Deuteronomy 16 Footnotes

16:22 The prohibition against setting up sacred stone pillars has to be understood in its context. Here these objects are associated with the rituals of pagan worship (v. 21). The pentateuchal narrative includes instances when such monuments were erected as memorials and even as elements in Israel’s worship of the Lord (Gn 28:18; 31:13,45; Ex 24:4). As with many apparent contradictions or discrepancies in Scripture, this one ceases to be such when its context is taken into consideration.