Seal of God

Seal of God. The expression "the seal of God" occurs two times in Revelation (7:2; 9:4) with regard to the end-time sealing of the faithful.

The word "seal" (sphragis) in the Bible is used a couple of times with reference to a literal seal (Exod 35:22; 1 Kgs 20:8, LXX). In all other instances, the term is used figuratively with different meanings (Song 8:6; Hag 2:23; Rom 4:11; 1 Cor 9:2).

In biblical times, seals were used for different purposes, of which the basic was ownership. A seal impression on an object pointed to the owner. In the NT, to have the seal of God means to belong to God. Paul defines its meaning as God "knows those who are His" (2 Tim 2:19). Paul also explains that when a person gives his or her life to Christ, the Holy Spirit seals that person for the day of redemption (Eph 1:13-14). The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit is the sign of belonging to God as His own possession (Eph 4:30).

In Revelation, the seal of God has a twofold function. First, it denotes the final ratification of God's end-time people (7:1-3). The seal of God with the name of God on the forehead distinguishes the faithful from those who receive the mark of the beast on their right hands and foreheads (13:17; 14:1). In such a way, the sealed will be able to stand on the day of wrath (6:17) and will be protected from harm (7:2-3; cf. 9:4), including the effects of the seven last plagues (14:1). The OT backdrop of the end-time meaning of the sealing are the blood mark on the doorposts designed to protect Israelites from the Exodus plagues (Exod 12:21-23) and Ezekiel's vision describing the faithful with the mark of protection during the judgment befalling Jerusalem (Ezek 9:1-11).

Revelation shows that the test of faithfulness in the final crisis will be the keeping of God's commandments (Rev 14:12). The book also shows that the fourth commandment will particularly become the test of obedience; this explains why in the message of the first angel, the inhabitants of the earth are called to "worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water," which is a direct quotation from the fourth commandment of the Decalogue (14:7). As the Sabbath was the sign of God's people in biblical times (Exod 31:12-17; Ezek 20:20), so it will be the sign of loyalty to God at the very end crisis. The Bible shows that the sealing of God's people is not limited to the time of the end. The question is whether the Bible describes two different seals that are received in different times in history—the first that is received at the conversion, as distinguished from the apocalyptic seal to protect the faithful from the impending destruction of the seven last plagues—or the same seal by which the faithful are sealed for salvation and which will in the final crisis be also a sign of protection. Whichever position one takes, Revelation focuses on the meaning of the seal of God in the end-time setting. The sealing with the seal of God at the conversion reaches a new significance for the faithful at the time of the end. The end-time sealing should be understood as the closing of the sealing process with the conclusion of the preaching of the gospel, when the case of every person will be decided.