1And after these things I saw four messengers, standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind may not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree; 2and I saw another messenger going up from the rising of the sun, having a seal of the living God, and he cried with a great voice to the four messengers, to whom it was given to injure the land and the sea, saying, 3“Do not injure the land, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we may seal the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

4And I heard the number of those sealed—one hundred forty-four thousand, having been sealed out of every tribe of the sons of Israel:

5of 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; 6of 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; 7of 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; 8of 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.

9After these things I saw, and behold, a great multitude, which no one was able to number, out of all nations, and tribes, and peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne, and before the Lamb, having been clothed [in] white robes, and palms in their hands, 10and crying with a great voice, saying, “Salvation to our God, the [One] sitting on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11And all the messengers stood around the throne, and the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces and worshiped God, 12saying, “Amen! The blessing, and the glory, and the wisdom, and the thanksgiving, and the honor, and the power, and the strength, [are] to our God through the ages of the ages! Amen!”

13And one of the elders answered, saying to me, “These having been clothed with the white robes, who are they, and from where have they come?” 14And I have said to him, “Lord, you have known”; and he said to me, “These are those who are coming out of the Great Tribulation, and they washed their robes, and they made their robes white in the blood of the Lamb; 15because of this they are before the throne of God, and they do service to Him day and night in His temple, and He who is sitting on the throne will dwell over them; 16they will not hunger anymore, nor may the sun fall on them, nor any heat, 17because the Lamb that [is] in the midst of the throne will feed them, and will lead them to living fountains of waters, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”