Ezekiel 8:11 kjv
And there stood before them seventy men of the ancients of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up.
Ezekiel 8:11 nkjv
And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, and in their midst stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan. Each man had a censer in his hand, and a thick cloud of incense went up.
Ezekiel 8:11 niv
In front of them stood seventy elders of Israel, and Jaazaniah son of Shaphan was standing among them. Each had a censer in his hand, and a fragrant cloud of incense was rising.
Ezekiel 8:11 esv
And before them stood seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, with Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan standing among them. Each had his censer in his hand, and the smoke of the cloud of incense went up.
Ezekiel 8:11 nlt
Seventy leaders of Israel were standing there with Jaazaniah son of Shaphan in the center. Each of them held an incense burner, from which a cloud of incense rose above their heads.
Ezekiel 8 11 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ezekiel 8:10 | So I went in and saw; and there, depicted on all walls all around, were figures of every crawling thing and unclean animal and all the idols of Israel. | Detail of idols present |
| Ezekiel 8:12 | Then He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in the room of his idols? For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us; the Lord has forsaken the land.’” | Motivation for secret worship |
| Exodus 20:4-5 | “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them nor serve them." | Prohibition of idolatry |
| Deuteronomy 4:15-16 | "Take firm hold of the teachings of the Lord your God that he gave to you through Moses. When you sacrifice, you are to stay away from everything that is forbidden, or that might lead you to sin. The Lord your God has always destroyed nations who practice these abominable things." | Warning against idolatry |
| Jeremiah 7:9-10 | "Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which bears my Name, and say, 'We are safe'—only to go on doing all these detestable things?" | Accusation of hypocrisy |
| 1 Corinthians 10:7 | Nor let us commit idolatry, as some of them did, as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” | New Testament warning |
| Revelation 21:8 | “But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, the murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion shall be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” | Condemnation of idolaters |
| Psalm 115:4-6 | But their idols are silver and gold, The work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; Eyes they have, but do not see; They have ears, but do not hear; Noses they have, but do not smell; They have hands, but do not feel; Feet they have, but do not walk; They do not make a sound with their throat. | Description of idols' inability |
| Isaiah 44:12-20 | Detailed description of idol making and its futility. | Critiquing idol worship |
| Hosea 4:12-14 | "My people consult a wooden idol, and are answered by a stick. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they commit adultery, straying from their God." | Spiritual harlotry |
| Ezekiel 22:7-11 | Describes various sins prevalent in Jerusalem, including idolatry. | Similar accusations |
| Romans 1:23 | "and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images created to look like mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things." | Exchanging truth for lies |
| 1 John 5:21 | "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." | Apostolic command |
| Psalm 78:58 | For they provoked Him to anger with their high places; They aroused His jealousy with their graven images. | Provoking God's jealousy |
| Deuteronomy 18:10-12 | "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices divination, or a meteorologist, or an interpreter of omens, or a sorcerer, or a charmer, or a medium, or a necromancer, or one who consults the dead. For whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord." | Forbidden practices |
| Judges 2:11-13 | "Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baals; and they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followed other gods, from the gods of the peoples around them, and bowed down to them; and they provoked the LORD to anger." | Israel's cycles of apostasy |
| 2 Chronicles 36:14-16 | Describes the persistent wickedness of the people, leading to judgment. | Chronic sin and judgment |
| Lamentations 1:22 | "See, I pray, how I am afflicted; Your enemies have put all your adversaries to the sword." | Lament for national ruin |
| Revelation 18:4 | "And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues.”" | Call to separation from sin |
| Ezekiel 43:8 | "They set in the wall their threshold by my thresholds and their doorposts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me and them. They defiled my holy name by their detestable practices." | Defilement of the sanctuary |
Ezekiel 8 verses
Ezekiel 8 11 Meaning
This verse describes a group of seventy elders of Israel who, during a vision experienced by Ezekiel, are shown performing a specific idolatrous ritual within a hidden chamber, or "secret room," in the Temple. This act of severe apostasy involves them prostrating themselves before carved images, likely representing detestable deities or abominations that were being practiced by the people. The vision highlights the depth of sin and the specific individuals and locations where this corruption had infiltrated.
Ezekiel 8 11 Context
Chapter 8 of Ezekiel reveals a powerful vision concerning the causes of Jerusalem's impending destruction and Israel's exile. God grants Ezekiel insight into the pervasive idolatry and apostasy that have infiltrated the Temple itself. Following the description of the people’s general defilement, God specifically exposes the hypocrisy and secret wickedness of the seventy elders, who are presented as leaders responsible for the spiritual health of the nation. This verse is part of a progression that reveals the depth of corruption within the "house of Israel" from the highest levels downwards, justifying God's righteous judgment. The vision is set in Jerusalem during the siege, a time when the nation was already facing God's wrath, but this revelation shows the internal decay that precipitated such a crisis.
Ezekiel 8 11 Word Analysis
- וַאֲנִי֙ (va'ani): "And I." The conjunction 'vav' connects this statement to the previous one, continuing the narrative flow. 'Ani' means "I," emphasizing Ezekiel's personal presence and observation within the vision.
- וָאֶל־ (va'el): "And I went into." 'El' indicates motion towards or into a place. This phrase highlights Ezekiel's movement deeper into the vision's setting.
