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The 144.000 Israelites of God

In the time of the end

 

The number “144.000” in the Bible is found only in the book of Revelation. Since this is a book of prophecy, complementing the book of Daniel, we are to know first when and how the book should be investigated, and to whom are those things written therein to benefit. Most Christians look at the Revelation as a book of mystery, because they fail the fact that, “Surely the Lord God would do nothing, but revealed his s e c r e t unto his servants the p r o p h e t s.” – Amos 3 : 7.  To Daniel the angel Gabriel said:

 

“But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” …..”Go thy way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. (In the time of the end) Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly, and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.” – Daniel 12 : 4, 9, 10. (In bracket is added)

 

We are now living in the time of the end, where many are running to and fro, and the knowledge have been increased so wonderfully. In this time, the book of Daniel should have been revealed unto God’s servants, the prophets, namely, Mrs. White as the author of the third’s angel message, and Bro. Houteff as the author of the message of Revelation 18 : 1. These two servants of the Lord should be found in the church of the Laodiceans, because this is the only church of God in the time of the end. And their messages should be united, that they may lighten the earth with their glory.  From both the servants of the Lord we read the following statements:

 

“And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.” — Revelation 18 : 1.

 

“Then I saw another mighty angel commissioned to descend to the earth, to unite his voice with the third angel, and give power and force to his message. Great power and glory were imparted to the angel, and as he descended, the earth was lightened with his glory.” – Early Writings, p. 277. 

 

The combination of those messages in this time of the end will be found in the so- called THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY. This is the Testimony of Jesus Christ in the time of the end, to meet its fulfillment in Revelation 12 : 17, and 19 : 10 margin. This is to identify us as members of the kingdom of heaven, because we keep the COMMANDMENTS OF GOD, and have THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST, which is THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY.

 

From the fact that: “In the Revelation all the books of the Bible meet and end. Here is the complement of the book of Daniel. The book that was sealed is not the Revelation, but that portion of the prophecy of Daniel relating to the last days.” – The Acts of the Apostles, p. 585.

 

It is clear that the book of Revelation would have been easily comprehended, following the revelation of the book of Daniel. Those things in the book of Revelation belong to the Laodiceans or the Seventh-Day Adventists. The interpretations of the prophecies of  Daniel and those of the book of Revelation, and even those prophetic books of the Old Testament prophets, which meet and end in the Revelation, will be stored in the SPIRIT OF PROPHECY. With the presence of the SPIRIT OF PROPHECY in our midst, many of us will be purified, made white, and tried. But those, who fail to make use of it, will be condemned to be the wicked. Read Daniel 12 : 10.

 

THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY, which is now lightening our churches, will sift us into two classes of people:  the five wise virgins on the one side, and the five foolish virgins or the wicked, on the other side. In other words, the wheat on the one side, and the tares on the other side. Those who will not avail themselves to the light of the SPIRIT OF PROPHECY which is now shining within the reach of all of us will at last be lost. Now come to our subject to be discussed:

They were not defiled with woman,

because they are virgins

John the Revelator said:

 

“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. ………. These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are v i r g i n s.  These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God. — Revelation 14 : 1, 4, 5.

 

We have to know that the second angel’s message of Revelation 14 : 8, proclaiming the fall of Babylon, met its fulfillment in the year 1844. Those churches, who failed to join with Mrs. White and her associates, were fallen to become the Babylon, who has constituted the defiled women, even up to this day. Whereas Mrs. White and her associates, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, then emerged to be the Laodicean church. Later, due to her refusal to the prophecies of Daniel and the Revelation, presented her by Bro. Victor T. Houteff in the message of the angel of Revelation 18 : 1, this Laodicean church again fell into division:  the wise virgins on the one side, and the foolish ones on the other side.

