2. NUMBER SEALED FROM THE TRIBES OF ISRAEL Revelation 7:4-8 4 And I heard the number of them that were sealed, a hundred and forty and four thousand, sealed out of every tribe of the children of Israel:--John heard the number sealed, but it is not stated who did the speaking. The word "every" is used in the sense of "all"--the 144,000 being the sum total sealed from the twelve tribes. Israel and Jew are both used spiritually to mean Christians. (Romans 2:28-29; Galatians 6:16.) But here the term evidently refers to those who were to be sealed (saved) from fleshly Israel. Mention is made of the tribes and the number given and named. Besides, they are put in contrast with a great unnumbered multitude from "every nation," who must be the Gentiles. Evidently the 144,000 is a definite for an indefinite number, for it is not a reasonable supposition that there would be exactly 12,000 from each tribe, or that amount would be all that would be saved. It means that a large number of Abraham's descendants would be saved in the period of prosperity for the church that followed the sixth seal, but not all that would be saved from the Jews throughout the Christian dispensation. 5-8 Of the tribe of Judah were sealed twelve thousand;--See the text above for the other tribes. Judah was not the first-born son of Jacob, but may be mentioned here first because of his being the ancestor of Christ. The tribes are not always mentioned in the same order in the Old Testament. Joseph's descendants were divided into two tribes--Ephraim and Manasseh; hence, with Levi, the priestly tribe, there were thirteen in all. Dan is omitted from this list, supposedly because the tribe became idolatrous. Joseph is given in place of Ephraim. But since there is no regularity in the order in which the tribes are mentioned, it was only necessary to mention twelve, the original number of Jacob's sons, to indicate the whole nation of Israel.