Who are the 144,000? This list of the tribes of Israel does not match the twelve physical tribes exactly. Instead, it shows that God knows exactly who belongs to him. By the 90s AD, Israel’s twelve tribes no longer existed. Ten tribes were scattered when Assyria conquered the northern kingdom of Israel (2 Kings 17:1–41).
The early Christian church saw itself symbolically as the Israel of God (Matthew 19:28; Romans 2:28–29; 9:6–8; Galatians 3:29; 6:16; Philippians 3:3). The 144,000 likely represent all faithful Christians (compare Revelation 14:1–5; 21:12–17).
The list starts with Judah, the royal tribe of Jesus, but replaces Dan with Manasseh, one of Joseph's two tribes. The tribe of Dan fell into idolatry (Judges 18:14–31; 1 Kings 12:25–30), and early Christians saw it as the symbol of evil.