^17:9The Israelites said things about the Lord their God that were not right.¹³ They built high places in all their cities, from the watchtower to the fortress.¹⁴^17:10They set up sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.

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Footnotes

13 The meaning of the verb וַיְחַפְּאוּ (vayékhappé’u), translated here “said,” is uncertain. Some relate it to the verbal root חָפַה (khafah), “to cover,” and translate “they did it in secret” (see 341 חָפָא). However, the pagan practices specified in the following sentences were hardly done in secret. Others propose a meaning “ascribe, impute,” which makes good contextual sense but has little etymological support (see חפא). In this case Israel claimed that the Lord authorized their pagan practices.
14 That is, from the city’s perimeter to the central citadel.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And the people of Israel did secretly against the Lord their God things that were not right. They built for themselves high places in all their towns, from watchtower to fortified city. They set up for themselves pillars and Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree,

NIVNew International Version (2011)

The Israelites secretly did things against the Lord their God that were not right. From watchtower to fortified city they built themselves high places in all their towns. They set up sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

The Israelites secretly did things against the Lord their God that were not right. They built high places in all their towns from watchtower to fortified city. They set up for themselves sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.

NLTNew Living Translation

The people of Israel had also secretly done many things that were not pleasing to the Lord their God. They built pagan shrines for themselves in all their towns, from the smallest outpost to the largest walled city. They set up sacred pillars and Asherah poles at the top of every hill and under every green tree.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

The Israelites secretly did things that were not right against Yahweh their God; they built high places for themselves in all their towns, from the watchtower up to the fortified city. They set up for themselves stone pillars and poles of Asherah worship on every high hill and under every green tree.

KJV 1900King James Version

And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the Lord their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and under every green tree:

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