There are numerous references in the Hebrew Bible to religious centers known as “high places” (Heb. bamah, or plural bamot). Many English speakers assume this refers to elevated ground, a hill or summit of some kind, and in some cases this was surely true. However, Ahaz king of Judah “sacrificed and burned incense on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree” (2 Kgs 16:4). If “high place” means “hill,” why is this verse so redundant? And it gets more interesting. Ezekiel speaks of high places being built......