^7:8 from the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand, from the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand, from the tribe of Benjamin, twelve thousand were sealed.

from the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand,

• from the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand,
• From dad's blessing, it probably should be "a Beach Home" Genesis 49:13
• From Moses' blessing, Zebulun would "draw out the abundance of the sea." Deuteronomy 33:18-19

from the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand,

• Joseph means "an addition".
• Joseph received the forfeited portion of Reuben's inheritance.
• From dad's blessing, Joseph was "distinguished among his brothers." Genesis 49:22-26. In other words, dad's favorite son.
• From the length of Moses' blessing, Deuteronomy 33:13-17, Joseph still is the favored one.

from the tribe of Benjamin, twelve thousand

• Benjamin means "son of the right hand" (the hand of authority).
• Benjamin is the youngest son of Jacob.
• Dad's blessing, Genesis 49:27, is not very complimentary.
• Moses blessing, Deuteronomy 33:12, is much softer and indicates Benjamin has "a place between His (God's) shoulders".

were sealed.

There are twelve tribes listed in verses 5 though 8. There is a problem, though, in that both Dan and Ephraim are not in this list. Perhaps, it is the idolatry Judges 18:14-20 or violation of the first commandment (Exodus 20:3), which prohibits Dan from being in this list. Other scholars feel these tribes are symbolic and describe various churches or denominations rather than ethnic Israel. See comments in verse 4.

Likewise, Ephraim was "joined to idols", Hosea 4:15-19. The city, Bethel, in Ephraim's territory, had altars, 1 Kings 12:25-33. Idols cannot and will not stand the tests that God will put this earth through, and thus both Dan and Ephraim are not in this list. The question in verse 17 of the previous chapter, "WHO IS ABLE TO STAND?" actually then is answered by this list.

An aside note: It is up to the reader to determine the time interval between Genesis 49's blessings and this portion about the 12 tribes here in Revelation 7. Then, ask yourself this question: Does God always remember or ever forget our spiritual attributes? Take a peek ahead: Revelation 20:11-14.