Ezekiel 8:7-13 – Nothing is hidden from God’s sight

Brought to the entrance of the gateway of the inner court of the temple that faces north, Ezekiel first saw the idol of jealousy that provoked God to Jealousy. Having one idol was already offensive, yet the people of Israel had more abominations. God said to Ezekiel in verse 6, “But you will see still greater abominations” And he certainly did.

In Ezekiel 8:7, he was made to advance to the entrance of the court, where he saw a hole in the wall. God was said to command Ezekiel to dig through the wall. The whole idea was to say that their worship of detestable idols was done in secret. What the prophet saw when he dug through the wall were pictures of “every form of creeping things and loathsome beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel” engraved on the wall all around.  Those engraved pictures of beasts were representations of the false gods. We know from Exodus that many of the deities of Egypt were represented by animals and creeping creatures.  

What was even more shocking was that seventy elders were seen worshipping the idols. “Each had his censer in his hand, and the smoke of the cloud of incense went up.” The presence of the 70 elders was to indicate that their worship of detestable idols was a formalized one. Verse 11 said that Ezekiel recognized “Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan” standing among the 70 elders. In 2 Kings 22, we learned that Shaphan was a godly scribe. He was the one who read the book of the law that was found while repairing the temple to King Josiah. His presence among the elders showed how swiftly the nation had deteriorated in their allegiance to God after the death of Josiah.

God rhetorically asked in verse 12, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in his room of pictures? It was a heartbreaking question. They had foolishly concluded that God would not be able to see their covert religious activities for He had forsaken the land.  That was premature for God said to Ezekiel in verse 13, “You will see still greater abominations that they commit.” In other words, God had not shut his eyes and was aware even more of their abomination.

God knows our ways perfectly. There is nothing we can do that He does not see. We have to be careful what we think, say, and do. For we have a Father up above looking down in tender love. Job 34:21 tells us that God’s eyes are on the ways of a man, and He sees his every step. We must never forget that the eyes of the Lord roam to and fro over all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him (2 Chronicles 16:9). God knows all about us so says the Psalmist in Psalm 139:1-4:-

O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
    you discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out my path and my lying down
    and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue,
    behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.