Revelation 7 in plain modern English. New Ground English Translation.
Time Period
Around AD 95, during the reign of the emperor Domitian
Location
The four corners of the earth and then the heavenly throne room, in a pause between the sixth and seventh seals
Audience
The seven congregations of Roman Asia, wondering whether anyone will survive what has just been described
Situation
Before the last seal is opened, angels hold back the winds while God's servants are marked on their foreheads, numbered at one hundred forty-four thousand from the tribes of Israel. John then sees an uncountable crowd from every nation standing before the throne in white robes.
Key Background
Marking foreheads to show ownership and protection comes from Ezekiel, where a man with an ink horn marks the faithful in Jerusalem before judgment falls, and it also echoes the blood on Israelite doorposts in Egypt. The tribal list here is unusual, leaving out Dan and counting Joseph and Manasseh separately, and the number twelve thousand from twelve tribes reads as a symbolic full muster rather than a headcount. The list is arranged like a military census of the sort Israel took before battle, which makes the sudden appearance of a peaceful international crowd holding palm branches a deliberate reversal, the same technique as hearing about a lion and then seeing a lamb.
After this I saw standing at the of the holding back the of the so that no wind could blow on the land, the sea, or on any tree.
Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, carrying the of the He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to damage the land and the sea:
"Don't damage the land or the sea or the trees until we've put the seal on the of those who our God."
And I heard the number of those who were sealed: sealed from every tribe of
From the of twelve thousand were sealed; from the of Reuben, twelve thousand; from the of Gad, twelve thousand;
from the tribe of Asher, twelve thousand; from the tribe of Naphtali, twelve thousand; from the tribe of Manasseh, twelve thousand;
from the tribe of Simeon, twelve thousand; from the tribe of twelve thousand; from the tribe of Issachar, twelve thousand;
from the tribe of Zebulun, twelve thousand; from the tribe of twelve thousand; from the tribe of Benjamin, twelve thousand.
After this I looked, and there was an that no one could count — from every nation, tribe, people, and language — standing in front of the throne and in front of the They were wearing and holding in their hands,
and they were calling out in a loud voice: belongs to our God, who sits on the and to the Lamb!"
All the angels were standing around the throne with the and the They fell facedown before the throne and God,
saying, Praise and and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength belong to our God and
Then one of the elders asked me, "These people wearing white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?"
I answered, "Sir, you know." And he said to me, "These are the ones who have come through the They have their and made them white in the Lamb's
That's why they are in front of God's throne, serving him day and night in And the one who sits on the throne will them with
They will be and they will be The sun won't beat down on them, and no scorching heat will burn them,
because the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their He will guide them to of and God will every from their eyes.