Deuteronomy 12:2

“Ye shall utterly destroy all the places wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods, etc.] The temples erected for the worship of them by the Canaanites, of which there were many, as appears by the various names of places given them from the temples in them, as Bethshemesh, Bethbaalmeon, Bethpeor, and others: upon the high mountains and upon the hills: which they chose to worship on, being nearer the heavens, and which they thought most acceptable to their gods; and some of them had their names from hence, as Baalpeor, in like manner as Jupiter Olympius was called by the Greeks; (see <240220> Jeremiah 2:20 3:6), and under every green tree; which being shady and solitary, and…”

“Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods--This divine command was founded on the tendencies of human nature; for to remove out of sight everything that had been associated with idolatry, that it might never be spoken of and no vestige of it remain, was the only effectual way to keep the Israelites from temptations to it. It is observable that Moses does not make any mention of temples, for such buildings were not in existence at that early period. The "places" chosen as the scene of heathen worship were situated either on the summit of a lofty mountain, or on some artificial mound, or in a grove, planted with particular trees, such…”

“All the places - Temples, chapels, altars, groves, as appears from other scriptures. Green - tree - As the Gentiles consecrated divers trees to their false gods, so they worshipped these under them. Deuteronomy 12:3”

“12:2 green tree: The Canaanites selected groves of trees for worship sites because their lush foliage demonstrated fertility. Sometimes trees were stylized in the form of wooden poles driven into the ground and dedicated to the worship of the mother goddess, Asherah (see 7:5).”

“utterly: Deu 7:5, Deu 7:25, Deu 7:26; Exo 23:24, Exo 34:12-17; Num 33:51, Num 33:52; Jdg 2:2 possess: or, inherit, Num 22:41; Kg2 16:4, Kg2 17:10, Kg2 17:11, Kg2 23:13; Jer 3:6; Eze 20:28, Eze 20:29; Hos 4:13 Deuteronomy 12:3”