C. The 144:000 Witnesses of Revelation 14:1-5.

C. The 144,000 Witnesses of Revelation 14:1-5.
“And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads. (Revelation 14:1)
And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: (Revelation 14:2)
And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts (Gr. “living creatures”), and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth. (Revelation 14:3)
These are they which were not DEFILED WITH WOMEN; for they are virgins. These are THEY WHICH FOLLOW THE LAMB WHITHERSOEVER HE GOETH. These were redeemed from among men, BEING THE FIRSTFRUITS unto God and to the Lamb. (Revelation 14:4)
And IN THEIR MOUTH WAS FOUND NO GUILE: for THEY ARE WITHOUT FAULT before the throne of God.” (Revelation 14:1-5)
These verses give a wave of truth extending to the end of the Tribulation Period. This chapter, along with Chapter 7, are the only two places we find the 144,000. Here we find additional information concerning them. In Revelation 14:4, three things are revealed:
1. Revelation 14:4 a: They are men who are not married; nor ever have been, as they are virgins. “Not defiled with women” does not mean that wives ruin men; since, God instituted marriage. Here it is only referring to being free of the responsibilities of providing a home, raising a child, and caring for his wife.
2. Revelation 14:4 b: “They follow the lamb (Christ) whithersoever he goeth.” They will have no permanent home, as they continually travel wherever Christ leads them. They will be leading people to Christ all over the world; and warning them about the False Prophet, Beast, and Antichrist and not to take the mark of 666.
3. Revelation 14:4 c:They will be saved almost immediately after the Rapture, as they are the “first fruits” of the multitude that will be saved out of the Tribulation.
a. Others will survive and be alive when Christ returns.
“After this I beheld, and, lo, 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;” (Revelation 7:9
“And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”– Revelation 7:14
b. Some will die, being beheaded for their faithfulness to our wonderful Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. They will receive a Martyr’s Crown.
“And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:4)
4. Revelation 14:5 : “...in their mouth was found no guile:” means they spoke no guile. The word “guile” means “no deceit.” In other words, they always speak the truth; as they will never compromise as we see so many so-called preachers doing in these last days. One must remember that these 144,000 will be men just like we are today. They will have the old nature, just as every one of us have.
BUT, being a Jew, they probably, or should know, the prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27. Then, after witnessing the Rapture firsthand, they know that in 7 years Christ will return and establish His Kingdom on Earth for a 1,000 years. No wonder, since they were saved right after the Rapture, they realize they must warn their Jewish nation not to accept the Covenant with the federation of united nations offering them peace.
At the end of their ministry, the Holy Spirit inspired John to write, “...for they are without fault before the throne of God.” They will not be without sin, as they rejected Christ as their Messiah, prior to the Rapture. Now, being saved, they will have received Christ’s righteousness.
“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)
Knowing there is only about 7 years before their Messiah will return, they dedicate themselves completely to preaching the Gospel, undistracted by marriage or any earthly influence.
Now, let us go back to Revelation 14:1-3. The Lord had given John a “motion picture” of what the future holds. Should some lost person read these verses, they would probably think this is an advertisement for one of Stephen King’s movies! John sees the 144,000 Jewish witnesses at the conclusion of their ministry with additional information. Here they are with the Lord, who has left His throne and is standing among them on Mount Sion (Zion). All the host of Heaven seems to be celebrating. There are harps being played, along with singing, heard from Heaven.
This was a new song as never sung before. The reason is that there has never been a conflict such as this before. This is a salute to the victory over the Beast, False Prophet, and Satan the Dragon, who is now chained for a 1,000 years in the Bottomless Pit.
“And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. (Revelation 20:1)
And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,” (Revelation 20:1-2)
The Beast and the False Prophet are cast into the Lake of Fire. No wonder there is music and singing from Heaven, as these witnesses have stolen many of Satan’s children; and, by the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they have now become the Sons of God (John 1:12) and given a heavenly home.
“And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.” (Revelation 19:20)
In Revelation 14:3, the word “beast” is the Greek “ZOON,” and should have been translated “living creatures.” The Greek word for wild beasts or animals is “THERION,” which does not appear here, as it does in Revelation 6:8.