“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.’”
Parallel translations
- 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.’”
- KJV 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.
- NKJV 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 the room of his idols? For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us, the Lord has forsaken the land.’ ”
- NASB Then He said to me, “Do you see, son of man, what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each man in the rooms of his carved images? For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us; the Lord has abandoned the land.’ ”
- NLT Then the Lord said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the leaders of Israel are doing with their idols in dark rooms? They are saying, ‘The Lord doesn’t see us; he has deserted our land!’”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God reveals the elders' secret reasoning: they think the Lord neither sees them nor cares for the land. Their practical atheism fuels their idolatry.
Overview
Worshiping "in the dark" expresses both literal secrecy and spiritual blindness. Their claim that "Yahweh doesn't see" denies God's omniscience and providence, the false comfort that lets sin flourish. Ironically, God sees and exposes the very deeds they thought hidden. The truth that God sees all should drive sinners not to despair but to the One who bore judgment so the seeing God could justly forgive.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Isa 29:15Woe to those who dig deep to hide their plans from the LORD. In darkness they do their works and say, “Who sees us, and who will know?”
- Ezek 9:9He replied, “The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great. The land is full of bloodshed, and the city is full of perversity. For they say, ‘The LORD has forsaken the land; the LORD does not see.’
- Ezek 8:15“Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see this? Yet you will see even greater abominations than these.”
- Ps 10:11He says to himself, “God has forgotten; He hides His face and never sees.”
- Eph 5:12For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.
- John 3:19–20And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil.
- Ezek 8:17“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!
- Ezek 8:6–8“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.”
- Job 24:13–17Then there are those who rebel against the light, not knowing its ways or staying on its paths.
- Job 22:12–13Is not God as high as the heavens? Look at the highest stars, how lofty they are!
- Ps 94:7–10They say, “The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob pays no heed.”
- Ps 73:11The wicked say, “How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge?”
- Ezek 8:11Before 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.
- Ezek 20:1In the seventh year, on the tenth day of the fifth month, some of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and they sat down before me.
- Ezek 14:1Then some of the elders of Israel came and sat down before me.
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Christ at the center
The promise of one Shepherd-King David, a new heart and new Spirit, and the river of life flowing from the temple all stream toward Christ, the good Shepherd who gives the Spirit.
How Ezekiel 8:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.