Deuteronomy 12:2

Deuteronomy 12:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree:
• New International Version (NIV)Destroy completely all the places on the high mountains, on the hills and under every spreading tree, where the nations you are dispossessing worship their gods.
• English Standard Version (ESV)You shall surely destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree.
• New King James Version (NKJV)You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations which you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree.

Context of Deuteronomy 12:2

1These are the laws and the rules that you must obey. Be careful to obey them when you live in the land that the Lord your God has given to you. He is the God that your ancestors worshipped. Obey these laws all the time that you live in that land. You will chase out the nations who live there. Then you must destroy completely all the places where those people worship their gods. Those places are on the tops of mountains and hills, and under big green trees. 3You must break into pieces their altars and stone pillars. Burn their Asherah poles. Knock down the images of their gods. Destroy those places so that nobody remembers the false gods. 4Do not worship the Lord your God in the same way that those people worship their gods.

Deuteronomy 12:2 word by word

אַבֵּ֣ד תְּ֠אַבְּדוּן אֶֽת־כָּל־הַמְּקֹמ֞וֹת אֲשֶׁ֧ר עָֽבְדוּ־שָׁ֣ם הַגּוֹיִ֗ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַתֶּ֛ם יֹרְשִׁ֥ים אֹתָ֖ם אֶת־אֱלֹהֵיהֶ֑ם עַל־הֶהָרִ֤ים הָֽרָמִים֙ וְעַל־הַגְּבָע֔וֹת וְתַ֖חַת כָּל־עֵ֥ץ רַעֲנָן׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Ye shall utterlyאָבַד'âbad · to perishH6
• all the placesמָקוֹםmâqôm mâqôm meqômâh meqômâh · placeH4725
• wherein the nationsגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
• whichאֲשֶׁר'ăsher · whichH834
• ye shall possessיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: takeH3423
• servedעָבַד‛âbad · to serve: ministerH5647
• their godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• upon the highרוּםrûm · to exaltH7311
• mountainsהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
• and upon the hillsגִּבְעָהgib‛âh · hillH1389
• and under every greenרַעֲנָןra‛ănân · luxuriantH7488
• treeעֵץ‛êts · treeH6086

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 12:2

• Deuteronomy 7:5This is what you must do to the people of those nations: Break their altars and their stone pillars into pieces. Cut down their Asherah poles. Burn their idols with fire.
• Exodus 23:24Do not worship their gods. Do not serve them. Do not copy the evil things that these people do. Destroy their idols and break their special stones into pieces.
• Exodus 34:12Do not make any agreements with those people in the land where you are going. If you become their friends, they would teach you to do wrong things.
• Numbers 33:51‘Say to the Israelites, “You will cross over the Jordan River and you will go into the land of Canaan.
• Judges 2:2I told you not to make any agreement with the people who live in this land. I told you to destroy the altars where they worship their gods. But you have not done as I told you. Why have you not obeyed me?
• Numbers 22:41The next day, Balak took Balaam to Bamoth-Baal. From there, Balaam could see some of the big group of the Israelites.
• 2 Kings 16:4Ahaz offered sacrifices and he burned incense on altars on the hills, as well as under all the big trees.
• 2 Kings 17:10They put up stone pillars and Asherah poles to worship their gods. They put them on top of all the high hills and under all the big trees.
• 2 Kings 23:13King Josiah also destroyed the altars that were on the hills east of Jerusalem. Those altars were on the south side of Mount Trouble. King Solomon had built them to worship these false gods: Ashtoreth, a wicked female god that the people in Sidon worshipped. Chemosh, a wicked god that the people in Moab worshipped. Molech, the evil god that the people in Ammon worshipped.
• Jeremiah 3:6The Lord spoke to me while Josiah was king of Judah. He said, ‘Look at what the Israelites have done. They have not been faithful to me. They have worshipped other gods under every big tree and on every high hill. Israel has been like a wife who is not faithful to her husband.
• Ezekiel 20:28I took them to the land which I had promised to give to them. But when they were there, they continued to offer sacrifices to idols. They did this on every high hill or under every green tree that they saw! They burned sweet incense and they poured out wine as offerings in all those places. That made me very angry.
• Hosea 4:13They offer sacrifices on the tops of the mountains. They burn offerings on the hills. They do this under the oak trees, the poplar trees and the other big trees. They enjoy the shade under those trees. As a result, your daughters serve the false gods as prostitutes. Your sons' wives are also guilty of adultery.

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 12:2

• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2green tree: The Canaanites used groups of trees as places for worship. They chose these trees because their green leaves showed fertility and life. Sometimes the trees were made into wooden poles set in the ground. These poles were used to honor the mother goddess, Asherah (see 7:5).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods--This divine command was founded on the tendencies of human nature; for to remove out of sight everything that had been associated with idolatry, that it might never be spoken of and no vestige of it remain, was the only effectual way to keep the Israelites from temptations to it. It is observable that Moses does not make any mention of temples, for…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 12:2

• Iconoclasm
• Mountain

In the dictionaries

• High place
• Idolatry
• Lust
• Rest
• Atonement, Day of
• Color; Colors
• Criticism
• Deuteronomy
• Elijah
• Exodus, the Book of

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings