THE DESRCIPTION OF THE MULTITUDE

Introduction

In chapter 6 we witnessed God's vindication of himself by means of judgment. Force is his last argument with wicked and gain-saying men. In chapter 7:1-8 we witnessed God's discrimination in the midst of judgment. Whereas judgment is to fall universally upon mankind, he seals one company to preserve God's salvation in the midst of judgment. Here is a picture of the marvelous grace of God and his power to save.

The Description of the Multitude

 "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."

 

 

The Number: It was so great that John was unable to number them. He writes that no man was able to number them. This most certainly is the language of appearance.

The Nationality: This group comes from every nation, kindred and people, and tongue. Undoubtedly this covers all of the Gentile nations. But it does not exclude Israelites. Cf. Rev. 14:6.

The Nature: They are clothed in white robes. These robes have been made white in the blood of the Lamb (14). They are a saved multitude. This probably means exactly what Rev. 6:9-11 means, in fact the two refer to the same thing.

The Place: They are standing before the throne and before the Lamb. This does mean that they have been taken to heaven.

The Praise: They sing a song of praise to God, "Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb."

The Palms: The palms in their hands are symbolic of peace and joy. It is the peace and joy they are experiencing since they have gone through the great tribulation.