— Day of Covering, 181 JE —
“And I saw, and behold, the LAMB was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him a hundred and forty and four thousand, having His Name, and the Name of His FATHER, written on their foreheads.
Revelation 14:1-13
And I heard a voice from mid-heaven, as the sound of many waters, and as the sound of a mighty thunder: and the sound which I heard was as of harpists playing on their harps: and they sing a new song before the throne, and before the four living creatures and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth. These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the LAMB whithersoever He goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the first-fruits unto GOD and to the LAMB. And in their mouth was found no lie: they are without blemish.
And I saw an angel flying in mid-heaven, having the eternal gospel to proclaim unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and tribe, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, “Fear GOD, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His Judgment is come: and worship ‘Him that made the heaven, and the earth, and the sea’ [Ex. 20:11], and the fountains of waters.”
And another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the poison of her fornication.”
And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If any man worship the beast and his image, and receiveth a mark on his forehead, or upon his hand, he also shall drink of the wine of the wrath of GOD, which is poured out undiluted into the cup of His wrath; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the LAMB: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up to ages of ages: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.”
Here is the patience of the saints: they that keep the commandments of GOD, and the faith of JEHOSHUA.
And I heard a voice from Heaven saying, “Write, ‘Blessed are the dead which die in the LORD from henceforth’ ”: “Yea,” saith the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors; for their works do follow with them.”
A common question about the 144,000 is whether it is a literal number or representative. I would like to propose that it is both. Even Uriah Smith hints that only men could be counted, but an overlooked type in the Torah goes even beyond that. Watch this:
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, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our GOD in their foreheads.
Revelation 7:2-4, 9-15
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…
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; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our GOD which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the LAMB. 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, 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? 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.
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.
And JEHOVAH spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
Numbers 4:1-3,22-23, 29-30
“Take the sum of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, after their families, by the house of their fathers, from thirty years old and upward even until fifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work in the Tabernacle of Appointed Times…
Take also the sum of the sons of Gershon, throughout the houses of their fathers, by their families;
From thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shalt thou number them; all that enter in to perform the service, to do the work in the Tabernacle of Appointed Times…
As for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families, by the house of their fathers;
From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the service, to do the work of the Tabernacle of Appointed Times.
Notice that the 144,000 are the servants—serving GOD day and night in the temple. They are the antitype of the Levitical groups that did the same in Solomon’s temple (and the pre-temple sanctuary). Now, notice in the type that only men, and men aged 30 to 50 years are numbered. Throughout the Old Testament, when numbering was done, it was the men that were numbered—sometimes over 20, sometimes over 25 (as in the case of Num. 8 where Levitical servants were numbered, but the discrepancy between 25 and 30 likely had to do with a 5-year apprenticeship), and sometimes 30 (which was considered full maturity and is when JEHOSHUA, Joseph, and David began their ministries, and thus better reflects the high maturity level of the 144,000).
Now, I’m not saying that the group associated with the 144,000 will only be 30 to 50 year old men but that they are the only ones counted. Just as throughout the Old Testament, the women and children are with the men, they are just not counted. This has very significant implications. It means that a lot more people will embrace the fourth angel’s message in the last days, pushing the real number of those who become sealed to the millions, mainly being those living in the last generation, since those who have died in the Sabbath faith after 1848 CE when the sealing began would have nearly all died after the age of 50. The numbered men making up the 144,000 would not include anyone who lived over 50, so we are mainly waiting for the last generation to have enough middle-aged men accepting the sealing message. In addition, middle-aged men are the most difficult to reach with the gospel, so there will be a disproportionately low number of middle-aged men in a demographic group that already only is less than 15% of the world’s population. Not only this but there may even be many middle-aged men not counted for the actual army since the year following the second to last Day of Covering may produce well over 144,000 middle-aged men fit for sealing. So it is these combined factors that would place the great multitude in the millions.
This is great news! It means that the following statements can actually be true!
Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of JEHOVAH is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but JEHOVAH shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the nations shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.
Isaiah 60:1-5
Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thy heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the nations shall come unto thee.
The time has come when the Jews are to be given light. The LORD wants us to encourage and sustain men who shall labor in right lines for this people; for there are to be a multitude convinced of the truth,
E.G. White, Pamphlet 114 (“The Work Among the Jews”), p. 7
who will take their position for GOD. The time is coming when there will be as many converted in a day as there were on the day of Pentecost, after the disciples had received the Holy Spirit. The Jews are to be a power to labor for the Jews; and we are to see the salvation of GOD.
A “multitude” of “Jews” come to the fullness of the truth? 3,000 a day converted as on the first Christian Pentecost (Acts 2:41)? Multitudes of those of the nations flocking to us as well? Friends, we have too little faith, and it’s a disgrace how little we have done to try to reach these people. We need to get to work planting memorials for GOD in every city and town!
There are over 146,000 cities with more than 1,000 people. That is already over 144,000. If that number included every individual rather than being representative of all who gather with the middle-aged men, that would mean that all of Sister White’s statements regarding having a memorial with a Sabbath group in every city and town (you will see the quotes in “Our Royal Blue Priesthood”) would be false. But if millions will be sealed, it is now well within the realm of possibility.
After discovering the Levitical type-antitype relationship with the 144,000 I was led to discover how the “great multitude” in Revelation 7 are the same people as the 144,000, except it includes the uncounted ones. John heard of the 12 x 12,000, then he saw a great multitude. How do we know that they are the same people? For one thing, the context of the whole chapter is the sealing. Secondly, the great multitude are wearing “white robes,” and the question of who the white-robed people are is answered by them coming out of the “great tribulation.” That does not fit with the common belief that the great multitude includes the redeemed of all generations, regardless of the Sabbath seal, for they do not come out of the great tribulation.
Also, Ellen White in various of her published writings couples together these two quotes, truncating what is in between:
“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; and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our GOD which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the LAMB.” “These are they which came out of great tribulation…”
E.G. White, 4 Testimonies, p. 125
Clearly Sister White identifies the two references as the same multitude of people. But what about those that die in the faith of the third angel’s message? Do they come out of the great tribulation even though they do not experience it? It’s simple: The great tribulation is a period. Both those that died and those alive will come out of that period from their bondage—either from the grave, or their shackles, or their hiding. The great tribulation is the persecution of the 144,000 due to the mark of the beast being imposed on the world. Those that have died will be sleeping during that time, but they still exist. All of them come out of their imprisonment in victory on the Day of Shouting, which is “immediately after the tribulation” and when the sun is “darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken” (Matthew 24:29).
Right now the light of the glory of the fourth angel is breaking out, but in obscurity. But hopefully soon, everyone in the world will be exposed to the light. All will be invited to observe the Sabbath and come up to the Festival of Tabernacles and be tassel-wearing king and priest commandment-keepers of the MESSIAH’S Kingdom! Everyone in the world will know the remnant of Israel by these things. They will also know them by the glory of MESSIAH’S character we display, and this is what will most attract multitudes of Jews and the nations.
Friends, we need to pray for the conditions to take place to make these things come to pass. The light of the fourth angel that Ellen White said would come is here. It has become the property of the saints. But we need more spiritual power, more influence. We need to be enabled to share this light quickly with the world. I don’t know how it will happen, but it will. Pride and prejudice need to be broken. The Laodicean need-of-nothing attitude needs to end. We have a great mission and a great work ahead of us and there is no time to delay. The mission is to claim all the territory of the habitable world for the Kingdom of the MESSIAH and for the glory of His character to be manifest throughout.
