8:14 The Lord then brought Ezekiel to the north entrance to the inner temple courtyard, in his vision (cf. vv. 3, 5). There the prophet saw women weeping for Tammuz (cf. Isa. 17:10-11). Tammuz was an ancient Sumerian and then Akkadian fertility deity, the husband and brother of Ishtar.148Since Ezekiel saw this vision in September (v. 1), these women may have been weeping for Tammuz because he was thought to die at the end of the summer only to rise again each Spring.149
"After the exile the Hebrew calendar included a month called Tammuz, the fourth month (June-July). This was the time for grapes to be harvested. The preservation of the name Tammuz in the calendar suggests the impact this form of pagan worship had on Jewish life and worship, both during and after the exile."150
8:15 The Lord made sure Ezekiel saw the women, but He also assured him that he would see even greater abominations than these things.
