Matthew 24:31 the delegation of the 144,000

For many interpreters, the period after the Lord’s return for Israel is a blind spot. They believe that at the end of the great tribulation the thousand years will begin and the Kingdom of Christ will be established over the entire earth. But it is precisely from a passage like Matthew 24 that we learn that this is not the case.

31 And He will send His messengers with a great sound of a trumpet…

angels or messengers?
Immediately after the great tribulation (:29) the Lord appears on the Mount of Olives and He comes for that part of His people that is left, the remnant (Zech.13:8-9). Then the Lord will send out messengers. Almost all common translations translate aggelos as angels, which quickly brings to mind spiritual beings. Only the Naardense Bible and some English translations like the Young’s Literal Translation (YLT) and the Concordant Literal Version (CLV) have messengers. The Greek aggelos means messenger. These may be angels (Matt. 1:20), but people of flesh and blood are also called aggelos (James 2:25).

messengers from the heavens
Later in Matthew 24:36 the word appears again and here the messengers are described in more detail. They are messengers from the heavens. In this verse it is about what we would call angels, spiritual beings and heavenly messengers.

In Matthew 24:31 it does not say who those messengers are, but by including the passage in Revelation that we have looked at so many times now, it becomes clear who they are. The time of sending out the messengers is just after the end of the great tribulation (Matt.24:29), which is presented in Revelation as the sixth seal (Rev.6:12-13).

Revelation 7
1 And after this I saw four messengers, standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that no wind should blow on the earth, or on the sea, or on any tree.
2 And I saw another messenger, (…) and he cried with a loud voice…
3 And he saith, Hurt not the land, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we seal the bondmen of our God in their foreheads.
4 And I hear the number of those who are sealed, an hundred and forty-four thousand who are sealed…

when?
It is after the opening of the sixth seal that it is said: and after this.. But it is before the opening of the seventh seal, which describes a pause or interlude (8:10). Immediately after this interruption, the seven trumpets are spoken of (8:2), which symbolize the judgments that will come upon the world of nations in the day of wrath (6:17). During this time before the trumpets are blown, the selection and sealing of the 144,000 takes place.

who?
Now that we have traced the timing of their selection, it is good to learn more about the identity of the 144,000, as we do not find much information about it in Matthew 24. The description in Revelation complements this.

Revelation 7
4 And I heard the number of those who were sealed, an hundred and forty-four thousand who were sealed, out of every tribe of the sons of Israel.
5 Of the tribe of Judah twelve thousand, which were sealed; of the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand; of the tribe of Gad twelve thousand;
6 of the tribe of Asher twelve thousand; of the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand; of the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand;
7 of the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand; of the tribe of Levi twelve thousand; of the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand;
8 of the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand; of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand; of the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand, which were sealed.

144,000
Twelve thousand men, virgins chosen from the twelve tribes of Israel (Rev.14:4), are sealed. In the first verses of Revelation 7, in addition to the time of the sealing, we also find the reason for the sealing of the 144,000.

Revelation 7
1 And after this I saw four messengers, standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that no wind should blow on the earth, or on the sea, or on any tree.
2 And I saw another messenger, (…) and he cried with a loud voice…
3 And he saith, Hurt not the land, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we seal the bondmen of our God in their foreheads.
4 And I hear the number of those who are sealed, an hundred and forty-four thousand who are sealed…

loud trumpet blast
The 144,000 messengers, whom Jesus says will be sent out with a great sound of trumpet, will be sent out into the earth. It is safe in Israel, but outside it is very unsafe, because there the disasters and judgments of the seven trumpets will strike the world. The loud trumpet sound in Matthew 24:31 refers to these seven trumpets. The 144,000 are sealed to protect them from these judgments.

The trumpet was blown on many occasions, but among others as a sign of battle (Num.10:9; 1 Cor.14:8), at the coming of the King (1 Kings 1:34), when the King is victorious (Ps.47:5), when the day of YAHWEH comes (Joël 2:1), etc. It is always a representation of the speaking of the Lord (Ex.19:16,19)

In this interlude in which the 144,000 are selected, the voice of the messenger sounds, with the call not to harm the land and the sea and the trees until these messengers are sealed in their foreheads. Only when they are sealed and protected from the trials that will strike the earth, will they be sent out.