After this I saw four messengers standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth so that no wind could blow on the land or the sea or against any tree. And I saw another messenger coming up from where the sun rises, carrying the seal of the living God, and he shouted in a loud voice to the four messengers who had been allowed to damage the land and the sea: “Do not damage the land or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

And I heard the number of those who were sealed: a hundred and forty-four thousand, sealed out of every tribe of the sons of Israel.

From the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand sealed; from Reuben, twelve thousand; from Gad, twelve thousand; from Asher, twelve thousand; from Naphtali, twelve thousand; from Manasseh, twelve thousand; from Simeon, twelve thousand; from Levi, twelve thousand; from Issachar, twelve thousand; from Zebulun, twelve thousand; from Joseph, twelve thousand; from Benjamin, twelve thousand sealed.

After this I looked, and there was a crowd so large that nobody could count it, out of every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were dressed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and they shouted in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

And all the messengers were standing around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell face down in front of the throne and bowed to God, saying:

“Amen. The blessing and the glory and the wisdom and the thanks and the honour and the power and the strength belong to our God into the ages. Amen.”

Then one of the elders spoke up and said to me, “These people dressed in white robes — who are they, and where did they come from?” And I said to him, “My lord, you know.” And he said to me:

“These are the ones coming out of the great pressure. They washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. That is why they are in front of God’s throne, serving him day and night in his temple, and the one sitting on the throne will spread his shelter over them. They will not be hungry any more, or thirsty any more; the sun will not beat down on them, or any scorching heat, because the Lamb at the centre of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”