The Sixth Seal Aftermath

Revelation 7

Rev 7:1 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. 2) 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, 3) Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. 4) 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.

This is the first sign of the Tribulation, the marking of the 144,000 witnesses from the 12 tribes of Israel. This happens immediately following the event of the sixth seal, because immediately after the sixth seal is opened and the events seen in Johns vision, John says, "And after these things I saw...", so he see's the event of the sixth seal, and now he is revealing the Sixth Seal aftermath. I won't say too much about all this, just read what God is saying to us in Johns Vision.

The next few verses go on to mention that 12,000 of each of the twelve tribes are marked, and it mentions each of the twelve tribes. I'm just making note here that the chosen are evenly dispersed between the 12 tribes of Israel. Now let's move on...

Rev 7:9) 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; 10) And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. 11) 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, 12) Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen. 13) And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 14) 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.

The number of those who stood before the throne and before the lamb, are a multitude of people who have died from the events of the sixth seal, or perhaps just following the sixth seal. Regardless of what the sixth seal was, a natural event or man made war, many people are going to die in such a cataclysmic event. When you read the 6th seal, it isn't necessary to know what is causing these things to happen, but you can be sure that a vast body count will follow.

Notice here also, the first mention of the great tribulation, and those before the throne are those who washed their robes white in the blood of the lamb. The question here is, how did they get here? If there is a pretribulation rapture, then this is the only real mention of it in the Bible. Nowhere else will you see vast numbers being removed from the earth before the tribulation actualy gets in full swing, which happens with the next seal. Are they victims of the war, or could they be those of whom the antichrist makes war with and prevails? Because of what is left to be said on this vision, I do not think they were instantly vaporized without any suffering. Let's read on...

Rev 7:15) 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. 16) They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 17) 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.

Reading this carefully, and considering what is said, and asking why is it said, I have to come to the conclusion that these people were not just taken up in the clouds peacably. When people speak of the rapture, Christ comes in the clouds and those who are dead in Christ will raise first and meet with those who are yet alive and are taken up to Him where they will reside for ever more. John has done a god job of explaining things here, he mentions the angels, the beasts, and Christ as the Lamb of God, but none of these are mentioned here. Also, Why does John even mention that they shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat? Everyone, every human being can and many endure hunger and thirst, many suffer heat, but why is this mentioned only to these saints explicitly unless they suffered to get there. It also does not say they were spared the tribulation but rather that they, "Came out of the great tribulation". Also, if they were spared, why do they all get to sit before the throne of God and serve Him day and night in His temple? Are these people of the later generations better than those who came before? I don't think so, I think these people paid the ultimate price, and that is why all this is mentioned, because they are now with Him for whom they died, and will be with Him and serve Him forever more.

The sixth seal is a big even, but the sixth seal aftermath is a transitional time for the countries and the people to get together as one. I believe there is a small time frame here between the sixth and the seventh seal, and I also believe the seventh seal is the introduction of the Antichrist. What do nations always do after a major war? They make a peace treaty. What is the Antichrist going to do? He is going to sign a seven year pact with Israel and their neighbors, and most likely the world.

NEXT: The Seventh Seal is Opened