Deuteronomy 7:5 (ASV)

Passage

But thus shall ye deal with them: ye shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and hew down their Asherim, and burn their graven images with fire.

Nearby Context

Deuteronomy 7:3 neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.

Deuteronomy 7:4 For he will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of Jehovah be kindled against you, and he will destroy thee quickly.

Deuteronomy 7:5 But thus shall ye deal with them: ye shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and hew down their Asherim, and burn their graven images with fire.

Deuteronomy 7:6 For thou art a holy people unto Jehovah thy God: Jehovah thy God hath chosen thee to be a people for his own possession, above all peoples that are upon the face of the earth.

Deuteronomy 7:7 Jehovah did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all peoples:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "thus", "shall", "deal", "break", "down", "altars", and "dash". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "thus" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "For he will turn away thy son..." into verse 6's "For thou art a holy people unto...", so "thus" and "shall" belong inside that flow. In Deuteronomy context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "thus" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.