Bible Strands
Judges 6:28
When the men of the city got up in the morning, there was Baal’s altar torn down, with the Asherah pole cut down beside it and the second bull offered up on the newly built altar.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrative reports the city men rising at dawn to discover the overnight destruction of the local pagan sanctuary. The verse itself contains no dialogue, but the immediate context shows the men investigating the act and identifying Gideon as the perpetrator.
The words — The Hebrew verb נֻתַּץ (nu.tatz) translates literally as "it was torn down," describing the physical dismantling of the sanctuary structure. The noun מִזְבֵּחַ (mi.zbe.ach) specifies the altar that was demolished, while the text notes the associated Asherah pole was cut down beside it.
The thread — The mandate to destroy foreign altars and Asherah poles recurs in Deuteronomy 7:5 and 2 Kings 18:4. These passages share the verse’s concrete focus on removing physical sites of Canaanite worship rather than merely rejecting the deities.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to confront the tangible consequences of obeying a command that directly opposes local religious authority. It asks for a clear assessment of how fear and obedience operate when dismantling entrenched cultural practices.
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The Hebrew words
King James Version
And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built.