7:6. Of the tribe of Aser [were sealed] twelve thousand.—Aser’s name signifies _Happy_. “And Leah said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.” (Gen. 30:13.) Apparently the fourth highest place of honor goes to the happy Christians. Wherever else the long‐faced saints go they do not get into the Asher tribe. “Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say rejoice. _Finally_, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord.”—Phil. 4:4; 3:1; 2 Chron. 20:22.
Of the tribe of Nephtalim [were sealed] twelve thousand.—Naphtali’s name signifies _Great wrestlings_, and suggests that the fifth highest place will go to those who have especially sought the face of the Father in prayer. By his birth Naphtali was allied to Dan, the class that goes into the Second Death. (Gen. 35:25; 49:17.) The suggestion is not strained, then, that here is a class that has overcome largely because they have so much appreciated, and have used to such good purpose, the privilege of seeking the Father’s face in prayer.—Luke 11:5‐13; James 1:5; 3:17.
Of the tribe of Manasses [were sealed] twelve thousand.—Manasseh’s name signifies _Forgetting_, “For God hath made me forget all my toil and all my father’s House.” (Gen. 41:51.) The sixth honor apparently refers to a class having naturally very strong human attachments, for the dear ones of their earthly families, and yet love the Lord still more. Great is the love, great the faithfulness of those that hear and heed the Divine proposal: “Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father’s House.”—Psa. 45:10.
7:7. Of the tribe of Simeon [were sealed] twelve thousand.—Simeon signifies _Hearing_. “Because the Lord hath heard that I was hated, He hath therefore given me this son also.” (Gen. 29:33.) This suggests that the seventh place of honor is reserved for those who have been hated in their home circles because of faithfulness to the Word of the Lord. The Lord saw that the beauties of their characters would only shine forth to the best advantage if they were made ready in just such environment. How sweet, how beautiful, is the patient heart developed under such conditions!—Rom. 5:3; Col. 1:11, 12; 1 Pet. 1:7; 4:12; 5:10; Rom. 8:17; 2 Tim. 2:12; James 1:12.