Revelation 7 Devotional

Sealed Before the Storm

“For the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd. ‘He will lead them to springs of living water,’ and ‘God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’””Revelation 7:17 (BSB)

Revelation 6 ended with a question: on the great day of wrath, who is able to stand (6:17)? Chapter 7 answers it. Before the harmful winds are released, an angel holds them back until God's servants are sealed on their foreheads (7:1-3). John hears the number of the sealed, 144,000 from the tribes of Israel (7:4-8). Then he looks and sees a multitude no one can count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and the Lamb (7:9).

These have come through the great tribulation, their robes washed white by the Lamb's blood (7:14). They did not avoid suffering, but they were kept through it, and now they stand. They will never hunger or thirst again; the Lamb at the throne's center will shepherd them and guide them to living water, and God will dry every tear (7:16-17). Your hope in hard days is not that you will escape every trial, but that God marks his own and brings them home.

To think about: What sorrow are you carrying that you most long for God to wipe away, and how does this promise shape the way you carry it now?