Asherah
and pl. Asherim in Revised Version, instead of "grove" and
"groves" of the Authorized Version. This was the name of a
sensual Canaanitish goddess Astarte, the feminine of the
Assyrian Ishtar. Its symbol was the stem of a tree deprived of
its boughs, and rudely shaped into an image, and planted in the
ground. Such religious symbols ("groves") are frequently alluded
to in Scripture (Ex. 34:13; Judg. 6:25; 2 Kings 23:6; 1 Kings
16:33, etc.). These images were also sometimes made of silver or
of carved stone (2 Kings 21:7; "the graven image of Asherah,"
R.V.). (See GROVE [1].).
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