A garment, and what it covers
The White Robes of the Redeemed
In the book of Revelation, John sees a countless multitude from every nation standing before the throne in white robes. When asked how their robes became white, the answer overturns every expectation: they were washed white in blood.
“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;”Revelation 7:9
The garment in Scripture
The garment in Scripture. 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 (Revelation 7:9). They cried with a loud voice, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb (Revelation 7:10). One of the elders asked John, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? (Revelation 7:13). When John confessed that the elder knew, the answer came: These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb (Revelation 7:14). Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple (Revelation 7:15). The promise follows that God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes (Revelation 7:17). Earlier the Lord had promised, he that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment (Revelation 3:5), and this vision shows that promise kept for a multitude beyond counting.
What it means
What it means. The white robes are the final picture of the redeemed, and they carry a holy paradox: they were made white in blood. No garment is bleached clean by blood in ordinary life, but the blood of the Lamb is not ordinary, for it cleanses from all sin (1 John 1:7). The multitude is drawn from every nation and tongue, an innumerable company that no earthly barrier could keep out, showing the reach of the gospel to all peoples. They came out of great tribulation, so the white robes do not belong only to the untested but to those who endured and held to Christ. Their song gives all the credit to God and to the Lamb, crying Salvation to our God, for they did not whiten their own robes by their striving. The scene answers all the earlier garments of Scripture. The covering that began in the garden and ran through every shadow reaches its end here, in a great crowd standing clean and glad before the throne, clothed forever in the righteousness the Lamb secured.
How it points to Christ
How it points to Christ. This is the destination of the whole story of the garments. The robes are made white in the blood of the Lamb, so the covering that clothes the redeemed forever is the finished work of Christ crucified. Every earlier garment pointed here: the skins in the garden, the clean raiment given to Joshua, the robe of righteousness in Isaiah's song, the best robe of the returning son. Now the multitude stands clothed in what the Lamb has provided. Isaiah's words are fulfilled without measure, he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10). Those who in this life put on the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 13:14), being baptized into Christ and having put on Christ (Galatians 3:27), stand at last in white before the throne. The covering was always Christ, and the redeemed will serve God day and night, clothed in His righteousness, with every tear wiped away.
Questions people ask
How can robes be made white in blood?
It is a deliberate paradox pointing to the cleansing power of Christ's sacrifice. Ordinary blood stains, but the blood of the Lamb cleanseth us from all sin (1 John 1:7). The image teaches that the only thing that truly makes a sinner clean before God is the atoning death of Christ, received by faith.
Who are the great multitude in white robes?
They are the redeemed from every nation, kindred, people, and tongue, an innumerable company that came out of great tribulation (Revelation 7:9,14). The vision shows the gospel reaching all peoples and the saints who endured now standing clean and secure before the throne, clothed in the righteousness the Lamb provided.