"And I said to him, My lord, you know. And he said to me, These are those who
white robes in 6:11 refer to the martyrs' acceptance by the Lord. The "palm branches" in 7:9 signify victory. The feast of tabernacles in Leviticus 23:39-43 uses palm branches. The feast of tabernacles shows that God wants to live with His people temporarily on earth. This foreshadows the millennium.
2. Revelation 7:14a "And I said to him, My lord, you know. And he said to me, These are those who come out of the great tribulation." The "great tribulation" in 7:14 is not the three and a half years of great tribulation. The reasons are as follows: (1) The great tribulation, at the earliest, should begin with the trumpets of woes, and the first woe is declared at the fifth trumpet (8:13). Strictly speaking, the great tribulation begins with the seventh trumpet (11:15-18), but Revelation 7:9 implies a first rapture before the seventh seal. These have already come before the throne and have not passed through the tribulation of the seventh trumpet. (2) The great tribulation cannot begin before Satan is cast down to the earth. Verses 9 through 17 are before the opening of the seventh seal, while Satan's being cast down is after the sounding of the sixth trumpet (11:14-15). Before the context of the forty-two months (13:5), the man-child has already been raptured to the throne (12:5). Although I dare not say the man-child includes all those in mentioned 7:9, I do say that it must be a majority of these people. (3) The conclusion of the great tribulation is at the pouring out of the seventh bowl, which immediately ushers in the kingdom. At this time we do not see the heavenly temple, only the earthly temple as spoken of in Ezekiel (the temple on earth in the kingdom age). During the great tribulation there is no time for God's people to serve Him, but Revelation 7:15 clearly says that they serve God day and night. (4) In the great tribulation, there cannot be so many people receiving salvation, yet the "great multitude" in 7:9 has come out of the great tribulation according to 7:14. This shows the great tribulation in 7:14 must be different from the great tribulation that comes after the fifth trumpet. (5) Revelation 11:1 makes mention of those worshipping in the heavenly temple, yet except for those in Revelation 7:9, there are none who worship God in heaven. At this time, the great tribulation spoken of in Revelation has not yet begun, yet these have passed through the great tribulation already. There is no temple in the new heaven and new earth (21:22), for God and the Lamb are the