I know that this may have been treated before but I still need your valuable suggestions.
Rev 7:4 says "And I heard the number of those who were sealed, a hundred and forty-four thousand, sealed out of every tribe of the sons of Israel", veses 5 to 8 provides additional details that 12,000 were selected from the 12 tribes of Israel. The book of Numbers 1: 20-42 lists the following as the 12 tribes of natural Israel: Reu´ben, Sim´e·on, Gad, Judah, Is´sa·char, Zeb´u·lun, E´phra·im, Ma·nas´seh, Benjamin, Dan, Ash´er and Naph´ta·li. However, Rev 7:5-8 did not list the tribes of Ephraim and Dan but instead listed 10 approved tribes with 2 non approved tribes of Levi and Joseph. Does anyone know why the tribes of Ephraim and Dan was left out and replaced with Levi and Joseph in Rev 7:7,8?
The WTS is using the inclusion of 2 non approved tribes as a reason for treating this part of the srcipture(Rev 7:5-8) as symbolic. It however treats the 144,000 in Rev 7:4 as literal even when the Bible says the 144,000 is sealed out of every tribe of the sons of Israel.
My understanding of this scripture is that the 12 tribes of Israel symbolically represents the entire nations and the selection of equal number of person from each tribe of Israel symbolically shows that God is not partial but in every nation, the man that works rigtheousness is acceptable to him as found in Acts 10:34,35
I find it more comfortable to treat the 144,000 and the tribes mentioned in this scripture to be symbolic rather than treating the 144,000 literal and the tribes symbolic as the WTS has done.