Just who are the “holy ones”? In the first part of this series, we discussed the historical and future roles of the “holy ones.” This group is mentioned frequently in the Bible, both in the Old and New Testament. Disturbingly, they are shown to all be vanquished … killed. It seemed so disturbing that a people called “holy ones” would not be rescued or raptured.
We again pose this question: Just who are the “holy ones” that are being overcome in the previously quoted texts?
We identify them as the Tribulational Christians.
There is an ironclad case supporting this conclusion. At the outset, importantly, we must note that the concept of the Church was hidden at the time of Daniel and other OT prophets. The Messiah had not yet appeared, nor had He been rejected by the Jews.
The identity of the “holy ones” seems fairly clear, as it is referring to a future time when the “holy ones” would exist. This certainly applies to the Tribulational Christians. The “holy ones,” who are shown as vanquished and destroyed in Scripture, are Tribulation Saints. This means those that have come to recognize Jesus as the Messiah and Savior during the first half (42 months) of the seven-year Tribulation. As such, this all unfolds after the Rapture has taken place.
None of the aforementioned prophecies apply to the saints of the Church Age. Why? All members of the Church are taken up in the Rapture before the Tribulation. Post-Rapture saints have a much different timeline to salvation … this requiring that the saints be martyred in the Tribulation.
Many misinterpret these accounts as referring to the saints of the Church Age, and not the “holy ones” being destroyed. In so doing, they take this as evidence applying to Church-age Christians. They therefore believe that the Rapture occurs further along in the Tribulational period (or even later). As such, the saints are required to go through the Tribulation. This is an incorrect conclusion on several accounts.
Tracing the Trail of the Holy Ones
Where do the holy ones come from? The Bible does tell us in no uncertain terms.
John says that when Jesus Christ opened the fifth seal, “I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. They called out in a loud voice, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’ Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been” (Revelation 6:9-11).
Next, at the time of the sixth seal, Apostle John says: “After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands” (Revelation 7:9).
Who were they? The angel answered, “[…] These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14).
There we have our answer: The great multitude are Tribulational Christians … so-called “holy ones.” The “multitude” that is identified at the time of the sixth seal is, in fact, the fulfillment of the prophecy given at the time when the fifth seal was opened.
As well, we can deduce here that many Christians were martyred before the time of the fifth seal. Just as Daniel prophesied, they will all have been “destroyed” (martyred).
We now note another pivotal point: After the 6th seal, the terms “saints,” or “servants,” or “Christians,” or “God’s people,” or “multitudes,” are never mentioned again in the book of Revelation. Crucially, there is no indication of any more Christians having arrived in front of the heavenly altar during the Tribulation period. Why? Because all have been martyred, we maintain. We will present further Scriptural sources that provide confirmation of this view.
Why All Tribulational Christians Die
How can we know that all Tribulational Christians will die … as we assert to occur in the first half of the Tribulation? There are a number of proofs, both Scriptural and deductive. Given that our view—i.e., ALL Tribulational Christians being martyred—is such a critical factor in the Rapture debate, we want to firmly prove the veracity of this position. We next present a further number of proofs for this crucial view.
Consider that the Second Beast, as shown in Revelation 13, only offers two options—one or the other. Worship the image of the First Beast, or die. No other option is allowed. There is no room for exceptions. “[…] All who refused to worship the image [are] to be killed” (Revelation 13:15) (again, see Revelation 20:4). All means ALL … not some. The Bible also says this about these Tribulation saints: “They triumphed over him [the Dragon] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death” (Revelation 12:11).
What happens to those that do worship the image? Could they change their minds at some later date? Revelation 14:9-11 is clear. “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”
Once having made the election to worship the image of the Beast and to take the mark, there is no recourse nor recanting. To believe otherwise would be inconsistent with the character of God. Once He unleashes His wrath, it is too late to repent. After all, His wrath only comes after repeated entreaties and warnings. Then comes the point of no return … of no further grace.
Next, consider Revelation 13:8. “All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.” We are told here that ALL inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast. That can only mean that at this point, there are no remaining Tribulational Christians. They are gone from the face of the earth by the time of the 6th seal, this being near the midpoint of the 7-year Tribulation.
Further, consider Revelation 13:15. “The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.” Again, we note that the word “all” is employed. ALL who refuse to worship the beast will be killed. For that to take place, no Christians can remain. ALL are martyred. The Bible could not be clearer on this point.
To further support our case, we must also consider the elements of the Apocalypse—namely, the trumpet and bowl judgments. Why? Because these all unfold in the second half of the Tribulation. Since, as we argue, the martyrs are all eradicated by the time of the 6th seal, with none surviving after this point, there can be no hint of their presence during these trumpet and bowl judgments.
At the 5th trumpet blow (1st Woe, Revelation 9:1-6), this occurring perhaps midway into the second half of the Tribulation, “[…] out of the smoke locusts came down on the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. […] They were not allowed to kill [earthdwellers] but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes.”
Only those that did not have the seal of God were allowed to be tormented. The only group that has a seal placed upon them at this point is the 144,000 servants. As such, were Christians still on earth at the time of this judgment, they would be expressly allowed by God to be tortured. Any Christians on earth during this woe would be selected to face God’s wrath. Shown here is that God can and does exclude one group to be protected from His wrath (namely, the 144,000). Then, why would He choose not to do so with His children? “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for […] an egg, will give him a scorpion?” (Luke 11:11-12).
Thus, we can draw one of two conclusions: There are no Christians on earth at the time of the 1st Woe; or, if yes, then God expressly chooses to torment them. However, only the former perspective aligns with the character of God.
Not surprisingly, try as we might, we find no trace of any Christians being on earth during the time of the trumpet and bowl judgments … this during the early second half of the Tribulation. In the next and final part of this series, we will present further proofs of this being the case.
***
Wilfred J. Hahn is a global economist/strategist. Formerly a top-ranked global analyst, research director for a major Wall Street investment bank, and head of Canada’s largest global investment operation, his writings focus on the endtime roles of money, economics and globalization. He has been quoted around the world and his writings reproduced in numerous other publications and languages. His 2002 book The Endtime Money Snare: How to live free accurately anticipated and prepared its readers for the Global Financial Crisis. A following book, Global Financial Apocalypse Prophesied: Preserving true riches in an age of deception and trouble, looks further into the prophetic future.
Do you have questions or other perspectives? You can contact Wilfred at: staff@eternalvalue.com.