THRONE OF GOD. 



THRONE OF GOD. 



There is just one idea more that may he sug 

 gested, in addition to the several views exhibited 

 above, in order to raise to a higher pitch of 

 sublimity, our views of the grandeur of the Di 

 vine Being, and of the magnificence of his works 

 The Scriptures frequently refer to a particulai 

 place, circumstance, or manifestation, termed the 

 throne of God; as in the following passages: 

 &quot; Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my foot 

 stool.&quot; &quot; The Lord hath prepared his throne in 

 the heaysnit&quot; &quot;A glorious high throne, from 

 the beginning, is the place of thy sanctuary.&quot; 

 &quot; Therefore are they before the throne of God, 

 and serve him day and night in his temple.&quot; 

 &quot; Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, 

 be unto Him that sits upon the throne.&quot; These, 

 and similar expressions and representations, must 

 oe considered, either as merely metaphorical, or 

 at jferring to some particular region of the uni 

 verse, where the Divine glory is reflected, in 

 some peculiarly magnificent manner, from mate 

 rial objects ; and where the manifestations of the 

 Divine character are most illustriously displayed. 

 If there be a reference to the splendour and mag 

 nitude of a particular portion of creation, there 

 is an astronomical idea, which may help us to 

 form somo conception of this &quot; glorious high 

 hrone,&quot; which is the peculiar residence of the 

 Sternal. It is now considered by astronomers, 

 as highly probable, if not certain, from late ob 

 servations, from the nature of gravitation, and 

 other circumstances, that all the systems of the 

 universe revolve round one common centre, 

 and that this centre may bear as great a propor 

 tion, in point of magnitude, to the universal 

 assemblage of systems as the sun does to his 

 surrounding planets. And, since our sun is five 

 hundred times larger than the earth, and all the 

 other planets and their satellites taken together, 

 on the same scale, such a central body would 

 be five hundred times larger than all the systems 

 and worlds in the universe. Here, then, may be 

 a vast universe of itself an example of material 

 creation, exceeding all the rest in magnitude and 

 splendour, and in which are blended the glories 

 of every other system. If this is in reality the 

 case, it may, with the most emphatic propriety, 

 be termed, THE THRONE OF GOD. 



This is the most sublime and magnificent idea 

 that can possibly enter into the mind of man 

 We feel oppressed and overwhelmed in endea 

 vouring to form even a faint representation of it. 

 But, however much it may overpower our feeble 

 conceptions, we ought not to revolt at the idea 

 of so glorious an exvension of the works of God ; 

 since nothing less magnificent seems suitable to 

 a being of infinite perfections. This grand cen 

 tral body may be considered as the Capital of the 

 universe. Prom this glorious centre, embassies 

 may be occasionally despatched to all surrounding 



worlds, in every region of space. Here, too, 

 deputations from all the different provinces of 

 creation, may occasionally assemble, and the in 

 habitants of different worlds mingle with each 

 other, and learn the grand outlines of tnose physi 

 cal operations and moral transactions, which 

 have taken place in their respective spheres. 

 Here, may be exhibited to the view of unnum 

 bered multitudes, objects of sublimity and glory, 

 which are no where else to be found within the 

 wide extent of creation. Here, intelligences of 

 the highest order, who have attained the most 

 sublime heights of knowledge and virtue, may 

 form the principal part of the population of this 

 magnificent region. Here, the glorified body of 

 the Redeemer may have tak en its principal sta 

 tion, as &quot; the head of all principalities and pow 

 ers :&quot; and here likewise, Enoch and Elijah may 

 reside, in the mean time, in order to learn the 

 history of the magnificent plans and operations 

 of Deity, that they may be enabled to commu 

 nicate intelligence respecting them to their breth 

 ren of the race of Adam, when they shall again 

 mingle with them in the world allotted for their 

 abode, after the general resurrection. Here, the 

 GRANDEUR of the Deity, the glory of his physi 

 cal and moral perfections, and the immensity of 

 his empire, may strike the mind with more bright 

 effulgence, and excite more elavated emotions of 

 admiration and rapture, than in any other pro 

 vince of universal nature. In fine, this vast and 

 splendid central universe may constitute that au 

 gust mansion referred to in Scripture, under the 

 the designation of the THIRD HEAVENS THE 



THRONE OF THE ETERNAL the HEAVEN OP 



HEAVENS THE HIGH AND HOLY PLACE 



and THE LIGHT THAT IS INACCESSIBLE AND 

 FULL OF GLORY.* 



&quot;Within the limits of the last 150 years, it has been 

 found, that the principal fixed stars have a certain 

 apparent motion, which is nearly uniform and regu 

 lar, and is quite perceptible in the course of thirty 

 or forty years. The star Arcturus, for example, has 

 been observed to move three minutes and three se 

 conds in the course of seventy-eight years. Most 

 of the stars have moved toward the south. The 

 stars in the northern quarter of the heavens seem 

 to widen their relative positions, while those in the 

 southern appear to contract their distances. These 

 motions seem evidently to indicate, that the earth, 

 and all the other bodies of the solar system, are mov 

 ing in a direction from the stars, in the southern 

 part of the sky, toward those in the northern. Dr. 

 Herschel thinks, that a comparison of the changes 

 now alluded to, indicates a motion of our sun with 

 his attending planets towards the constellation Her 

 cules. This progressive movement which our sys 

 tem makes in absolute space is justly supposed to be 

 a portion of that curve, which the sun describes 

 around the centre of that nebula to which he belongs ; 

 and, that all the other stars belonging to the same 

 nebula, describe similar curves. And since the uni 

 verse appears to be composed of thousands of - 

 bulce, or starry systems, detached from each other, 

 it is reasonable to conclude, that all the starry ays- 

 terns of the universe revolve round one common 

 centre, whose bulk and attractive influence are pro- 

 portionable to the size and the number of the bod let 

 which perform their revolutions around it. W 

 know, that the law of gravitation extends its influ 



