16:21 Asherah. A reference to the wooden poles, images, or trees that represented the Canaanite goddess Asherah. There was to be no compromise with pagan idolatry (17:2–7). Despite such warnings, these pagan Asherah shrines later became a snare to the Israelites (Judg. 3:7, 8; 2 Kin. 13:6; 17:10).