The 144,000 (Overcoming Sin)

Notes from Stephen Bohr’s “The Genesis Code” #26 Genesis & The 144,000

There are 12 Gates into the new Jerusalem, each gate bearing a name of one of the children of Israel. The gates are guarded with Angels who are “checking ID”

Revelation 21:10-13 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal. 12 Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: 13 three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west.

The characteristics of those who are allowed to enter into the gates:

Revelation 22:14 Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.

The names of the 12 Gates and the identity of the 144,000: those who are alive through the tribulation at the very end of time. These are those who are sealed in protection from the last plagues on the earth.

Revelation 7:1-8 After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree. 2 Then 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 granted to harm the earth and the sea, 3 saying, “Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” 4 And I heard the number of those who were sealed. One hundred and forty-four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel were sealed:
5 of the tribe of Judah twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Gad twelve thousand were sealed;
6 of the tribe of Asher twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand were sealed;
7 of the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Levi twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand were sealed;
8 of the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand were sealed;
of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand were sealed;
. of the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand were sealed.

The very end of the previous chapter asks the question “For the great day of his wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” The answer is what chapter 17 starts off with: those who have been sealed will be able to stand:

Revelation 6:15-17 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, 16 and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”

Literal Israel or figurative Israel? Israelites are always those who are defined as having the character of Abraham, not the genetics of Abraham:

Galatians 3:26-29 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Romans 2:28-29 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; 29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.

Romans 9:6-8 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, 7 nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, “In Isaac your seed shall be called.” 8 That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed.

Why are Jacob’s sons posted onto the gates of the city if the requirement to enter the city is to keep the commandments? Story of Joseph and Jacob’s sons: Jacob’s sons filled with covetousness, they all collaborate to live a lie to their father for years, murderers, hating their brother, incestuous, Ruben sleeping with his father’s wife, merciless towards Joseph, Judah having the relationships with his daughter-in-law thinking that she is a prostitute.

Murderers and thieves:

Genesis 34:25-29 Now it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came boldly upon the city and killed all the males. 27 The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and plundered the city, because their sister had been defiled. 28 They took their sheep, their oxen, and their donkeys, what was in the city and what was in the field, 29 and all their wealth. All their little ones and their wives they took captive; and they plundered even all that was in the houses.

— Those who are inside the city just as the sons of Jacob are just as much sinners at least in one stage of their life as those outside the city.

The only difference is that those inside the city have overcome sin (the 10 Commandments), those outside have not:

Revelation 21:7-8 He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. 8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

Revelation 22:14-15 Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. 15 But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.

Again and again, when God is speaking to His churches He constantly uses the theme of overcoming:

Revelation 2:7 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.”’

Revelation 2:11 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.”’

Revelation 2:17 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”’

Revelation 2:26 And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations

Revelation 3:5 He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

Revelation 3:12 He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.

Revelation 3:21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

The 144,000 will be victorious over the endtime trials and problems of the very last days:

Revelation 15:2 And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God.

Jacob talks prophetically to those in the “last days.” His sons are not literally alive in the last days of this world, but those who have similar characters will reap similar results to those prophesied here:

Genesis 49:1-2 And Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days: “ Gather together and hear, you sons of Jacob, And listen to Israel your father.

12 personality profiles:

Reuben: unstable, procrastinators
Simeon and Levi: angry and cruel
Judah: a lion
Zebulun: dwell by the sea
Issachar: a strong donkey laying down between two burdens
Dan: judgmental and backbiting like a poisonous snake
Gad: trampled but triumphant
Naphtali: charismatic
Joseph: Productive and blessing others despite hardship
Benjamin: a ravenous wolf

The sons of Jacob are an inspiration to us. How much more vile could you become than sleeping with your father’s mother? To sleep it with your daughter-in-law? To want to kill your own brother? To be so bloodthirsty you want to kill an entire town of people because of one person’s actions? These are the brothers who have their names permanently inscribed on the gates of the New Jerusalem. No matter how vile we are initially, if we overcome we are able to enter.  All of these brothers overcame their defects, but their defects were very severe.

Dan and Ephraim are missing from the names on the gates listed in Revelation 7:

Those who have the characteristics of Dan will not enter the holy city:

Genesis 49:17 Dan shall be a serpent by the way, A viper by the path, That bites the horse’s heels So that its rider shall fall backward.

Hosea 4:17 Ephraim is joined to idols, Let him alone.

Different versions of the Bible use either “do his commandments” or “wash their robes:”

Revelation 22:14 Blessed are those who do His commandments,[a] that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.
-(Footnotes: 1.NU-Text reads wash their robes.)

This phrase used elsewhere:

Revelation 7:14 And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Revelation 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

Accepting white robes both justifies us from past sins and sanctifies us from future sins.

The English translation here is inaccurate, it does not describe a state of righteousness and the state of filthyness. The original Greek means “who acts unjust, let him continue to act unjust, etc. Let those who are holy continue to act holy”

Revelation 22:11 He who is unjust, let him be(act) unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be(act) filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be(act) righteous still; he who is holy, let him be(act) holy still.”

Joseph’s brothers all were overcomers as described later in the book of Genesis when tested by Joseph. They were all overcomers if their names are listed on the gates of the city.

Condition of those entering the city:

Isaiah 26:1-3 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:
We have a strong city; God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks.
2 Open the gates,
That the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in.
3 You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You,
. Because he trusts in You.

Colossians 3:1-2 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Psalm 15
1 LORD, who may abide in Your tabernacle?
Who may dwell in Your holy hill?
2 He who walks uprightly,
And works righteousness,
And speaks the truth in his heart;
3 He who does not backbite with his tongue,
Nor does evil to his neighbor,
Nor does he take up a reproach against his friend;
4 In whose eyes a vile person is despised,
But he honors those who fear the LORD;
He who swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5 He who does not put out his money at usury,
Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things shall never be moved.

Character of those inside the city:

Isaiah 60:18 Violence shall no longer be heard in your land,
Neither wasting nor destruction within your borders;
But you shall call your walls Salvation,
And your gates Praise.

Revelation 19:1-2 After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! 2 For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.”

Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.

Hebrews 12:14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:

Pearls are formed through an irritation. If we use those irritations to gain strength we will enter the gates.

Revelation 21:21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

Acts 14:22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.”

Must make everything secondary:

1 John 3:2-3 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

Ephesians 5:25-27 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, 27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.

Genesis 5:24 And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.

Characteristic of Enoch, what the walking with God means:

Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

Romans 8:7-8 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.