’s a promise you can trust.

“And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God, abideth forever.”—1 John 2:17.

God bless.

Emery Thompson

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A Mystery Question:

For fun and spruce-up your Bible knowledge, and understand Jesus’ purpose for His Father’s will in your life.
Please leave your thoughts, and ideas in the comments section below
Question for this week:

Was Satan/Lucifer a son of God?

God Bless your search for truth.

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