Ezekiel 8:11
And there stood before them seventy men of the ancients of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up. And there stood before them seventy men of the ancients of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up.
What was disclosed was a vision concerning Jerusalem in the sixth year of Zedekiah's reign. The seventy ancients of the house of Israel were not merely elderly men but chosen counselors and wise men, leaders and teachers who sat at the gate where people came to seek advice. As such they should have been the spiritual leaders of the people. Yet though entrusted with guiding the people, their hearts were not right with God, and they were false teachers.
With every man his censer in hand they were offering incense before idolatrous representations that had been brought into hidden chambers within the sacred precincts of the temple court. This was a heathen rite practiced in secrecy. While doing it they flattered themselves that the Lord does not see them and declared that the Lord has forsaken the earth.