What Is the Sealing of the 144,000?
The sealing of the 144,000 is really a question that normally is considered with material from Revelation 7, but since the question of the sealing indirectly occurs elsewhere in Revelation, it is pertinent that this question be considered here.
The question of what the sealing of the 144,00 represents is a serious question because those who are not sealed clearly are not saved when Jesus comes again. So, it is very important to identify what this sealing does for a person.
The sealing is not that difficult to understand, but is not exactly straightforward either. To understand it, begin with the book of Daniel. To begin, please read the following verse:
Dan 6:17 And a stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet of his lords; that the purpose might not be changed concerning Daniel.
Notice that in this verse, the king was said to seal the den by placing the mark of his signet (possibly a ring) and that of his lords so that his purposes concerning Daniel could not be changed. The Persians had a law that once a law was passed by the king, it could not be changed, which probably lent some stability to their government (though it could perpetuate bad laws, which was NOT a good thing). But this verse has several clues to the sealing in Revelation, which are:
- Daniel is the one sealed into the den by the king
- The king placed a mark upon the stone at the opening to the den because he had the authority to do so, which meant that nobody else had that authority but him,
- The seal is that of the king's, but he added that of his lords to add authority to what he did
- This mark signified that under his authority, the purpose regarding Daniel could not be reversed
Now compare that to what you read in Revelation. In Revelation 7, we read the following regarding the sealing:
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.
Rev 7:2 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,
Rev 7:3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
These verses tell you the following bits of information
- The seal placed is that of the king of the universe - God's seal
- The servants of God are those who are sealed
- The seal is a mark of God upon those who are His servants
- It is God who does the sealing because it is He who has the authority and power to do so
- After the sealing is complete, the winds will blow, then causing the earth, sea, and trees to be hurt.
The only thing missing here is that part of the verse in Daniel which said "that the purpose might not be changed concerning Daniel.", which could be rephrased in Revelation to read as "that the purpose might not be changed concerning the servants of God." Now, please don't tell people that the author is creating scripture that is not there. That phrase does not exist in Revelation but I state it to make the point that this is about all that is missing. The author wrote that phrase to simply emphasize that this is all that is missing.
Do you get the point? The sealing is a process by which the servants of God are placed into a condition (like Daniel in the lions den) in which God says that His purposes concerning them cannot ever be changed again once they are sealed. Does this make sense?
But, now that you know what the sealing accomplishes, this still begs the question of "what is the sealing?"
So, to answer this question, let us again consider the story of Daniel in the lion's den. When it became obvious that the king had to place Daniel in the lion's den because of the law he had passed which could not be changed, Daniel was placed in the lion's den and then the king "sealed" it with the mark of his signet. This signet was the visible sign of the power and authority of the king to "seal" the den shut. This told everyone that nobody dared open the den. Thus, there are two components to this:
- the visible mark the king placed over the stone covering the den
- the power that enforces the mark, which was the power behind the king giving him authority to seal it
Likewise, God has power to place a seal upon His people, and to make sure there is no mistake about it, he has a visible sign or mark. Now, what is the visible mark of God and what is the power and authority which enforces the mark of God (or in other words, what powers the placement of that mark)?
To answer this last question, consider seals that are used by governments today. They typically have three things on them:
- The name of the government or ruler
- The territory they rule
- Their authority and power
What is the seal of the government of God? This question is asking what is the visible mark of the government of God, for a seal is always something that is visible on any official documents from a government, assuming they have marked it - and they usually are so marked?
Before answering this last question, let us first determine the power and authority which enforces the mark of God. Read the next few verses for the answer to who enforces the mark of God, or who is the source of power behind that mark.
Joh 6:27 Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.
2Co 1:21 Now he which establisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God;
2Co 1:22 Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.
Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 4:30 And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
From these verses, you should be able to see that it is God the Father or the Holy Spirit that is the source of power and authority behind the seal of God and does the sealing.
Now, what is the visible mark of the seal of God? Remember, king Darius put a visible mark on the den so that everyone would know that Daniel was to remain in there under the king's order and authority and power. So, what do we look for to know that God has placed His seal upon a person?
There is one place in the Bible where the seal of God is found, which has the three things which all governments place on their seals. That place is found in Exodus 20:8-11, which is the fourth commandment among the 10 commandments. This visible mark or seal of God is found nowhere else in the Bible. Here is what it says:
Exo 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9 Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work:
Exo 20:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
Exo 20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
What is the name of the government or ruler in this commandment? Answer: "the LORD thy God".
What territory does He rule? Answer: "heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is" (doesn't that just about cover the entire universe?)
By what authority does he rule this? This is asking by what right does "the Lord thy God" rule this territory? Answer: "For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is", or in other words, He has this right because He is the creator, it all belongs to Him because He made it all.
Now, the final question is how is this the visible mark of God of the sealing by God? Well, it is visible because one will see that those who keep this commandment will honor God by setting aside the seventh day of the week in honor of creation and of God as he asks us to do in the fourth commandment. They won't substitute something else that He has NOT commanded in it's place. In this way it is the visible sign or mark of God upon the lives of these people that they are being sealed by God through His power and authority.
So, in the final analysis, the sealing is done by God the Father and the Holy Spirit, which is the power behind this process. When God works in the life in this way, the results will be that the visible mark of God is apparent to those around, which means that such a person will choose to honor God, who is the creator and wishes to be remembered that way in our daily lives, by keeping the fourth commandment at the appointed time as He requires. This will be the visible sign that God is changing our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit..But do remember that this is a result of the inward sealing work being done by the Holy Spirit.
It should also be obvious from the Bible verses quoted above that the sealing is a process that has gone on since the beginning of sin in this world. For all people prior to the last generation that will live upon this world, this sealing process ends with death, after which they cannot sin because they are dead. But for those who are the last generation to live upon this earth because Jesus comes during their lifetime, this sealing process must be completed before death. This is so because there will come a day when the investigative judgment is finished, after which there is no more forgiveness of sin (if you doubt this, consider that in Revelation 15:8 it tells us that just before the plagues begin, the temple in heaven fills with smoke from the power of God and nothing can enter the temple until after the plagues are done, which means Jesus cannot be there to be ministering forgiveness of sins during that time - hence, there can be no forgiveness of sins from the time the temple fills with smoke onward). Therefore, those who are sealed by that point will have to live through the time of final trouble that comes upon this world without sinning, for if they do, there is no possibility of forgiveness because Jesus will have finished His work in the sanctuary in heaven. These people will, like those who were sealed by death before them, have become dead to sin and have permanently and irrevocably settled into the way of life that God has placed into their hearts and minds. They will not choose to sin. Likewise, the wicked will have permanently and irrevocably settled into the way of life that Satan has chosen for them, and they too will have a seal or mark - the mark of the beast or of his image! And these people will have a visible mark of his authority, which will be Sunday observance. His power will be enforced by threat of death from the state if you dare to disobey.
Are you being sealed by the power and authority of God? Do you display that visible mark of the sealing of God? Or is Satan busy sealing your life and fate? The decision is entirely yours to make.