Albert Barnes Commentary Ezekiel 8:11

"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." — Ezekiel 8:11 (ASV)

Seventy men - Compare (Exodus 24:9–10). The vision may have pointed to the contrast between the times. The number “seven” is symbolic of the covenant between Yahweh and His people, and so the “seventy” men forcibly exhibit the breach of the covenant. It is a figure of the covert idolatry of the whole people.