"Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way towards the North and
behold, northward at the gate of the altar, this image of Jealousy in the entry.
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. And he brought me to the door of the court; and
when I looked, behold a hole in the wall. Then said he unto me, son of man,
dig now in the wall; and when I had digged in the wall, and behold the
wicked abominations that they do here. So I went and saw; and behold
every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts and all the idols of the
house of Israel, portrayed upon the walls round about. And there stood before
them seventy men of the ancients of the house of Israel, and in the
midst of them stood Zaazaniah, the son of Shaphan, with every man his
censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up.
"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 has forsaken the earth. He said also unto me:
turn the yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than they do.
Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the Lord; and, behold, there
sat women weeping for Tammuz.
"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. And he
brought me into the inner court of the Lord's house, and, behold, at the
temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about five and
twenty men, with their backs towards the temple of the Lord, and their
faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.
"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 into anger; and lo! they put the branch to their nose. Therefore,
will I also deal in fury; mine eyes shall not spare, neither will I have
pity; and they cry in mine ears, with a loud voice, yet will I not hear
them." (Ezek. 8.)
I can say with John:
