Albert Barnes Commentary Zephaniah 1:5

"and them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship, that swear to Jehovah and swear by Malcam;" — Zephaniah 1:5 (ASV)

And those who worship the host of heaven upon the (flat) housetops. This was fulfilled by Josiah, who destroyed “the altars that were on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz” (2 Kings 23:12). Jeremiah speaks as if this worship was almost universal, as though nearly every roof had been profaned by this idolatry: “The houses of Jerusalem, and the houses of Judah, shall be defiled as the place of Tophet, because of all the houses upon whose roofs they have burned incense unto all the host of heaven, and have poured out drink-offerings unto other gods” (Jeremiah 19:13). “The Chaldeans that fight against this city, shall come and set fire on this city, and burn it with the houses, upon whose roofs they have offered incense unto Baal, and poured out drink-offerings to other gods, to provoke Me to anger” (Jeremiah 32:29).

They worshiped on the housetops, probably to have a clearer view of that magnificent expanse of sky—“the moon and stars which” God had “ordained” (Psalms 8:3)—the “queen of heaven,” whom they worshiped instead of God Himself. There is something so mysterious in that calm face of the moon as it “walketh in beauty” (Job 31:26). God seems to have invested it with such delegated influence over the seasons and the produce of the earth that they stopped short in it and worshiped the creature rather than the Creator.

It is much like how people today talk of “Nature,” admire “Nature,” and speak of its “laws”—not as laws God imposed upon it, but as laws inherent in it, affecting us and our well-being. They observe its ever-varying changes but fail to recognize these as “doing whatsoever God commandeth them upon the face of the world in the earth, whether for correction, or for His land or for mercy!” (Job 37:12–13). The idolaters of old “worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator, Who is blessed forever” (Romans 1:25); modern people equally make this world their object, only they idolize themselves and their discoveries, and worship their own intellect.

This worship on the housetops individualized the public idolatry; it was a rebellion against God, family by family—a sort of family prayer of idolatry. “Did we,” say the mingled multitude to Jeremiah, “make our cakes to worship her, and pour out our drink-offerings unto her, without our men?” (Jeremiah 44:19). Its family character is described in Jeremiah: “The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto other gods” (Jeremiah 7:18). The idolatry spread to other cities. “We will certainly do,” they say, “as we have done, we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem” (Jeremiah 44:17).

The incense went up continually “as a memorial to God” from the altar of incense in the temple. In contrast, the “roofs of the houses” were so many altars from which, street by street and house by house, the incense went up to her for whom they dethroned God, “the queen of heaven.” It was an idolatry with which Judah was especially obsessed, believing that they received all good things of this world from these idols and not from God. When punished for their sin, they repented of their partial repentance and maintained to Jeremiah that they were punished for “leaving off to burn incense to the queen of heaven” (Jeremiah 44:2; Jeremiah 44:15; Jeremiah 44:18).

And those who worship ... the Lord—but with a divided heart and service; those who “swear by the Lord” (or rather, to the Lord), swearing allegiance and loyal service to Him, while they commit acts that deny it, in that “they swear by Malcham.” This Malcham is better understood not as a descriptive title (though related to one), but as “their king”—most probably, I think, “Moloch.”

This idolatry had been their enduring idolatry in the wilderness, after the calves had been annihilated. It is the worship against which Israel is warned by name in the Law (Leviticus 18:21; Leviticus 20:2–4). Then, throughout the history of the Judges, we hear of the kindred idolatry of Baal, the Lord (who was also called “eternal king” and from whom individuals named themselves “son of (the) king,” or “servant of (the) king”), or the manifold Baals and Ashtaroth or Astarte. But after these had been removed on the preaching of Samuel (1 Samuel 7:6; 1 Samuel 12:10), this idolatry does not reappear in Judah until the intermarriage of Jehoram with the house of Ahab (2 Kings 8:16–18, 26-27; 2 Chronicles 21:6, 12-13; 2 Chronicles 22:2–4).

The kindred and equally horrible worship of “Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon” (1 Kings 11:7), was brought in by Solomon in his decay, and endured until his high place was defiled by Josiah (2 Kings 23:13–14). It is probable then that this was “their king” of whom Zephaniah speaks, whom Amos and after him Jeremiah called “their king,” but speaking of Ammon. Him, the king of Ammon, Judah adopted as “their king.” They owned God as their king in words; Molech they owned by their deeds. They worshiped and swore allegiance to the Lord, and yet they swore by their king. His name was familiarly in their mouths; to him they appealed as the Judge and witness of the truth of their words; his displeasure they invoked on themselves if they swore falsely.

Cyril: “Those in error were accustomed to swear by heaven and, as a matter of reverence, to call out, ‘By the king and lord Sun.’ Those who do so must of set purpose and willfully depart from the love of God, since the Law expressly says, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and serve Him alone, and swear by His Name” (Deuteronomy 6:13).

The first group, who “worshipped on the roofs,” were mere idolaters. The second group “worshiped,” as they thought, “the Lord.” They bound themselves solemnly by oath to Him, but with a reserve, joining a hateful idol to Him, in that they, by a religious act, owned it also as a god. The act they committed was, in direct words or by implication, forbidden by God. The command to “swear by the Lord” implied that they were to swear by no one else. It was followed by the prohibition to go after other gods (Deuteronomy 6:13–14; Deuteronomy 10:30; Jeremiah 4:2). Conversely, to swear by other gods was forbidden as a part of their service: “Be very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the Law of Moses, neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, but cleave unto the Lord your God” (Joshua 23:6–8). “How shall I pardon thee for this? Thy children have forsaken Me, and have sworn by those who are no gods” (Jeremiah 5:7). “They taught My people to swear by Baal” (Jeremiah 12:16).

They thought perhaps that because they professed to serve God, paid greater homage to Him, and professed and bound themselves to be His (such is the meaning of “swear to the Lord”), they might, without renouncing His service, do certain things, such as “swear by their king,” although in effect they thereby owned him also as a god.

To such people Elijah said, “How long halt ye between two opinions? If the Lord be God, follow Him; but if Baal, then follow him” (1 Kings 18:21). And God by Jeremiah rejects with abhorrence such divided service: “Ye trust in lying words, which will not profit. Will ye steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods, and come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My name, saying, We are delivered to do all these abominations” (Jeremiah 7:8–10). And Hosea: “Neither go ye to Beth-aven, and swear there, The Lord liveth” (Hosea 4:15).

Jerome says such are Christians: “who think that they can serve together the world and the Lord, and please two masters, God and Mammon; who, “being soldiers of Jesus Christ” and having sworn allegiance to Him, “entangle themselves with the affairs of this life” (2 Timothy 2:3–4) and “offer the same image to God and to Caesar.”” To such people, God, whom they own with their lips, is not their God. Their idol is, as the very name says, “their king,” whom alone they please, thereby displeasing and dishonoring God. We must not only fear, love, and honor God, but love, fear, and honor all else for Him Alone.