“By this therefore shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged; and this is all the fruit to take away his sin; when he maketh all the stones of the altar as chalkstones that are beaten in sunder, the groves and images shall not stand up.”
Therefore by this the iniquity of Jacob will be forgiven, and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin: when he makes all the altar stones like chalk stones crushed to powder, when no Asherim or incense altars will stand, establishing that Israel's restoration includes the removal of idolatry and the purification of worship. The destruction of altar stones and idolatrous apparatus represents the elimination of the false worship that occasioned judgment. The making of stones like powder suggests complete destruction and the impossibility of rebuilding. The removal of Asherim—sacred poles representing the goddess Asherah—and incense altars represents the purification of the cult from false elements. This verse establishes that restoration is not merely military or political but fundamentally spiritual, involving the return to exclusive worship of the true God.
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