Ezekiel 8: Abominations in the Temple

Ezekiel 8 (WEB)

1 In the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, the Lord Yahweh’s hand fell there on me.

2 Then I saw, and behold, a likeness as the appearance of fire; from the appearance of his waist and downward, fire; and from his waist and upward, as the appearance of brightness, as it were glowing metal.

3 He stretched out the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and the sky, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the gate of the inner court that looks toward the north; where there was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provokes to jealousy.

4 Behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the appearance that I saw in the plain.

5 Then he said to me, Son of man, lift up your eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up my eyes the way toward the north, and see, northward of the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry.

6 He said to me, Son of man, do you see what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel do commit here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? But you shall again see yet other great abominations.

7 He brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold, a hole in the wall.

8 Then he said to me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had dug in the wall, behold, a door.

9 He said to me, Go in, and see the wicked abominations that they do here.

10 So I went in and saw; and see, every form of creeping things, and abominable animals, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed around on the wall.

11 There stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel; and in their midst stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, every man with his censer in his hand; and the odor of the cloud of incense went up.

12 Then he said to me, Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in his rooms of imagery? for they say, Yahweh doesn’t see us; Yahweh has forsaken the land.

13 He said also to me, You shall again see yet other great abominations which they do.

14 Then he brought me to the door of the gate of Yahweh’s house which was toward the north; and see, there sat the women weeping for Tammuz.

15 Then he said to me, Have you seen this, son of man? You shall again see yet greater abominations than these.

16 He brought me into the inner court of Yahweh’s house; and see, at the door of Yahweh’s temple, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs toward Yahweh’s temple, and their faces toward the east; and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.

17 Then he said to me, Have you seen this, son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have turned again to provoke me to anger: and behold, they put the branch to their nose.

18 Therefore will I also deal in wrath; my eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; and though they cry in my ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.

Ezekiel 8 (KJV)

1 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in mine house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord God fell there upon me.

2 Then I beheld, and lo a likeness as the appearance of fire: from the appearance of his loins even downward, fire; and from his loins even upward, as the appearance of brightness, as the colour of amber.

3 And he put forth the form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.

4 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the vision that I saw in the plain.

5 Then said he unto me, Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes the way toward the north, and behold northward at the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry.

6 He said furthermore unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel committeth here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations.

7 And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the wall.

8 Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold a door.

9 And he said unto me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do here.

10 So I went in and saw; and behold every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, pourtrayed upon the wall round about.

11 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.

12 Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, The Lord seeth us not; the Lord hath forsaken the earth.

13 He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do.

14 Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the Lord’s house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz.

15 Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these.

16 And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.

17 Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have returned to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose.

18 Therefore will I also deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.

Ezekiel 8 (ASV)

1 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixthmonth, in the fifthdayof the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord Jehovah fell there upon me.

2 Then I beheld, and, lo, a likeness as the appearance of fire; from the appearance of his loins and downward, fire; and from his loins and upward, as the appearance of brightness, as it were glowing metal.

3 And he put forth the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the gate of the inner court that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.

4 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the appearance that I saw in the plain.

5 Then said he unto me, Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes the way toward the north, and behold, northward of the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry.

6 And he said unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel do commit here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? But thou shalt again see yet other great abominations.

7 And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold, a hole in the wall.

8 Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold, a door.

9 And he said unto me, Go in, and see the wicked abominations that they do here.

10 So I went in and saw; and behold, every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed upon the wall round about.

11 And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel; and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, every man with his censer in his hand; and the odor of the cloud of incense went up.

12 Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in his chambers of imagery? for they say, Jehovah seeth us not; Jehovah hath forsaken the land.

13 He said also unto me, Thou shalt again see yet other great abominations which they do.

14 Then he brought me to the door of the gate of Jehovah’s house which was toward the north; and behold, there sat the women weeping for Tammuz.

15 Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? thou shalt again see yet greater abominations than these.

16 And he brought me into the inner court of Jehovah’s house; and behold, at the door of the temple of Jehovah, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of Jehovah, and their faces toward the east; and they were worshipping the sun toward the east.

17 Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have turned again to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose.

