the strange altars] i.e. altars belonging to gods other than Jehovah.
and the high places] a direct contradiction of 1 Kings xv. 14, where it is said “But the high places were not taken away: nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect with the Lord all his days.” This remarkable contrast affords a vivid illustration of the different standpoints of Kings and Chronicles In Kings the removal of the high-places is the great reform of later days effected by Hezekiah (1 Kings xviii. 4, 22), by Josiah (2 Kings xxiii. 8). To the Chronicler, who believed that the law centralising the worship of Jehovah in Jerusalem was in force from the Mosaic age, the abolition of the high-places was felt to be a minimum of reform and must surely have been carried out by any king with a claim to piety. See also the note on xv. 17.
the pillars] LXX. τὰς στήλας. The “pillar” or “obelisk,” Hebrew Maṣṣēbāh, was a monolith standing by an altar as a symbol of the god worshipped at the altar. In later days an image took the place of the pillar, i.e. the mere symbol was succeeded by the likeness of the god. (W. R. Smith, Religion of the Semites², pp. 203 ff., and for illustrations of those recently discovered at Gezer see Macalister, Bible Side-lights, or Driver, Modern Research as illustrating the Bible, p. 63.)
and hewed down the Asherim] An Ashērah (plural Ashērim and Ashēroth) was a wooden pole planted beside an altar as the symbol of a deity. It appears to have been a survival of tree-worship, as the Maṣṣēbāh was a survival of stone-worship. The Ashērah of itself did not represent any particular deity, but it could be carved to bear the symbol of any special god or goddess, e.g. of Ashtarte. (W. R. Smith, Religion of the Semites², pp. 186 ff.) Probably the term Ashērah was used in reference to the living sacred trees, which are still common in Palestine: see the present writer’s edition of the Mishna tractate, ‘Aboda Zara, pp. 60 f.
⁵Also he took away out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the sun-images: and the kingdom was quiet before him.
5. the sun-images] Compare xxxiv. 4; Isaiah xvii. 8, xxvii. 9. The Hebrew word (“ḥamman”) is of uncertain meaning and the supposed connection with heat or the sun is unsatisfactory. On the whole the evidence points to the conclusion that the “ḥamman” was a stone pillar associated with the altar, and much the same as the “Maṣṣēbāh,” the difference perhaps being that the former was artificially shaped, the latter was of natural stone (see article Baal in Hastings’ Dictionary of Religion and Ethics, pp. 287, 288).
6–8.
Defensive Measures of Asa.
From xvi. 1–6 = 1 Kings xv. 17–22, it appears that there was a strong and probably a reliable tradition ascribing to Asa activity in building defensive townships in Judah. It is likely that the present verses with their vague reference to strongly built cities with no mention of their number or names are only an expansion of the more precise references in xvi. 6. The Chronicler has assigned the narrative given in xvi. 1–6 (the war with Baasha) to the close of Asa’s reign (for reasons noted under xvi. 1), and he obviously wanted something to occupy the ten years of peace with which—according to his story—the reign of Asa opened. This is conveniently found in a general allusion to building and fortification.
⁶And he built fenced cities in Judah: for the land was quiet, and he had no war in those years; because the Lord had given him rest. ⁷For he said unto Judah, Let us build these cities, and make about them walls, and towers, gates, and bars; the land is yet before us, because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought him, and he hath given us rest on every side. So they built and prospered. ⁸And Asa had an army that bare bucklers and spears, out of Judah three hundred thousand; and out of Benjamin, that bare shields and drew bows, two hundred and fourscore thousand: all these were mighty men of valour.
8. that bare bucklers and spears ... that bare shields and drew bows] LXX., δύναμις ὁπλοφόρων (= ὁπλιτῶν) αἰρόντων θυρεοὺς καὶ δόρατα ... πελτασταὶ καὶ τοξόται. The Chronicler divides Asa’s army into the heavy-armed men belonging to Judah and the light-armed bowmen belonging to Benjamin. Asa apparently had no chariots. “Bucklers” and “shields” should be transposed as in ix. 15.