Footnotes
The apocalyptic content of the letter raises the possibility that it may also have been intended to prepare the Colesville branch for the forthcoming exodus of church members from New York to Ohio, declaring as it did that the “time is soon at hand that we shall have to flee whithersoever the Lord will, for safety.” The inclusion of Cowdery’s letter, with its encouraging commentary on the work in Kirtland, may have helped prepare members in Colesville to respond positively to the call to leave New York and remove to that distant location. However, no other evidence indicates that JS was contemplating a move to Ohio prior to the 30 December revelation. (See Revelation, 30 Dec. 1830 [D&C 37:2–3].)
The phrase “Satan’s seat” is used in the book of Revelation. JS may have used the phrase to describe Colesville because throughout the summer of 1830 members and believers were persecuted there. (Revelation 2:13; see also Historical Introduction to Revelation, July 1830–A [D&C 24]; and Letter to Newel Knight and the Church in Colesville, 28 Aug. 1830.)