The Meaning of Ezekiel 8:11 Explained

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.

YLT: and seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel -- and Jaazaniah son of Shaphan standing in their midst -- are standing before them, and each his censer in his hand, and the abundance of the cloud of perfume is going up.

Darby: 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, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up.

ASV: 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.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

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. 

What does Ezekiel 8:11 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Ezekiel also saw70 of the elders of Israel (cf. Numbers 11:16-17), including Jaazaniah (lit. "Yahweh hears") the son of Shaphan, with censers containing burning incense in their hands worshipping these images (cf. Romans 1:23). These "laymen" were acting like priests. Jaazaniah appears to have been the son of Josiah"s godly Secretary of State, Shaphan (cf. 2 Kings 22:8-14; 2 Chronicles 34:15-21; Jeremiah 26:24; Jeremiah 29:3; Jeremiah 36:10; Jeremiah 40:5; Jeremiah 40:9; Jeremiah 40:11; Jeremiah 41:2; Jeremiah 43:6). If Song of Solomon , this would indicate the spiritual deterioration of leadership in Judah. Another of Shaphan"s sons, Ahikam, was a defender of Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 26:24). [1] Some commentators believed that the gods they were worshipping were Egyptian in view of what these gods were and since the men were worshipping in secret. [2] Some of Judah"s leaders advocated reliance on Egypt. If they were Egyptian gods, it was ironic that70 elders of Israel had earlier confirmed the Mosaic Covenant after God delivered them from bondage to the gods of Egypt ( Exodus 24:1; Exodus 24:9). Now Israel"s leaders appear to have been appealing to those same gods for help against the Babylonians.

Chapter Summary: Ezekiel 8

1  Ezekiel, in a vision of God at Jerusalem
5  is shown the image of jealousy
7  the chambers of imagery
13  the mourners for Tammuz
16  the worshippers toward the sun
17  God's wrath for their idolatry

What do the individual words in Ezekiel 8:11 mean?

And seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel and Jaazaniah son of Shaphan stood in their midst there stood before them and each man had a censer in his hand and thick a cloud of incense went up
וְשִׁבְעִ֣ים אִ֣ישׁ מִזִּקְנֵ֣י בֵֽית־ יִ֠שְׂרָאֵל וְיַאֲזַנְיָ֨הוּ בֶן־ שָׁפָ֜ן עֹמֵ֤ד בְּתוֹכָם֙ עֹמְדִ֣ים לִפְנֵיהֶ֔ם וְאִ֥ישׁ מִקְטַרְתּ֖וֹ בְּיָד֑וֹ וַעֲתַ֥ר עֲנַֽן־ הַקְּטֹ֖רֶת עֹלֶֽה

וְשִׁבְעִ֣ים  And  seventy 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Number, common plural
Root: שִׁבְעִים  
Sense: seventy.
אִ֣ישׁ  men 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
מִזִּקְנֵ֣י  of  the  elders  of 
Parse: Preposition-m, Adjective, masculine plural construct
Root: זָקֵן  
Sense: old.
בֵֽית־  the  house 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
יִ֠שְׂרָאֵל  of  Israel 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.
וְיַאֲזַנְיָ֨הוּ  and  Jaazaniah 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יַאֲזַנְיָה 
Sense: a Judean, son of the Maachathite, a captain of the Judean forces who visited Gedaliah at Mizpah after Gedaliah had been appointed governor of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar.
בֶן־  son 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
שָׁפָ֜ן  of  Shaphan 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: שָׁפָן 
Sense: rock badger, coney, the hyrax.
עֹמֵ֤ד  stood 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
בְּתוֹכָם֙  in  their  midst 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine plural
Root: תָּוֶךְ  
Sense: midst, middle.
עֹמְדִ֣ים  there  stood 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
לִפְנֵיהֶ֔ם  before  them 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.
וְאִ֥ישׁ  and  each  man 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
מִקְטַרְתּ֖וֹ  had  a  censer 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: מִקְטֶרֶת  
Sense: censer.
בְּיָד֑וֹ  in  his  hand 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
וַעֲתַ֥ר  and  thick 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: עָתָר 
Sense: suppliant, worshipper.
עֲנַֽן־  a  cloud 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: עָנָן  
Sense: cloud, cloudy, cloud-mass.
הַקְּטֹ֖רֶת  of  incense 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: קְטֹרֶת  
Sense: incense, smoke, odour of (burning) sacrifice.
עֹלֶֽה  went  up 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: סָלַק 
Sense: to go up, ascend, climb.