Now, it has been taught by some that the purpose of the 144,000 is to vindicate the character of GOD and that this is what brings an end to the great controversy. But is this so? Let us see what the pen of inspiration says:
The working out of the plan of salvation reveals not only to men but to angels, the character of GOD, and through the ages of eternity the malignant character of sin will be understood by the cost to the Father and the Son of the redemption of a rebel race. In CHRIST, the LAMB slain from the foundation of the world, all worlds will behold the marks of the curse, and angels as well as men will ascribe honour and glory to the REDEEMER through whom they are all made secure from apostasy. The efficiency of the cross guards the redeemed race from the danger of a second fall. The life and death of CHRIST effectually unveils the deceptions of Satan, and refutes his claims. The sacrifice of CHRIST for a fallen world draws not only men, but angels unto Him bonds of indissoluble union. Through the plan of salvation the justice and mercy of GOD are fully vindicated, and to all eternity rebellion will never again arise, affliction never again touch the universe of GOD.
E.G. White, Messenger, June 7, 1893
The eternal security of the universe has already been secured by the cross. Unlike how the Last Generation Theology teaches, there is no need for a further exhibition by the 144,000. Then what is their purpose? And why 144,000 middle-aged men?
When we look at the overall context of Revelation, we find a struggle against Babylon, which ultimately falls while the Kingdom of GOD prevails. Therefore, we are to look at the 144,000 in this context, and in doing so, we can put a lot of weight on this passage, clearly referring to the 144,000:
And I saw another sign in Heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of GOD. And I saw as it were a Sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the Sea of glass, having the harps of GOD. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of GOD, and the song of the LAMB, saying: “Great and marvelous are thy works, LORD EL SHADDAI; just and true are thy ways, thou KING OF NATIONS. Who shall not fear Thee, O LORD, and glorify Thy Name? For Thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before Thee; for Thy judgments are made manifest.”
Revelation 15:1-4
The entire purpose of the 144,000 is to gain victory over Babylon. They proclaim her fall in the second angel’s message, and even with more power in the fourth, and the very proclamation causes her fall, for hers, as with Zion’s, is a spiritual kingdom. She is identified by her blasphemy and other sins. If her sins are all overcome through the proclamation and reception of the gospel, then she loses the battle. Her initial fall, as proclaimed in the messages against her, is a moral fall; but her resulting fall is in the judgments of GOD as brought through her plagues. This could be why the word “fallen” is proclaimed twice in a row.
Again, the object of the 144,000 is to take down the kingdom of Babylon and establish the eternal Kingdom of the MESSIAH to reign on this earth. This is clearly brought out, though often overlooked, in Daniel 7:
These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth. But the saints of ELYON (the MOST HIGH) shall take the Kingdom, and possess the Kingdom forever, even forever and ever. Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, broke in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spoke very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows. I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of ELYON (the MOST HIGH); and the time came that the saints possessed the Kingdom.
Daniel 7:17-26
Thus said he, ‘The fourth beast signifieth that a fourth kingdom will be upon the earth, which is to be different from all kingdoms, and will devour all the earth, and will tread it down, and grind it up. And the ten horns out of this kingdom signify that ten kings will arise: and another will rise after them, and he will be different from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. And he shall speak words against ELYON (the MOST HIGH), and shall wear out the saints of ELYON (the MOST HIGH): and he shall think to change appointed times and a commandment; and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and half a time. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.
The 144,000 first proclaim the gospel to the world and represent the righteousness of GOD’S Kingdom wherever they conquer through the gospel. And the nations must see this glorious display before they yield up their reign, for they must all be given ample opportunity to join the Kingdom of Righteousness and the light must overcome the darkness by the beauty of the MESSIAH’S character contrasting the evil of darkness, vindicating GOD’S character to the nations (not the angels and inhabitants of other worlds who already are convinced by the cross) in their consciences, though the hearts of the wicked majority will resist the conviction. It is not majority rules but the contest of power, with light being exceedingly more powerful than darkness because of its rightness and its beauteous glory, which the conscience of all will see. But ultimately upon the Day of Shouting (aka. Trumpets) they take possession of the Ark of the Covenant, hidden at Mount Nebo, and then march with it through the nations gathered in the Valley of Jehoshaphat.