 

It is impossible for the 144.000 to come out from the “defiled women”, who represent those fallen churches, because they are “virgins”, from among the wise virgins in the church of the Laodiceans. That is why to every one of us as Laodiceans, the servant of the Lord said: “Let us strive with all the power that God has given us to be among the 144.000.” – The Review and Herald, March 9, 1905. In her further explanation, the servant of the Lord said:

 

“’These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth.’ These, having been translated from the earth, from among the living, are counted as ‘the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb.” – Revelation 15 : 2, 3; 14 : 1 – 5. ‘These are they which came out of great tribulation;’ they have passed through the time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation; they have endured the anguish of the time of Jacob’s trouble; they have stood without an intercessor through the final outpouring of God’s judgments. But they have been delivered, for they have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” – The Great Controversy, p. 649.

 

“These were redeemed from among men, being the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb”, that is, the 144.000 are to be only the first fruits of the harvest in the Laodicean church. They are yet to do the second harvest in the whole world, to gather the second fruits, which is to fulfill the following words:

 

“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. And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.” – Revelation 7 : 9, 10.

 

The Sealing Message of the 144.000

(Revelation 7 : 1 – 8)

The sealing message of the 144.000 was actually for the first time shown to Mrs. Ellen G. White in her first vision in 1844. This could be found in her book entitled: The Early Writings, beginning with page 13. Since it was only the beginning of the message that is the reason why it was prophetically shown to John in Patmos to be only an angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. Mrs. White got her vision in Portland, Maine, in the east of the United States of America.  Bro. Victor T. Houteff later said:

 

“In 1844, as all Seventh-Day Adventists know, Sister White was given a vision of the 144.000, signalizing the sealing angel’s starting his ascent from the east (Revelation 7 : 2 – 4) From then on he was ascending, and the saints were awaiting his arrival. Finally, in 1929, through the Sabbath School Lessons the Lord announced throughout the Seventh – day Adventist Denomination that the angel had arrived. Then the scroll began to unroll and the angel’s presence to be felt by many of those who were agonizing for truth and righteousness.” – The Shepherd’s Rod,  vol. 1,  p. 10  (Pocket edition).

 

As a messenger of God, Mrs. Ellen G. White seemed to be not only to represent the third angel’s message, but the message of the angel of Revelation 7 : 2 – 4  as well.  So when the angel of Revelation 18 : 1 came in 1929 to unite his voice with the third angel, and gave power and force to his message, then the earth was lightened with his glory.  That is, the whole of the sealing message of the 144.000, even the message of the third angel, have now being comprehended.

 

That until the message of the angel of Revelation 18 : 1 came in 1929; most of the prophecies dealing with the message of the 144.000 was not yet comprehended, and could be seen from the fact when Mrs. White said:

 

“It is not His will that they shall get into controversy over questions which will not help them spiritually, such as who is to compose the 144.000. This those who are the elects of God, will in a short time know without question.” – Selected Messages, Book 1, p. 174.

 

Let us now go to the whole story as presented by John the Revelator:

           

“And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the winds should not  blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea. Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our Lord in their foreheads.

 

“And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel. Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand. ………etc.” — Revelation 7 : 1 – 8.

 

In the book of Revelation, angel stands for several objects: the silent angel usually represents the leadership. Take for example, the angel of Laodicea, which represents the leadership of Seventh-Day Adventist Church, or the ministers of the gospel. Whereas the crying angel usually represents a message. The angels standing on the four corners of the earth, having the authority of God to hold the four winds from blowing on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. They were the true angels of God. But the four winds of the earth represented the wrath of the wicked. “Winds are a symbol of strife. The four winds of heaven striving upon the great sea represent the terrible scenes of conquest and revolution by which kingdoms have attained to power.” – “As the angels of God cease to hold in check the fierce w i n d s  of human passion, all the elements of strife will be let loose. The whole world will be involved in ruin more terrible than that which came upon Jerusalem of old.” – The Great Controversy, pp. 440, 614.

