Revelation 7:9 – 17

9 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 All the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God,

12 saying:

“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom,

Thanksgiving and honor and power and might,

Be to our God forever and ever.

Amen.”

13 Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?”

14 And I said to him, “Sir, you know.”

So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them. 16 They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; 17 for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

This continues the previous lesson, the 144000 represented a great many Christians who died during the persecutions by the Roman Empire. They were listed as the 12 tribes of Israel, but now are listed as a group of people so large they could not be counted and they came from all the nations, races, and languages of the Roman Empire.

These who were persistent in keeping their faith until the end were rewarded with white robes which showed their faithfulness, and were given a palm branch as if it were a medal for withstanding the persecutions they had experienced.

They give credit to God for salvation through Him and Christ because God placed a perfect plan of salvation and put it into works through His only Son Jesus Christ, the Lamb.

The angels gathered round with the elders and the four living creatures as a mark of respect for those who had suffered and remained faithful until death.

But the angels act of praise is to God as it was before the throne of God.

In verse 12 the angels make a statement and begin it with “amen.” In this instance the word “amen” does not mean “so be it,” but means “Surely, of a truth, truly” according Thayer. The angels were saying what they were going to state was surely something that was true and all that they said about God in this statement was absolutely truth. The statement is made even more emphatic by the closing “amen,” or “So be it” attached to the end of the phrase.

One the 24 elders who represent, the Old Law, and the apostles of the New Dispensation asks John a question to get his attention. The ones being discussed were the ones of chapter 6 verse 11 and the ones designated as the 12 tribes earlier in this chapter, John answered because he understood the question was stated to get his attention.

The elder then described them as those who had gained victory over the great tribulation, or persecutions of the Roman Empire. They did not survive the tribulations because John had observed their souls poured out under the altar earlier. But even though they had died in persecution, Christians do not lose their victory in death. Their robes were washed by the blood of Christ and made clean.

These statements are all figurative because all of these had lost their lives for remaining faithful to Christ and testifying in death for the word of God. Because of their faithfulness they were being held in honored remembrance and were always to remain as welcome to being close to God at the throne.

They would never be hungry or thirsty again because those are traits of this world and not of heaven where physical needs are not known. The physical discomfort of cold and sun also are not to be experienced in heaven either.

The living waters offered to the “Samaritan woman” (John 4:10) is one of the blessings given to the inhabitants of heaven.

They are never to experience tears again because there is absolutely nothing in heaven which can cause the experience of sadness.