Let's take a few moments today to study the throne of God in heaven. I have compiled its most prominent features in a table below, but before we go there, let's look first at some of the key passages in Scripture that describe it.
There are at least three main passages that give us a glimpse of God's glorious throne in Isaiah 6, Ezekiel 1, and Revelation 4, as well as others that provide supplemental information, such as Ezekiel 10, Daniel 7, Revelation 14, 20 and 22.
Isaiah the prophet
Isaiah wrote:
"In the year of King Uzziah's death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, 'Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.' And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said, 'Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.' Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, 'Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away and your sin is forgiven.' " (Isa 6:1-7)
Ezekiel the prophet
Ezekiel wrote:
"As I looked, behold, a storm wind was coming from the north, a great cloud with fire flashing forth continually and a bright light around it, and in its midst something like glowing metal in the midst of the fire. Within it there were figures resembling four living beings. And this was their appearance: they had human form." (Eze 1:4-5)
"Each of them had four faces and four wings. Their legs were straight and their feet were like a calf's hoof, and they gleamed like burnished bronze. Under their wings on their four sides were human hands. As for the faces and wings of the four of them, their wings touched one another; their faces did not turn when they moved, each went straight forward. As for the form of their faces, each had the face of a man; all four had the face of a lion on the right and the face of a bull on the left, and all four had the face of an eagle. Such were their faces. Their wings were spread out above; each had two touching another being, and two covering their bodies." (Eze 1:6-11)
"And each went straight forward; wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go, without turning as they went. In the midst of the living beings there was something that looked like burning coals of fire, like torches darting back and forth among the living beings. The fire was bright, and lightning was flashing from the fire. And the living beings ran to and fro like bolts of lightning." (Eze 1:12-14)
"Now as I looked at the living beings, behold, there was one wheel on the earth beside the living beings, for each of the four of them. The appearance of the wheels and their workmanship was like sparkling beryl, and all four of them had the same form, their appearance and workmanship being as if one wheel were within another. Whenever they moved, they moved in any of their four directions without turning as they moved. As for their rims they were lofty and awesome, and the rims of all four of them were full of eyes round about." (Eze 1:15-18)
"Whenever the living beings moved, the wheels moved with them. And whenever the living beings rose from the earth, the wheels rose also. Wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go in that direction. And the wheels rose close beside them; for the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels. Whenever those went, these went; and whenever those stood still, these stood still. And whenever those rose from the earth, the wheels rose close beside them; for the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels." (Eze 1:19-21)
"Now over the heads of the living beings there was something like an expanse, like the awesome gleam of crystal, spread out over their heads. Under the expanse their wings were stretched out straight, one toward the other; each one also had two wings covering its body on the one side and on the other." (Eze 1:22-23)
"I also heard the sound of their wings like the sound of abundant waters as they went, like the voice of the Almighty, a sound of tumult like the sound of an army camp; whenever they stood still, they dropped their wings. And there came a voice from above the expanse that was over their heads; whenever they stood still, they dropped their wings." (Eze 1:24-25)
"Now above the expanse that was over their heads there was something resembling a throne, like lapis lazuli in appearance; and on that which resembled a throne, high up, was a figure with the appearance of a man. Then I noticed from the appearance of His loins and upward something like glowing metal that looked like fire all around within it, and from the appearance of His loins and downward I saw something like fire; and there was a radiance around Him. As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face and heard a voice speaking." (Eze 1:26-28)
The apostle John
John wrote:
"Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne. And He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance." (Rev 4:2-3)
"Around the throne were twenty-four thrones; and upon the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white garments, and golden crowns on their heads. Out from the throne come flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God;" (Rev 4:4-5)
"and before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal; and in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind. The first creature was like a lion, and the second creature like a calf, and the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle. And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, 'HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME.' "
(Rev 4:6-8)
"And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 'Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.'" (Rev 4:9-11)
Those are the main passages, and you can read the supplemental ones that I mentioned, too. Below you will find a list of the prominent features mentioned by those who have seen the throne of God, beginning with the throne itself and Him who sits on it.
