Translation choice · documented · Divine Council
What the source reads — Asherah — a goddess of the older cult, paired with YHWH in some of the earliest evidence ('YHWH and his Asherah', scratched at Kuntillet Ajrud); her name, and the wooden pole that stood for her
What this version reads — 'a grove' — the KJV renders 'asherah' as a stand of trees throughout, dissolving the goddess into scenery
Asherah was a goddess — in the oldest Israelite religion she stood beside YHWH, and the inscription 'YHWH and his Asherah' was found scratched on 8th-century walls. Her name, and the sacred pole that represented her, recur through Kings and the prophets. The KJV translates 'asherah' as 'grove' every time — following the Greek and Latin before it — so the reforms that tore down her cult read in English as plain tree-felling. A named goddess edited into a clump of woods.