And he shall not look to the altars, the work of his hands, neither shall respect that which his fingers have made, either the groves, or the images.
And he shall not ... respect (that) which his fingers have made, either the groves - (Hebrew, 'Asheeriym (H842)). A symbolical tree is often found in Assyrian inscriptions, representing the hosts of heaven ( tsaabaa' (H6635)), answering to Asteroth, or Astarte, the queen of heaven, as Baal or Bel, or the sun, is the king. Hence, the expression, "a graven image of the grove," is explained 2 Kings 21:7. A man's "fingers" do not make an ordinary grove, as here a man's fingers are said to do.
Or the images (Hebrew, chammanim, from chammah, the sun) - literally, images to the sun; i:e., to Baal, who answers to the sun, as Astarte to the hosts of heaven (2 Kings 23:5; Job 31:26).