And he measured its wall to be 144 cubits, by the human measure the angel was using.
Parallel translations
- WEB Its wall is one hundred forty-four cubits, by the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.
- KJV And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
- NKJV Then he measured its wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.
- NASB And he measured its wall, 144 cubits, by human measurements, which are also angelic measurements.
- NLT Then he measured the walls and found them to be 216 feet thick (according to the human standard used by the angel).
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The wall measures 144 cubits by human measurement, which the angel uses. The number signifies the completeness of God's people.
Overview
One hundred forty-four is twelve times twelve, echoing the symbolic completeness of God's people seen elsewhere in Revelation (7:4; 14:1). The note that the angel measures 'by the measure of a man' links heavenly realities to terms John's readers can grasp. As with the other dimensions, the figure is widely understood as symbolic of perfection and fullness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Rev 13:18Here is a call for wisdom: Let the one who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and that number is 666.
- Deut 3:11(For only Og king of Bashan had remained of the remnant of the Rephaim. His bed of iron, nine cubits long and four cubits wide, is still in Rabbah of the Ammonites.)
- Rev 7:4And I heard the number of those who were sealed, 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel:
- Rev 21:9Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls full of the seven final plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”
- Rev 14:3And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. And no one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.
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Christ at the center
Revelation ends the story with the slain-yet-standing Lamb who is worthy, the Lion of Judah, the Alpha and Omega, the returning King who makes all things new and dwells with his people forever.
How Revelation 21:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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