18 Therefore will I also deal in wrath; mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.

Summary

While Ezekiel sits in his house with the elders of Judah before him, the hand of the Lord falls on him, and the Spirit lifts him up and brings him in visions to Jerusalem, to the temple itself. There the glory of the God of Israel appears, but so does abomination after abomination. At the north gate stands an idol, the image of jealousy that provokes God to jealousy. Then God leads Ezekiel through a hole in the wall into a hidden chamber where seventy elders of Israel, with Jaazaniah among them, offer incense to creatures and idols portrayed on the walls, saying in the dark that the Lord does not see and has forsaken the land. Next he is shown women weeping for the pagan god Tammuz at the temple gate, and finally, in the inner court between the porch and the altar, about twenty-five men with their backs to the temple, bowing eastward to worship the sun. God exposes that his own house has been filled with violence and idolatry, even by its leaders, in the very place set apart for his worship. Because of these things, the Lord declares he will deal in wrath without pity, even when the people cry out. The vision reveals that the deepest corruption is not on distant mountains but at the heart of the sanctuary itself.

Main Characters

Ezekiel — The prophet carried in vision to Jerusalem, led from one hidden abomination to the next within the temple as God exposes the people's secret idolatry.
The Lord Yahweh — The God whose glory fills the vision and who reveals the idolatry defiling his house, declaring he will act in wrath against it without pity.
The seventy elders — The leaders of Israel, with Jaazaniah among them, who worship idols in secret chambers, saying the Lord does not see and has forsaken the land.

Key Verse

Ezekiel 8:12 (WEB)

Then he said to me, Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in his rooms of imagery? for they say, Yahweh doesn’t see us; Yahweh has forsaken the land.

Lessons Learned

Sin loves the dark and the hidden, but nothing is concealed from the eyes of God.
The most grievous idolatry can take root in the very places meant for the worship of God.
When people convince themselves that God does not see, they grow bold in evil.
Spiritual corruption among leaders is especially serious, for they lead others astray.

God sees the hidden. Through a hole in the wall Ezekiel sees what is done “in the dark” (Ezekiel 8:12, WEB). No secret sin escapes the all-seeing God.
Idolatry defiles God's house. The “image of jealousy” stands in the temple gate (Ezekiel 8:3, WEB). The holiest places are not immune to the worst corruption.
Denying God's sight breeds sin. They say, “Yahweh doesn’t see us; Yahweh has forsaken the land” (Ezekiel 8:12, WEB). A false sense of God's absence emboldens wickedness.
Backs turned to God reveal the heart. The men in the inner court face east “with their backs toward Yahweh’s temple” (Ezekiel 8:16, WEB). Idolatry is always a turning away from the living God.

What is the significance of these abominations taking place inside the temple rather than on the mountains?
What does the elders' saying, “Yahweh doesn’t see us” (8:12), reveal about how sin grows?
How does the progression of abominations Ezekiel is shown deepen the sense of corruption?
Why is it especially serious that the leaders of Israel are the ones leading this idolatry?
Where are you tempted to act as though God does not see, and how does the truth that he sees all change things?

Idolatry on the mountains was bad enough, but here it has invaded God's own house, the place of his worship and presence (8:3-6). It shows the corruption is total, reaching the very center of Israel's faith. The vision strips away any pretense that the temple's outward worship covered a faithful heart.
Believing that God does not see, the elders feel free to sin boldly in secret (8:12). This exposes a root of all sin: a practical denial that God is present and watching. When we forget that God sees, we lose the reverent fear that restrains evil.
Ezekiel is led from the image of jealousy, to the secret chamber of crawling idols, to women weeping for Tammuz, to sun-worshipers in the inner court—each “greater” than the last (8:6, 13, 15). The escalating tour shows idolatry layered deep and wide, defiling every part of the sanctuary.
The seventy elders and the twenty-five men represent Israel's leadership (8:11, 16). When shepherds worship idols, they lead the whole flock astray, and the rot spreads from the top. Leaders bear heightened responsibility because their sin multiplies in those who follow them.
This is a personal-application question. Gently invite members to consider where they live as if unseen—online, in private thoughts, in hidden habits—and how the reality of God's loving, holy gaze reshapes those moments. As leader, frame God's sight as both sobering and tender, not merely surveillance.