Ezekiel 8

1 In the sixth year, on the fifth day of the sixth month, I was sitting in my house, and the elders of Judah were sitting before me; and there the hand of the Lord GOD fell upon me.

And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the fifth month, on the fifth [day] of the month, I was sitting in the house, and the elders of Juda were sitting before me: and the hand of the Lord came upon me.

2 Then I looked and saw a figure like that of a man. From His waist down His appearance was like fire, and from His waist up He was as bright as the gleam of amber.

And I looked, and, behold, the likeness of a man: from his loins and downwards [there was] fire, and from his loins upwards [there was] as the appearance of amber.

3 He stretched out what looked like a hand and took me by the hair of my head. Then the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and carried me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the north gate of the inner court, where the idol that provokes jealousy was seated.

And he stretched forth the likeness of a hand, and took me by the crown of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between the earth and sky, and brought me to Jerusalem in a vision of God, to the porch of the gate that looks to the north, where was the pillar of the Purchaser.

4 And there I saw the glory of the God of Israel, like the vision I had seen in the plain.

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

5 “Son of man,” He said to me, “now lift up your eyes to the north.” So I lifted up my eyes to the north, and in the entrance north of the Altar Gate I saw this idol of jealousy.

And he said to me, Son of man, lift up thine eyes toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes toward the north, and, behold, [I looked] from the north toward the eastern gate.

6 “Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see what they are doing—the great abominations that the house of Israel is committing—to drive Me far from My sanctuary? Yet you will see even greater abominations.”

And he said to me, Son of man, hast thou seen what these do? They commit great abominations here so that I should keep away from my sanctuary: and thou shalt see yet greater iniquities.

7 Then He brought me to the entrance to the court, and I looked and saw a hole in the wall.

And he brought me to the porch of the court.

8 “Son of man,” He told me, “dig through the wall.” So I dug through the wall and discovered a doorway.

And he said to me, Son of man, dig: so I dug, and behold a door.

9 Then He said to me, “Go in and see the wicked abominations they are committing here.”

And he said to me, Go in, and behold the iniquities which they practise here.

10 So I went in and looked, and engraved all around the wall was every kind of crawling creature and detestable beast, along with all the idols of the house of Israel.

So I went in and looked; and beheld vain abominations, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed upon them round about.

11 Before them stood seventy elders of the house of Israel, with Jaazaniah son of Shaphan standing among them. Each had a censer in his hand, and a fragrant cloud of incense was rising.

And seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, and Jechonias the son of Saphan stood in their presence in the midst of them, and each one held his censer in his hand; and the smoke of the incense went up.

12 “Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each at the shrine of his own idol? For they are saying, ‘The LORD does not see us; the LORD has forsaken the land.’”

And he said to me, Thou hast seen, son of man, what the elders of the house of Israel do, each one of them in their secret chamber: because they have said, The Lord see not; The Lord has forsaken the earth.

13 Again, He told me, “You will see them committing even greater abominations.”

And he said to me, Thou shalt see yet greater iniquities which these do.

14 Then He brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the house of the LORD, and I saw women sitting there, weeping for Tammuz.

And he brought me in to the porch of the house of the Lord that looks to the north; and, behold [there were] women sitting there lamenting for Thammuz.

15 “Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see this? Yet you will see even greater abominations than these.”

And he said to me, Son of man, thou hast seen; but thou shalt yet see [evil] practices greater then these.

16 So He brought me to the inner court of the house of the LORD, and there at the entrance to the temple of the LORD, between the portico and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs to the temple of the LORD and their faces toward the east; and they were bowing to the east in worship of the sun.

And he brought me into the inner court of the house of the Lord, and at the entrance of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty men, with their back parts toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces [turned] the opposite way; and these were worshipping the sun.

17 “Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see this? Is it not enough for the house of Judah to commit the abominations they are practicing here, that they must also fill the land with violence and continually provoke Me to anger? Look, they are even putting the branch to their nose!

And he said to me, Son of man, thou hast seen this. [Is it] a little thing to the house of Juda to practise the iniquities which they have practised here? for they have filled the land with iniquity: and, behold, these are as scorners.

18 Therefore I will respond with wrath. I will not look on them with pity, nor will I spare them. Although they shout loudly in My ears, I will not listen to them.”

Therefore will I deal with them in wrath: mine eye shall not spare, nor will I have any mercy.