Ezekiel 8:13
He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do.
Original Language Analysis
Historical Context
The progression of revealed abominations follows pedagogical pattern: God teaches Ezekiel (and through him, the exiles) by building from shocking to more shocking revelations. This method ensures the lesson is learned thoroughly. Ancient Near Eastern literature used similar progressive revelation in wisdom and prophetic texts.
What Ezekiel has seen—the image of jealousy (v.5), the secret chamber idolatry (v.10), and the seventy elders worship (v.11)—already constitutes comprehensive covenant violation. Yet God indicates worse practices remain, building toward climactic revelation of abominations even more offensive to His holiness.
The pedagogical method serves apologetic purpose. When judgment falls in 586 BC and the temple is destroyed, the exiles will understand this was not divine weakness or injustice but righteous response to comprehensive, multilayered covenant violation that went far beyond surface problems.
For contemporary readers, this progression warns against assuming we have seen the full extent of sin either personally or institutionally. Human depravity runs deeper than we naturally perceive, requiring divine revelation to expose fully.
Questions for Reflection
- What does progressive revelation of sin teach about comprehensive divine knowledge?
- How does God systematic exposure of wickedness demonstrate judicial thoroughness?
- In what ways might churches today practice abominations worse than what initially appears?
- What is the danger of assuming we have seen the worst of human or institutional corruption?
- How does complete exposure of sin highlight the miracle of God grace in Christ (Romans 5:20)?
Related Resources
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Analysis & Commentary
He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these. After revealing the seventy elders idolatry, God warns Ezekiel that even worse practices await his observation. This progression from bad to worse demonstrates the comprehensive degradation of temple worship and justifies the severe judgment to follow.
Turn thee yet again indicates movement to another location within the vision, another revelatory vantage point. God systematically exposes layer after layer of corruption, ensuring the prophet fully comprehends the depth of covenant violation. Each new revelation builds evidence for justified divine judgment.
Thou shalt see greater abominations than these establishes progression of wickedness. What seemed shocking proves to be relatively mild compared to what follows. Greater abominations indicates escalating severity in God estimation. The superlative form emphasizes that worse violations exist beyond what has already been exposed.
From Reformed perspective, this demonstrates the comprehensive nature of divine knowledge. God sees all layers of sin from least to greatest. It also shows judicial process—God fully documents all evidence before executing judgment. The verse warns that human capacity for wickedness is deeper than we imagine, and that religious people can engage in practices more offensive than they realize.