 

If the angels represent the messengers of God, the winds appear to represent the agencies of the Devil. All their missions and works will identify whom are they working for. We are yet to identify the earth, the sea, and the tree. The earth and the sea represent the whole world. That the tree representing the leadership, could be read from Bro. Houteff’s following  statements:

 

“That the ’green grass’ and the ‘trees’ are symbolical of two classes of living beings, is quickly seen from Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, in which he saw himself likened to a tree, and the common people of  his kingdom, to the tender grass of the field.” Dan. 4 : 10, 14, 15, 20, 22; Isaiah 40 : 6, 7. And Jesus, speaking of men in responsible positions, said that ‘every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.’ Matthew 3 : 10.” – The Seven Trumpets, p. 42.

 

The wind will be held by the angels of God from blowing against the 144.000., that the Jacob time of trouble may be delayed until the sealing of the servants of God be completed… And the angels themselves will be held from hurting the angel of Laodicea and her ministers, until the sealing process be accomplished in the Church.

The Time of Jacob Trouble

To talk of the 144.000 Jacobites and their deliverance to mount Sion in Palestine is not as yet complete without also deliberating their ordeal during the time of Jacob trouble. This is the antitypical time of trouble of the one in the past, when Jacob should have suffered in such an agony under the threat of his own brother Esau, before he could be delivered to return to his home town. This time of trouble has been prophesied by Daniel and Jeremiah as follows:

 

“And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people :  and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time : and at that time thy people shall be delivered, everyone that shall be found written in the book.” – Daniel 12 : 1. 

 

“Alas! For that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.” – Jeremiah 30 : 7.

 

“The children of thy people” to suffer in that time of trouble are the Jacobites, the 144.000 antitypical Israelites, who are to face a very great trouble from their own brothers and sisters, the Esauites, of the same Laodicean Church. However, since all of them have been sealed prior to the coming of the troublous time, then they shall be delivered, every one of them that shall be found written in the book of life. This is a time of trouble to occur in our own churches of Seventh-Day Adventists, prior to the deliverance of the 144.000 to go to stand with the Lamb on the mount Sion in Palestine. Read Rev. 14 : 1. In regard to the deliverance Mrs. White said:  

 

“It was at midnight that God chose to deliver His people. As the wicked were mocking around them, suddenly the sun appeared, shining in his strength, and the moon stood still. The wicked looked upon the scene with amazement, while the saints beheld with solemn joy the tokens of their deliverance. Signs and wonders followed in quick succession.” – Early Writings, p. 285. 

 

Then in Palestine, prior to their being commissioned to go to the entire world to preach the Sabbath more fully, they would be called by a new name. As in the past when Jacob got his name changed to Israel, after passing his troublous time, in like manner will the 144.000 Israelites get their name changed to a new name. The servant of the Lord said:

 

“And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord shall name.” – Isaiah 62 : 2.

  The 144.000 Israelites of God, in the time of the end

The 144.000 Israelites prophesied in the book of Revelation, referred to the living saints, whereas the twelve tribes mentioned in Revelation 7 : 4 – 8 are no more alive now. They must come out of the church of the Laodiceans, because this is the last Church of God, consisted of two classes of people in the time of the end. The servants of the Lord gave us their identities as follows: 

 

“…… These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are v i r g i n s.” — Rev. 14 : 4.

 

”These, having been translated from the earth, from among the living, are counted as ‘the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb.” – Revelation 15 : 2, 3;  14 : 1 – 5. ‘These are they which came out of great tribulation ;’ they have passed through the time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation; they have endured the anguish of the time of Jacob’s trouble; they have stood without an intercessor through the final outpouring of God’s judgments. But they have been delivered, for they have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” – The Great Controversy, p. 649.

 

It is now clear, that the twelve tribes Israelites inevitably have a typical meaning. They are the type, and the Seventh-Day Adventists are the antitype. The 144.000 are to be the antitypical Israelites, who are to be sealed from among the Seventh-Day Adventists in the time of the end. 

 

The sealing of the 144.000 and the slaughtering of the wicked

In the same prophecy of Ezekiel 9

 

Ezekiel 9

“He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying: Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar. And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which has the writer’s inkhorn by his side; And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.

And he said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city. And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! Wilt thou destroy all the residue of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon Jerusalem? Then said he unto me, the iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD hath forsaken the earth, and the LORD seeth not. And as for me also, mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way upon their head. And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me.” – Ezekiel  9 : 1 – 11.

 

Prophet Ezekiel came from the two tribe’s kingdom of Judah. The prophetic words above were shown to him in vision when he and Jehoiachin, the king, for more than five years have been made captive by the king of Babylon. The two tribe’s kingdom of Juda fell to the king of Babylon in 587 BC. Read Ezekiel 1 : 1 – 3. The ten tribes kingdom of Israel long before have been scattered unto the entire world ever since 721 BC. So all the prophecies of Ezekiel could no more  be applied backward to the twelve tribes kingdoms, but forward to foretell the destiny of the remnant of Israel, which is the antitypical house of Israel and Juda, the Seventh-Day Adventists in this time of the end. In this sense Mrs. White said:

 

“This s e a l i n g of the servants of God is the s a m e that was shown to Ezekiel in vision. (Ezekiel 9). John also had been a witness of this most startling revelation. (Revelation 7 : 4).” – Testimonies to Ministers, p. 445. (In brackets is added).

 

“Especially in the closing work for the church, in the sealing time of the 144.000, who are to stand without fault before the throne of God, will they feel most deeply the wrongs of God’s professed people. This is forcibly set forth by the prophet’s illustration of the last work under the figure of the men each having he slaughter weapon in his hand. One man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side. “And the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in  the  midst thereof.” – 3 Testimonies for the Church, p. 266.

 

“The class who do not feel grieved over their own spiritual declension, nor mourn over the sins of others, will be left without the seal of God. The Lord commissions His messengers, the  men with slaughtering  weapons in their hands : “Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eyes spare,  neither have ye pity : slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women : but come not near any man upon whom is the mark ; and begin at My sanctuary.” Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.”

 

“Here we see that the church — the Lord’s sanctuary — was the first to feel the stroke of the wrath of God. The ancient men, those to whom God had given great light and who had stood as guardians of the spiritual interests of the people, had betrayed their trust ………………      These dumb dogs that would not bark are the ones who feel the just vengeance of an offended God. Men, maidens, and little children all perish together.” — 5 Testimonies, p. 211.

 

“The mark of deliverance has been set upon those ‘that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done.’ Now the angel of death goeth forth, represented in Ezekiel’s vision by the men with the slaughtering weapons, to whom the command is given : ‘Slay utterly old and young, both maids and little children, and women : but come not near any man upon whom is the  mark; and begin at My sanctuary. Says the prophet: ‘They began at the ancient men which were before the house.’ Ezekiel 9 : 1 – 6. The work of destruction begins among those who have professed to be the spiritual guardians of the people. The false watchmen are the first to fall. There are none to pity or to spare. Men, women, maidens, and little children perish together.” –The Great Controversy, p. 656.

 

When the angel of Revelation 18 : 1 (the message of the Shepherd’s Rod) has successfully united his voice with the third angel of Rev. 14 : 6 – 9 (the Spirit of Prophecy), to become THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY of Revelation 19 : 10 margin, for to lightening the earth with its glory, there would be no more excuse for anyone of us to fail its light, and say, I do not understand. The servant of the Lord has warned:

 

“The great truths necessary for salvation are made clear as the noonday, and none will mistake and lose their way except those who follow their own judgment instead of the plainly revealed will of God.” – 5 Testimonies for the Church, p. 331.

Conclusion:

 

Ezekiel chapter 9 is indeed a prophecy which foretold our destiny as a people in this time of the end. Through Mrs. Ellen G. White as messenger of the third angel, and Bro. Houteff as messenger of the fourth angel, the prophetic words of mystery have been revealed.

 

From Ezekiel 9 : 8, and 9, the prophet said: “And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord God! Wilt thou destroy all the residue of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon Jerusalem? Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness : for they say, the Lord hath forsaken the earth, and the Lord seeth it not.”

