Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He brings the princes to nothing; He makes the judges of the earth useless. (Isaiah 40:21-23)

Where God Sits

The fascination with the world has long intrigued the minds of men searching for hidden secrets of an amazing creation. Through modern technology, many questions have been answered while innumerable puzzles still wait to be revealed. The nature of the world has been an object of curiosity from the beginning of time. Egypt has shown how advanced the knowledge of early man was formulated in the construction of the pyramids, temples, and the sciences. Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, including astrology, interpretation of dreams, medicine, mathematics, and the language of their hieroglyphics.

It was assumed by many that most people believed the world to be flat rather than a sphere. There was a strong belief in the “flat earth theory,” but many understood the earth to be a sphere. One of the early proponents of the earth being a sphere was the Greek philosopher Pythagoras (570-495 B.C.). Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) proved the earth was a sphere with physical evidence. Eratosthenes of Cyrene (276-195 B.C.), a Greek mathematician, astronomer, and head librarian to the Library of Alexandria in Egypt, used crude calculations to determine the size of the earth was 24,000 miles. This was very close to the actual diameter of 24,901 miles. Galileo (1564-1642) believed the world was round and accepted the conclusion by Nicolaus Copernicus the sun was the center of the solar system.

The prophet Isaiah wrote his book about 740 years before Christ. In his grand description of the majesty of the Lord God, the prophet ponders the answers on how God can measure the waters in His hand, measure heaven with a span, and calculate the dust of the earth in a measure. There is none like Jehovah God. The nations are but a drop in a bucket. Idols are dumb and lifeless, but God is all wise and all-powerful. Isaiah reminds the people that the Lord God sits above the circle of the earth and the inhabitants of the world are like grasshoppers. The Holy Spirit declared the earth was a sphere long before men like Pythagoras concluded the same. It is difficult to know what man knew before Isaiah and that, likely, the believers in God had a hint of the spherical nature of the earth. The earth was round before it was discovered to be a sphere.

Human wisdom has opened the vistas of many mysteries over the centuries and will continue to reveal new truths. For the child of God, the evidence of hidden secrets only confirms what is already known. God made the world and everything in it with perfect order and design. When the apple fell and hit Isaac Newton on the head, the law of gravity already existed. Newton explained the law that was established in creation. Explorers discovered what was true from the beginning – the earth is round. Truth is older than error and is not created by the revelation of man. The circle of the earth confirms the nature of the earth, but it shows the power of the one who sits above its circle.

What has man done to come close to an image of what God has done? He can send a man into space, but God has already been there, sitting and waiting and watching. Who is equal to God? The heavens are filled with innumerable stars, created by the hand of the One who sits above the circle of the earth – and God has a name for every star. Because of his great power and incomparable strength, not a single one is missing. Worship, glory, and honor must be given to Him, who sits far above the wisdom of men, showing His might and power so that men can glorify Him. Take a moment to look up and see who is sitting there. He is God.