Imagery

Imagery in the biblical context appears most significantly in the phrase "chambers of his imagery" in Ezekiel 8:12, where the prophet is shown in vision the secret idolatrous practices of the elders of Israel in Jerusalem. Seventy elders stand before images on the walls — carvings or paintings of animals and abominable creatures representing the gods of Egypt and other nations — burning incense in a hidden inner room of the temple precinct. They justify their actions by saying "the LORD seeth us not; the LORD hath forsaken the earth."

The scene represents the depth of the syncretism and apostasy that Ezekiel's visions expose in Jerusalem prior to the Babylonian destruction. "Chambers of imagery" thus refers to private rooms or recesses where forbidden images were venerated away from public view — the hidden corruption that God sees even when worshippers believe themselves concealed. The passage is one of the most vivid in the prophetic literature for depicting the inner spiritual condition of Jerusalem before judgment fell in 586 BC.