 

Here again is proven, that the house of Israel and Judah is the residue of Israel. They are not the twelve tribes of Israel and Judah of old, but the remnant or residue of Israel in which this prophecy will meet its fulfillment in the time of the end. The residue of Israel is the antitypical Israel of twelve tribes, in this time of the end. Bro. Houteff said:

 

“All that are found members of the church at the fulfillment of Ezekiel 9 will either receive the seal and be of the 144.000, or else be left without and fall under the slaughter weapons of the five men. Only those who sigh and cry for all the abominations in the church will escape from the destruction.” – The Symbolic Code, vol. 1, no. 11, 12, p. 9.

 

The Seal of the 144.000 is not the Sabbath Seal

 

“Not one of u s will ever receive the seal of God while our characters have one spot or stain upon it. It is left with u s to remedy the defects in our characters to cleanse the soul temple of every defilement. Then the latter rain will fall upon us as the early rain fell upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost.” – Testimony Treasures, vol. 2, p. 69.

 

Mrs. White herself was a staunch Sabbath keeper, because she is the reformer of the Sabbath doctrine since the beginning. From the above statements it would be understood, that there is yet another seal of God to be presented to the Sabbath keepers, whose characters have been cleansed of any spot or stain. That is why in another statement, she said:

 

“I was shown that merely observing the Sabbath, and praying morning and evening, are not positive evidences that we are Christians. These outward forms may all be strictly observed, and yet true godliness be lacking” – Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, p. 305.

 

Let us see further the differences of those two seals here below:

A. The seal of the 144.000

1.      This seal was brought by the angel raised in the east – Rev. 7 : 2. It represents Mrs. White, who received the beginning of the message in her first vision in 1844. Prior to the time the seal was never known.
2.     The message concerning the 144.000 to come out of the house of Israel and Judah in the time of the end began to be revealed since 1929, by Bro. Houteff as the last messenger of truth.  This is to signify the angel that raised from the east (Portland, Maine) with the seal of the 144.000 in 1844, has arrived in the west (Los Angeles, California) in 1929.  And thus is the sealing time of the message began in 1929.  And we are now in the sealing time of the 144.000, in the last work for the church of Laodicea.   
3.     The sealing time of the 144.000 would soon terminate when the prophecy of Ezekiel 9 have met its fulfillment in the purification of the church. That is, when the 144.000 would have been sealed, and all the wicked in the church have been utterly slaughtered.
4.     The seal of the 144.000 will be bestowed to only the Sabbath keepers, as the holders of the Sabbath seal, who sigh and cry for all the abominations done in the church.
5.      The seal of the 144.000 is the mark of deliverance, to be put on the foreheads of those 144.000, that they may stand their ordeal during the time of Jacob trouble, and then escape the wrath of God during the purification of the church.
6.      The sealing time of the 144.000 will be very short. Mrs. White said: “The sealing time is very short, and will soon be over. Now is the time, while the four angels are holding the four winds, to make our calling and election sure.” – Early Writings, p. 58.

 

B.  The Sabbath Seal

 

1.      The emergence of Seventh – day Adventist church in 1844 is to meet the fulfillment of the third angel’s message of Revelation 14. Yet the coming of the third angel did not take with him the seal of the Sabbath, because the Sabbath seal is found in the fourth commandment of the Law. Mrs. White said: “The seal of God’s law is found in the fourth commandment. This only, of all the ten, brings to view both the name and the title of the Lawgiver. It declares Him to be the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and thus shows His claim of reverence and worship above all others. …….. When the Sabbath was changed by the papal power, the seal was taken from the Law.” – The Great Controversy,  p. 452.
2.     Sealing time of the Sabbath has been commenced in the time of Adam and Eve, because ever since that time the fourth commandment of the Law was for the first time introduced to them.
3.      As long as the fourth commandment of the Law exists, the function of the Sabbath seal will never end.
4.     The Sabbath seal belongs to only those who keep the Sabbath observance according to the rules stipulated in the SPIRIT OF PROPHECY.
5.      From historical facts, the Sabbath seal was never to be the mark of deliverance, neither in the Old Testament era, nor in the new.
6.      The sealing time of the Sabbath seal is never end.

Pleadings from the servant of the Lord,

Mrs. Ellen G. White

 

 

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