| 1. | Throne of God | Ez 1:26; 10:1; Rev 20:11; Ps 45:6; 89:14 |
| 2. | Someone sitting on it | Ps 47:8: Ez 1:26; Is 6:1; Rev 4:2; 3:21; Mat 25:31; Heb 8:1; 12:2 |
| 3. | His appearance | Ez 1:26-27; 8:2; Rev 4:3 |
| 4. | Rainbow surrounding throne | Ez 1:28; Rev 4:3 |
| 5. | Glory, cloud, smoke | Ez 1:4, 28; 10:3-4, 18-19; Is 6:4 |
| 6. | 24 other thrones and elders | Rev 4:4; Mat 19:28 |
| 7. | Flashes of lighting | Rev 4:5; Ez 1:4, 14 |
| 8. | Rumblings, peals of thunder | Rev 4:5; Ez 1:24 |
| 9. | 7 lamps burning | Rev 4:5; 1:4 |
| 10. | Sea of glass before throne, crystal clear | Rev 4:6; Ez 1:22 |
| 11. | 4 living creatures | Rev 4:6; Ez 1:5-6; 10:15-17, 20 |
| 12. | Covered with eyes | Rev 4:6; Ez 1:18; 10:12 |
| 13. | Lion, ox, man, eagle | Rev 4:7; Ez 1:10; 10:14, 21-22 |
| 14. | 6 wings | Rev 4:8; Is 6:2 |
| 15. | Holy, holy, holy | Rev 4:8; Is 6:3 |
| 16. | Brilliant light | Ez 1:4, 27 |
| 17. | Golden altar before the throne | Rev 8:3 |
| 18. | Fire, burning, coals | Ez 1:4-5, 13, 27; 10:2,6-7; Is 6:6; Rev 4:5; Dan 7:9-10 |
| 19. | Seraphs | Is 6:2,6 |
| 20. | Spirit | Ez 1:20; Rev 4:5 |
| 21. | River of Life | Rev 22:1 |
| 22. | Many angels | Rev 5:11 |
| 23. | The 144,000 | Rev 14:3 |
| 24. | Multitudes of saints | Rev 7:9-10 |
| 25. | Fell facedown, unworthiness | Rev 7:11; 4: 9-10; 19:4; Ez 1:28; Is 6:5 |
| 26. | Enter boldly before the throne | Heb 4:15-16 |
Putting it All Together
I hope this study has helped you to get a clear picture of what the throne of God is like. There is no place on earth that compares to it. Even the top tourist destinations pale in comparison to God's glorious throne. May this encourage you to seek His face and spend more time there in prayer and worship.
If you truly understand who God is, then you will feel the same unworthiness that John, Ezekiel, and Isaiah felt. But if you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and you're in right relationship with Him, then you can come boldly before the throne of grace, as the Scripture says:
"Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Heb 4:16, NIV)
If you're not living in obedience to His commands and doing the will of God, then you need to repent and ask Him to forgive you for the sake of Jesus Christ His Son, who died for your sins on the cross and rose again on the third day. For one day we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ, and we will all have to give an account for everything done while in the body, whether good or bad (2 Cor 5:10). Please make sure you are ready for that unavoidable appointment with Him (Heb 9:27).
Attribution: All Hail King Jesus painting © 2012 Danny Hahlbohm, all rights reserved by the artist. Most Scriptures taken from the New American Standard Bible, copyright The Lockman Foundation, used by permission. Other Scriptures where noted taken from The Holy Bible NIV, copyright Zondervan, used by permission.
Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, please also see the following: The Judgment Seat of Christ, The Bodily Form of God the Father, The Bodily Form of Jesus Christ, and Living on Earth as They Do in Heaven. You may find the Main Directory for this blog at Home, and you may also access my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."
Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus. Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?
“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and believe.
Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"
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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International. He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.
