Israel has lost its tribal identity, as far as the world is concerned. But, God still knows everything, including the genealogy of every Jew. Today 93% of Israeli Jews say they are proud to be Jewish. The idea of the lost tribes of Israel has been a topic of intrigue for believers and non-believers alike. Historically the nation of Israel consisted of 12 tribes, however today the Jewish people primarily descend from the Kingdom of Judea, which only consisted of two-and-a-half tribes: Yehuda, Benjamin and Levi.

There is certainly no debate that following the destruction of the First Temple, most of the 12 tribes have been scattered across the globe. Where did they go? Well, that was anyone’s guess – until today. There is a group of people looking to uncover the truth behind the lost tribes in order to determine where they went and to integrate them back into the Jewish people. There is an increasing interested on the part of many to find out their ancestry. The internet is full with sites and blogospheres and it is proliferating with Jewish people who are hoping to identify what tribe they came from. The internet is growing with web sites for them.
Tracing the Tribe is a blog about Jewish genealogy and finding one’s tribe. At Chabad.org there was an interesting message, “There are a number of people whose families have passed down their identity as Priests or Levites, which means they descend from the tribe of Levi. There are also a handful of non-Levite families who can trace their ancestry to a particular tribe, but these are few and far between. When the Messiah comes, they will all find out which tribes they are from.
I. Interlude from the Judgments (Vv. 1-3)

1. Chapter 7 is a “time out” before the seventh seal is open and an unsettling stillness and calm comes upon the entire earth. Like a pause in a storm and yet one can see the dark and the threatening clouds. John’s vision is still from heaven. He is high above the earth and can see four angels standing at the four – corners of the earth. This phrase does not mean John thought the world was square, but rather it refers to the four principal points on the compass that being North, South, East and West. God restrains His judgment for a short time until His elect have been sealed. These angels hold back the winds of adversity, judgement and wrath while God sends his messengers to seal the 144.000. We will look at who they are next.

2. We should remember God never has and never will leave Himself without a witness on earth, even during the Great Tribulation.

Illustration:
Today, the church is to bear witness of Christ and the love of God. Likewise, even during the most dreadful time in the history of the world, the Great Tribulation, God will not leave the world without His witness.

3. The cry of the angel, “Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads (7:3). Satan has his mark too. This verse makes it clear that even worse judgment than those of the first six seals are about to take place on the earth. At the opening of the seventh seal the ultimate, inevitable collision of holiness and wickedness is described. So, the worst is yet to come. Seal initiation

II. Initiation of the 144,000 (Vv. 4-8)

1. Who are these famous 144,000? In 7:4 John gives us the number of those sealed-144,000 and their identification. . . of all the tribes of the children of Israel. These 144,000 Jews should be taken literally because John goes into great detail to reveal exactly who they are, even mentioning the number from each tribe in verses 5-8.

a) There are many theories as to who they are. The Seventh-Day Adventist apply it to the faithful few who will be found observing the Jewish Sabbath at the Lord’s return. Those who follow Joseph Russell, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, teach that the 144,000 are the faithful witnesses, a small select group that make it to heaven. Note verse nine contradicts this.

There are many more groups who have appropriated this number to their select group. All of these overlook a very simple fact that the 144,000 are composed 12,000 from each tribe of the children of Israel. You will note Dan and Ephraim are not mention but rather Levi and Mannash… Dan was guilty of grievous idolatry and sin and that may be why they are not included in this list. Similarly, the name of Ephraim is omitted in favor of his father Joseph. This could be for two reasons, Ephraim defected from the ruling house of Judah (Isaiah 7:17) and just like Dan, Ephraim was consumed with idolatry. The problem is we don’t know for sure.

b. Again this passage is indicative of the fact that God is not finished with His people the Jews. It is the time of Jacob’s trouble and we note this as his sons are mentioned here. When the church is raptured from the earth, God will again work through His chosen people the Jews.

Application
As Christians, we must never forget the Jews are a special people to God because of His covenant with Abraham. Moreover, our Savior and Lord was a Jew, the apostles were all Jews, and every book in the NT, except Luke and Acts, was written by Jews. Furthermore, the majority of the OT is simply a history of God’s dealings with the Jews.

c. Again it is clear from this passage that God is not finished with the Jews; He has another divine mission for them during the Great Tribulation. It will take a special kind of believer during that time, and a Jew would be perfect for the job. The Jews are a determined and proud people willing to die for their beliefs. Israel’s existence today proves their determination.

These are the characteristics that will be needed in believers during the Great Tribulation. 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes comprise the 144,000.The sealing of the 144,000 in Revelation 7:4 is nothing new. A seal often refers to a signet ring used to press its image into wax melted on a document. The resulting imprint implied authenticity and ownership. A seal was a mark of ownership. We are the sealed of God. God has always sealed His own Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:30
III. Innumerable Saved Multitude (7:9-12)

1. The people saved during the Great Tribulation will be from all over the world, including Jews and Gentiles, as verse 9 says…. 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. These will be converts to Christ. There is no doubt as to who this multitude is according to these verses 13-14 John ask concerning this group and this is an innumerable multitude of martyred saints. This is possibly the greatest revival of all times. It is yet to come.
2. In verses 10-12, this redeemed martyred multitude … cried with a loud voice … and gave praise to God and to the Lamb for their salvation. Also, all the angels around the throne of God, the elders and the four beasts fell before the throne of God on their faces and worshipped Him. It is very probable this innumerable multitude was saved through the evangelistic efforts of the 144,000 Jews during the tribulation period.

3. The fact that John did not know who these redeemed were indicates they are not OT believers nor are they the church. Here are the saints who have come out of the Tribulation, the great one. Notice that the verb here looks like “who come out,” in an instantaneous act, erchomai, (air ka my)
literally means, who are coming out. It could be translated, “the ones coming out.” It is present, continuous, durative participle. It shows a prolonged process, the ones who are coming out. This group keeps accumulating as people keep dying. These are a uniquely separate group of believers who are coming out of this time of Tribulation.

4. The innumerable multitude in Revelation 7 will serve God day and night in his temple … (7:15). These hosts of redeemed individuals are in the immediate presence of God in His temple, and yet they are without fear and are fully accepted by a holy God. Also, we see in this verse that we will not just sit around in heaven and strum on a harp will serve him as God’s Temple servants as described in Ezekiel chapters 40-48. Every saint will serve just as Christ Bride serve as His administer noted in Revelation chapter 1:6 & 5:7 and whereas the 144, 000 will serve as the bodyguards of the bride and the church according to Revelation 14:4.
The phrase in verse 15, he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell = SKENOO among them, in Greek says, “He will spread his tabernacle (skin not o) over them.” In other words, the Lamb will spread a divine canopy over them for their protection. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more …. These conditions seem describe the earthly experiences of those saved during the Great Tribulation, because of the lack of food and water and intense heat. Death will come mainly by martyrdom and the scriptures indicate the means will be beheading. Seeing this in the news…

Conclusion:
In verse 17 we find that … the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them. The word translated feed is literally “shepherd” in Greek. Therefore, this is a beautiful picture of pastoral care and is a fulfillment of what wonderful promise of Jesus in John 10:14-16? This tells us that these people are going to experience Heaven because they were washed in the blood of the Lamb. If the blood of the Lamb had not washed them, they would not be there.