Abraham possessed the Urim and Thummim. The Lord had given it to him while was yet in Ur. Through it he not only received the word of God, but it also became an instrument through which the Lord revealed to him the secrets of the skies. He studied the stars with God himself as the instructor.

"And the Lord said unto me: These are the governing ones; and the name of the great one is Kolob, because it is near unto me, for I am the Lord thy God: I have set this one to govern all those which belong to the same order as that upon which thou standest.

"And the Lord said unto me, by the Urim and Thummim, that Kolob was after the manner of the Lord, according to its times and seasons in the revolutions thereof; that one revolution was a day unto the Lord, after his manner of reckoning, it being one thousand years according to the time appointed unto that whereon thou standest. This is the reckoning of the Lord’s time, according to the reckoning of Kolob." (Abraham 3:3–4)

The planet Kolob became of great interest to Abraham. The Lord explained that it "is set nigh unto the throne of God, to govern all those planets which belong to the same order as that upon which thou standest." (Abraham 3:9)

It is interesting to note that the throne of God is on a separate planet in the sky, with Kolob being nearby.