A Timely Sealing - Part 1

       Hebrews 1 describes God’s supreme revelation of His Son, based on the prophetic Day Code. He is the appointed heir of all things, the brightness of God’s glory, the express image of God’s person (nature), upholding all things by the word of His power, the One who purged us of all sins, now seated at the right hand of the Father, having become so much better than the angels. He is exalted above the angels.      No wonder verse 14 describes the angels as “ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation.”
         John’s vision so far has served to bring us up to date to our own time, with the exception of the final 6th sign that ends this present age. Now the Revelation vision skips ahead to give us an overview of what shall happen as the last Day, the 7th Day, is about to dawn. In other words, we’re about to get a glimpse of our near future. Chapter 7 gives us the tie-in between what has transpired since Jesus’ ascension and the end of this age, as well as the answer to the question as to who is able to stand against God’s wrath.
         We are introduced to an angel whose job includes the seal of the living God. This angel spots four other angels in charge of the four winds of the earth. The first angel loudly informs them  not to do their thing yet upon the earth because the appointed time has not yet come. “Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads” (Rev. 7:3).
         What is this sealing? Why is it so important? Again, we are to make the Spirit-inspired connections. “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” (Eph. 4:30). The Day of Redemption refers to the point in God’s timetable when those who are His are fully sanctified and perfected at the rapture (1 Thess. 5:23). It is when we are fully conformed to His image (Rom. 8:29).
            In the meantime, our regenerated, born-again spirits are sealed by the Holy Spirit so that they cannot be corrupted again by sin. This sealing is our guarantee of our future hope and heavenly calling in Christ (2 Cor. 1:22). In effect, it is His divine down payment of our future calling. “In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise” (Eph. 1:13, emphasis added). What this tells us is that our earthly commission to preach the Gospel and make disciples is not quite done yet.
          Then John hears a cryptic clue as to the identity of the ones to be sealed. Why do I say it is cryptic?
Because it lists 12 sets of 12 thousands. Yes, you read that correctly—thousands, plural. In our Bibles, every time we read the singular form of thousand in our translations, the actual word in the original text is the plural form of thousands.
            END-TIME LESSON: This may not seem like a big deal, but it is. This creative license on the part of the translators has led to a major misinterpretation that has caused much confusion in the Church. It has caused some to assert that this listing of the sealed are literally 10,000 Jewish eunuchs drawn from each of the twelve tribes of Israel who come out of the tribulation to become evangelists. Yet we never see them again doing just that. What we do see is this multitude “from all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb” again and again (Rev. 7:9, emphasis added).
            To understand the identity of this innumerable company, we need a very brief English grammar lesson. The reason the translators changed the original text is because it violated our English grammar rules. Surely God didn’t mean to make this mistake. Or did He? Stay tuned! We’re about to find out who is able to stand at the coming of that great and awesome Day of the Lord.