Molech

Molech was an ancient fire deity, of a common type worshipped throughout Canaan generally, and Phoenicia particularly. Under various names, depending upon the city or country, Molech is essentially identical with Chemosh of Moab, and probably Melqart of Tyre. The general name for this type of fire god used throughout Palestine was Baal, meaning ‘lord.’ Molech was the national deity of the country of Ammon, east of the Jordan, or the Ammonites. Molech was also worshipped by the Israelites on many occasions, much to the distress of the prophets.According to Jewish tradition, the cult idol of Molech was made of brass, hollow, and with hands so positioned that something laid therein would fall to the fire below. The practice of laying a child across the hands, and thus committing them to the fire, was termed ‘pass through the fire to Molech.’ The priests of Molech, called Chemarim, were held in high esteem, much like priests were in other cults throughout the ancient world. The position of priest was held by men of high rank and noble birth, and they surely wielded much influence over their flock.While there have been several attempts to associate Molech with the god of the Israelites, Yahweh, this is most improbable. Whenever the ancient texts speak of Molech, he is always termed as a foreign deity relative to the Israelites. The conclusion that they were two different deities is inescapable. That the Israelites occasionally became enamored with the cult of Molech is also inescapable. There are many passages in the Bible where the prophets do verbal battle against the influence of these foreign gods.During the early days of the Israelite’s, when they were first taking possession of Palestine, the worship of various sun- or fire-gods was common throughout Canaan. Offerings were often made by fire [called holocaust by the Jews], and there were many similarities between deities from different neighboring countries. As time passed, these deities were assimilated into Israel, with various traditions retained, and others discontinued.RITESAs mentioned before, Molech was a fire-god and many things were sacrificed to him by burning. Ancient sources mention food and drink, birds and animals, and of course, humans occasionally. However, the practice most spoken of was the sacrifice of young children to the fires of Molech. This practice was especially abhorred by the ancients, and not just the Jews. The Greeks and Romans also mention this inhuman rite in derogatory terms.From the position of those who worshipped Molech, the sacrifice of one’s first born child, or any child, was the ultimate sacrifice. It was done only at times of extreme hardship, and not necessarily willingly. And the practice was not unusual to the deity of Molech. We see the sacrifice of children in other cults also; Chemosh of Moab, Melqart of Tyre, and Yahweh of the Israelites. However, what seemed to be so abhorred was the practice of sacrificial burning. While the Israelites occasionally slit the throat of their first-born, they never committed them to the flames of the holocaust. Early in the history of the Israelites, after seeing the rites of Molech, they passed laws among themselves that if any man made or permitted his children to "pass through the fire" he was to be put to death.Diodorus gives an account of the rite, concerning the bronze statue of Molech. He mentions that the relatives caressed the infants to prevent them from crying. This would imply that they were sent through the flames while still alive. If this be true, then one can readily see why others would detest the practice.THE TOPHETHThe sacred precinct of Molech is called the topheth in the Bible. The area is a graveyard of sorts, where the ashes of victims are placed in an urn. Examination of the remains of bones indicate that most of the victims are young children, although occasionally as much as twelve years old. There are also instances of adults. It is know that the immolation of an adult each year in the fall was a normal practice in the fire-god cults.There are also many animals and birds represented as substitute, but apparently human victims under two predominate. They were the ones afforded special burial in the sacred precinct of the god Molech. Some of these graveyards run into the thousands of victims. Finally, the site would be indicated by a stele in many cases, and some were inscribed. This practice went on for a very long time; many centuries, judging from the size of the topheth.The original appearance of the topeth is unknown, and the word is interpreted as ‘place of fire’ or ‘hearth.’ We know of several of these sanctuaries, some from the literature and a few from archeological work. The most famous would be that mentioned in the Bible, said to be in the valley of Hinnom, just outside of Jerusalem. The valley of Hinnom runs out into the Kidron valley in the south of Jerusalem. Hinnom became Gehenna to the Greeks, which is the Greek word for Hell. This is the sanctuary destroyed by Josiah.Other topheth sanctuaries have been found at Nora, Motya, and several sites in north Africa. A topheth at Hadrumetum near Carthage in north Africa is very large, proving the practice went on for an extended time. This sanctuary lasted throughout the life of the Punic city. Urns, thousands of them, were buried under stone cairns, and contain the burned bones of young children. Many burials are marked with little stele, a few inscribed. This site lasted throughout the life of Carthage, remaining in use from c.812 till 145 BCE, when Carthage fell to the Romans.Etymology Hebrew Molech, king (mo' lek); The name Molech presents many problems to the interpreters of the original texts. The word means king, and there several variations, using the familiar terminations om and am. Hence, the word is also rendered as Milcom, or Malcam, and are then proper names. It is possible that Melqart is another such variation. In short, it is difficult to decide if Molech is a simple appellative meaning king, and therefore a variation of lord, or is in fact a proper name.HISTORYSolomon (King of Palestine, 973 – 933 BCE ) Solomon is well known for the building of the great Jewish Temple. But he apparently got carried away with his building projects, because in his old age he also built a temple for several other deities, notably Chemosh and Molech, in the valley of Hinnom. This he did to console several of is many wives, who were from these foreign countries. While it is occasionally said that Solomon introduced these cults to Israel, in reality, he simply gave an existing cult an official stamp. The cults had existed in the land of Canaan for many centuries before the Israelites came to Palestine.Ahaz (King of Judah, 736 - 720 BCE) After the disruption, the worship of the fire-gods became common in both Israel and Judah. Israel drifted the farthest from the Jewish Yahweh, but Judah also strayed often. Ahaz was the first king of Judah to sacrifice children to Molech, at the altar in the Valley of Hinnom. With the example set by royalty, the cult of Molech became the bane of Judah.Manasseh (King of Judah, 693 - 639 BCE) The king Manasseh has the distinction of being the first king to cause his own son to ‘pass through the fire to Molech’ and was forever condemned by the prophets. He was later carried to Assyria, and when he returned, he was reformed. He condemned the foreign deities, and worshipped only Yahweh. This, however, gave little comfort to the son who was previously sacrificed… Meanwhile, the northern tribes in Israel were also performing this hideous rite, but little was written about it.Josiah (King of Judah, 639 - 608 BCE ) Finally, the Bible tells us, Josiah destroyed these foreign cults and idols. He defiled the sanctuary in the valley of Hinnom, and the many other high places. He destroyed the altar made by Solomon and the prophet Jeremiah predicted that the valley would e called the ‘valley of slaughter.’ The name Hinnom became the general term for Hell.While the cult of Molech was suppressed under the early reign of King Josiah, what is also important here is that Josiah became king at the age of eight. Thus it was Jeremiah who led the purge throughout Judah. One can only imagine the slaughter during the religious reformation, when anyone connected with the foreign cults was declared in violation of the laws of Yahweh and condemned.Jehoiakim (King of Judah, 608-597 BCE) King Jehoiakim reinstated the foreign cults, and Molech was probably among them although it is not specifically mentioned. The prophet Jeremiah, now an old man, wrote a letter condemning the changes, and Jehoiakim had the letter burnt before being read in full. The rift between royalty and the prophetic party was now deep and permanent. The kingdom of Judah remained idolatrous until the captivity in Babylon.BIBLEThe deity Molech appears several times in the Bible, some of which are:For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not wholly follow the LORD, as David his father had done. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites, on the mountain east of Jerusalem. And so he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. [1Kgs 11:5-8]And he [Josiah] brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beer-sheba; and he broke down the high places of the gates that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on one's left at the gate of the city. However, the priests of the high places did not come up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread among their brethren. And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the sons of Hinnom, that no one might burn his son or his daughter as an offering to Molech. [2Kgs 23:8-10]