Ezekiel 11:22

"Then did the cherubim lift up their wings, and the wheels were beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above. And the glory of Jehovah went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city. And the Spirit lifted me up, and brought me in the vision by the Spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision that I had seen went up from me. Then I spake unto them of the captivity all the things that Jehovah had showed me."

It is not stated here that the glory of God went to Babylon, but that it stood over the Mount of Olives. The Jews have a tradition that it remained there three years pleading with Israel to repent, which they refused to do, and then departed. At any rate, "The emblem of God's presence left the city, leaving it to its fate."[23] "God had abandoned his sanctuary and his city."[24]

As Taylor noted, "Those elders who had been waiting all this time, during Ezekiel's vision-journey to Jerusalem, now had a lot to listen to."[25] However, we should not forget that they had the privilege of hearing part of Ezekiel's message directly.