Revelation 7:4

The specific references to Israel and the names of the 12 Israelite tribes strongly suggest that the nation of Israel is in view rather than the church. [Note: For a discussion of the accuracy of the number 144,000, see Christopher R. Smith, "The Tribes of Revelation 7 and the Literary Competence of John the Seer," Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 38:2 (June 1995):213-18.] Most posttribulationists and amillennialists believe the 144,000 are members of "spiritual Israel," a title of theirs for the church. [Note: E.g., Mounce, p. 168; Morris, p. 175; Beasley-Murray, p. 140; Ladd, p. 114-16; Swete, p. 99; and Beale, p. 413.] Gundry called them "’orthodox’ [though unconverted] Jews who will resist the seduction of the Antichrist." [Note: Gundry, p. 82.] He believed God will supernaturally keep them from dying during the Tribulation. He also believed they will accept Jesus Christ when He returns at the Second Coming, and they will populate the millennial kingdom. The problem with this view is that these witnesses appear to be believers in Jesus Christ. Many interpreters take the number 144,000 as symbolic of all God’s servants in the Tribulation. [Note: E.g., Johnson, pp. 463 and 481; and Ladd, p. 117.]

"Though admittedly ingenious, the case for symbolism is exegetically weak. The principal reason for the view is a predisposition to make the 144,000 into a group representative of the church with which no possible numerical connection exists. No justification can be found for understanding the simple statement of fact in Revelation 7:4 as a figure of speech. It is a definite number in contrast with the indefinite number of Revelation 7:9. If it is taken symbolically, no number in the book can be taken literally." [Note: Thomas, Revelation 1-7, p. 474.]