This is where the middle-aged men come in. They are old enough to be fully mature, yet still young enough to be strong—or at least appear that way to the nations. Apparently, JEHOVAH SABAOTH is waiting for a group of representatives from all nations to form the twelve tribes of restored Israel, thus forming twelve ranks of warriors. It would not be fit for women and children to be in such an intensive war situation as it would be quite tramatic, for we know that before they all worship at the feet of the saints, they will try to kill them:
As the dawn spread upon the mountains,
Joel 2:2-11
a people great and strong appear:
there hath not been ever the like,
neither shall be any more after them—
even to the years of many generations.
A fire devoureth before them;
and behind them a flame burneth:
the land is as the garden of Eden before them,
and behind them a desolate wilderness;
yea, and nothing shall escape them.
The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses;
and as horsemen, so shall they run.
Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains
shall they leap,
like the noise of a flame of fire
that devoureth the stubble,
as a strong people set in battle array.
Before their face the people shall be much pained:
all faces shall gather blackness.
As mighty ones they run;
as men of war they go up a wall;
and each in his own ways they do go.
And they break not their ranks,
neither doth one push his brother:
each in his way they go on.
And when they fall upon the sword,
they shall not be wounded.
Into the city they hasten forward;
on the wall they run;
into the houses they climb up;
through the windows they enter like a thief.
The earth quaketh before them;
the heavens tremble:
the sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining.
And JEHOVAH uttereth His voice before His army:
for His camp is very great:
for strong is the doer His Word:
for the Day of JEHOVAH is great and very terrible,
and who can endure it?
“The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah, the son of Amoz, did see. Lift ye up a banner upon the high mountain, lift up the voice unto them, wave the hand, that they may go into the openings of the nobles.” I have commanded My sanctified ones, yea, I have called My mighty ones for My wrath, even them that rejoice in My majesty.” The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like as of a great people; a tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together: JEHOVAH SABAOTH mustereth the host of the battle.”
Isaiah 13:1-4
At our happy, holy state the wicked were enraged, and would rush violently up to lay hands on us to thrust us into prison, when we would stretch forth the hand in the name of the LORD, and they would fall helpless to the ground…
Early Writings, p. 15
The women and children associated with the 144,000 will stay out of the main battle and either be surrounded on all sides by the twelve ranks of 12,000 men or stay behind at Mount Nebo until the battle is won, but the entire sealed multitude is 144,000 in number, for that is their army that represents all of them, just as not everyone in the nations will be present in the Valley of Jehoshaphat, only their respective armies. And this is in harmony with all the censuses of the Old Testament where men of fighting age are numbered representing all members of Israel.
Once the war is fought and won, the Ark, along with the Tabernacle of Appointed Times, still has to be brought up to the Mount of Olives. It takes strong men to carry the equipment. And recall also that it was anciently the three Levitical groups that would set up and keep the sanctuary. The antitypical men will be dealing with the very same tabernacle! The end result is to take GOD’S Kingdom, planting His Tabernacle of Appointed Times at the holy place, signifying the vindication of His appointed times, which really are the hallmarks of His Kingdom, especially the Sabbath. So, this solves the mystery of the 144,000, though I’m sure we will learn much more when the battle actually comes to pass.
This Bible study reading is being produced for the Day of Covering—the day that the 144,000, including all who are included with them, are sealed. We are to strive to be among them. Let us not forget our mission. It is warfare to the end, first in the gospel of the Kingdom of grace, then in the external Kingdom of glory—one Kingdom, two stages. What are we doing to contribute to the victory? Let us arouse to action! We are not all middle-aged men, but we can still all be spiritual warriors. We need praying women supporting the men. We need our energetic and often winsome youth. All may and should be missionaries with the end goal continually set before us.
For more details on the events associated with the momentous Day of Covering in the future, refer to Chapter 12 of the book Seventh Month Revival.