- וְרָא֙ (v'ra): "And I saw." The root 'ra' means "to see," "to behold." This signifies perception and witnessing the events unfolding.
- הִנֵּה֙ (hinneh): "Behold" or "Look." This interjection calls for immediate attention and emphasizes the shocking nature of what is about to be revealed.
- הֵם֙ (hem): "They." This is a masculine plural pronoun, referring back to the elders mentioned previously.
- יוֹשְׁבִ֣ים (yoshvim): "sitting" or "dwelling." From the root 'yashav', meaning "to sit," "to dwell," or "to remain." Here it implies their established presence in the hidden chamber for their ritual.
- לָהֶ֔ם (lahem): "for them" or "to them." Indicates possession or relation.
- וְאִישׁ־ (v'ish): "and each man." 'Ish' means "man" or "husband." Used here to emphasize individual participation in the collective sin.
- מִשְׁמַ֥עַת (mishma'at): "group," "company," or "appointed assembly." From the root 'shama', meaning "to hear," suggesting a recognized unit or council. Scholars often associate this with a group responsible for specific religious observances.
- בִּֽשְׁבַ֧עִים (bishva'im): "in sevens." The number seven often symbolizes completeness, perfection, or a divine covenant. Its use here with seventy elders (7 x 10) might indicate a complete council or appointed number of leaders, gathered in specific, organized units for this idolatrous purpose. Seventy is also the number of elders appointed to assist Moses in the wilderness (Num 11:16).
- נְקִיַּ֣ת (nekiyat): "purity" or "cleanness." From the root 'naqah', meaning "clean," "pure," or "innocent." This word, when placed before "their idols," is used sarcastically or ironically, highlighting the antithesis of spiritual purity. It suggests they were professing to perform a clean ritual in their own minds, or their actions were presented with a facade of devotion, making their worship of idols even more offensive to God.
- לְסִמִּ֣ים (lesimim): "for idols" or "for abominations." The word 'sim' is less common in this context; however, in this usage, it likely refers to idols, possibly derived from roots related to destruction or abhorrence, or specific cultic objects. Other translations render it as "of their idols."
- וְרֵ֥יחַ (v'reiaḥ): "and a smell" or "and a stench." From the root 'reiaḥ', meaning "odor," "fragrance." Here, it implies a corrupt, offensive spiritual atmosphere emanating from their hidden activity, an odor that reaches God. This echoes the idea of "sweet aromas" associated with legitimate sacrifices, here perverted into a stench of sin.
Words Group Analysis
- The seventy elders (שִׁבְעִ֣ים אִ֖ישׁ מִזִּקְנֵ֣י בֵית־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל - sheva'im ish miziqnei veit Yisrael, Ezekiel 8:11a): This collective term for the esteemed leaders signifies that the corruption had permeated the highest echelons of religious and national authority. The number seventy, as noted, holds significance and is paralleled with those who would rule alongside Moses. Their gathering implies a structured apostasy among those meant to guide the people.
- each man of his company in sevens (וְאִישׁ־מִשְׁמַ֥עַת בִּֽשְׁבַ֧עִים - v'ish mishma'at bishva'im, Ezekiel 8:11b): This phrase describes their organized devotion to idolatry. The grouping in "sevens" suggests ritualistic order, potentially mirroring or corrupting sacred arrangements, reinforcing the systematic nature of their rebellion.
- purity of their idols (נְקִיַּ֣ת לְסִמִּ֣ים - neqiyat lesimim, Ezekiel 8:11c): This is a starkly ironic statement. Their "cleanliness" was devoted to idols. It might mean the images themselves were elaborately crafted or presented, or it refers to their supposed purity of intention in their ritualistic idolatry—a ritualistic cleanness performed in service of the unclean.
Ezekiel 8 11 Bonus Section
The imagery of the seventy elders gathered in secret connects thematically to the Council of Seventy appointed by God in Numbers 11:16 to assist Moses. However, here they are perverting that spiritual authority and lineage by worshipping idols, representing a complete betrayal of their divine mandate. The idea of a "smell" or "stench" emanating from their hidden room (mentioned in the Hebrew word analysis) reinforces the theological concept that God perceives and is repulsed by sin, even when concealed. This vision is a vivid illustration of how internal corruption, particularly from leadership, leads to national disaster, emphasizing the importance of fidelity to God at all levels of society. The very act of engaging in idolatry in the proximity of the Temple signifies the utmost sacrilege, a violation of the sacred space dedicated to Yahweh alone.
Ezekiel 8 11 Commentary
This verse is a damning indictment of the leadership of Israel. The "seventy elders," meant to be pillars of the community and interpreters of God's law, are depicted engaging in secret idolatry in a hidden chamber. This demonstrates the profound spiritual decay within the nation, starting from the top. The phrase "each man of his company in sevens" highlights the organized and deliberate nature of their sin; it wasn't a momentary lapse but a structured departure from God. The paradoxical "purity of their idols" suggests either a perverse dedication to their detestable objects of worship or perhaps a description of the polished idols themselves, underscoring the deception that cloaked their actions. This hidden apostasy is presented as an offense so great that it is unseen by the general populace but critically observed by God, leading directly to the pronouncements of judgment that follow in the chapter. It teaches that leadership carries a solemn responsibility and that secret sin, especially among those in authority, can bring down corporate judgment.