They Have Only Palm Branches, Not Crowns

[Musicmaster]

Did you all notice this:

Revelation 7:9, 13-15
9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; ...
13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.

Only those of the Church and the OT saints have crowns of gold, not those who turn to Christ after the start of the Tribulation, and die therein.

 

[Major]

Did you all notice this:

Revelation 7:9, 13-15
9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; ...
13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.

Only those of the Church and the OT saints have crowns of gold, not those who turn to Christ after the start of the Tribulation, and die therein.

All true!

 

[LearningToLetGo]

What's the significance of gold crowns vs palm branches?

 

[crossnote]

If He was my Savior only...
but not my provider or protector..i.e., without His grace..
It would be impossible to follow Him.

 

[Musicmaster]

What's the significance of gold crowns vs palm branches?

Uhhhh... If you're asking from the perspective of eternity, the difference is that, the Church, already in Heaven, wearing crowns, that speaks of reward for faithfulness in the face of all the worldliness. Those who go through the Tribulation are those who were in rejection of Christ before the Tribulation, and therefore receive only palm branches as a signifying acquiescence and acknowledgment of Christ as King. In other words, in the Tribulation, they turned to Him after the massive onslaught of His wrath, rather than to have accepted Him before the revealed wrath of the Lord upon the whole earth.

Therein lies the key to the distinction between the Church and the saints who are standing before the Throne in Revelation 7.

Many people have a problem with the idea that the Tribulation saints are not a part of the Church. Where it's true that the Church is comprised of saints, the converse isn't true in all cases.

MM

 

[LearningToLetGo]

Uhhhh... If you're asking from the perspective of eternity, the difference is that, the Church, already in Heaven, wearing crowns, that speaks of reward for faithfulness in the face of all the worldliness. Those who go through the Tribulation are those who were in rejection of Christ before the Tribulation, and therefore receive only palm branches as a signifying acquiescence and acknowledgment of Christ as King.

I see. Gold crowns signify accepting Jesus before the tribulation and palm branches afterwards. Is there significance beyond this?

 

[Musicmaster]

I see. Gold crowns signify accepting Jesus before the tribulation and palm branches afterwards. Is there significance beyond this?

The significance seems to be rooted mostly in the distinction with the absence of crowns for those who wait until after the start of the Tribulation to seek salvation from He who is revealed IN the Tribulation. The powerful implications that many will see in the disappearance of the Church from the earth will be a powerful validation to many, coupled with the evangelistic work of the 144,000. Having waited until after seems to indicate to us God's thinking that those who wait until after the start of the Revelation of Christ Jesus, that leads us to a vision of what is beyond, as you asked.

Although persecution has been a characteristic of earthly life before the Lord begins pouring out His wrath upon the earth, those who wait until after experiencing the wrath of the Lord after the start of the Tribulation will receive less reward because of their lack of faith before. The conversion rate after the start of the tribulation will be vastly more in such a short period of time than ever seen on this earth before. This differentiation in reward seems to be something that will remain for eternity. Being faithful here and now, in being steadfast in one's faith and proclamation of Christ Jesus, is pivotal in receiving a crown.

The scriptures reveal this to us:

Revelation 7:9-10, 15-17
9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
10 And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. ...
15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.
16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.
17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

Those who come to salvation after the start of the Tribulation are those who have tears in their eyes. Why? Well, their having been set apart from those of the Church, as is evidenced in the distinction in reward and function in eternity, seems to be their realization and remorse for having waited so long to embrace He who sits on the Throne before them... I'm only speculating here, but that seems to fit the imagery set before us in the context. It's doesn't say that those in the Church have teas to be wiped from our eyes, but only those who do not embrace Christ until after experiencing His wrath, their having been set apart is a striking reminder to us to be even more vigilant in our sharing the Gospel, AND to be more clear in our understanding of Eschatology. People need to know and understand that Tribulation saints will indeed be rewarded differently from those who embrace Christ right now. This is above and beyond the warnings for those who go to their graves in rejection of Christ.

The Lord is praised, always, and it's important for others to understand the importance of being serious about their faith right now!

MM

 

[LearningToLetGo]

People need to know and understand that Tribulation saints will indeed be rewarded differently from those who embrace Christ right now.

Thank you for the detailed explanation.