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Theories about Jacob's nemesis

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Stated as questions or possibilities (avoid question marks, "Maybe", "I think", etc). More appropriate for another article. Illogical or previously disproven. Proven by canon source, and moved to main article. Speculative and lacking any evidence to support arguments. Responding to another theory (use discussion page instead). This does not include responses that can stand alone as its own theory. Usage of an indented bullet does not imply the statement is a response. See the Lostpedia theory policy for more details.

From Lostpedia Theory Policy: "A theory is an attempt to explain a certain mystery using logic backed up with logically consistent observations and facts. Without supporting evidence, statements are merely speculation. Speculation is similar to theories except there are no facts or logic to back the theory up." - This is a theory page, not a speculation page. Speculation without supporting evidence can be deleted. To respond to a theory, use the discussion page. Feel free to add supporting evidence to an existing theory.

Contents 1 Jacob's enemy orchestrated the Time Flashes to manipulate John Locke 2 Identity 2.1 Jacob as a Religious Icon 2.2 Jacob's Father 2.3 Conflicting Sides of Jacob 2.4 Holy Trinity 2.5 Esau 2.6 Sherem 2.7 Smoke Monster 2.8 Aaron 2.9 Nemesis, The Manipulator 2.10 Jacob's True Rival Died 2.11 Merely One Entity of the Smoke Monster 2.12 Apep 2.13 TAWERET 2.14 Anubis 2.15 Jacob as Sobek 2.16 Set 2.17 The Man Behind the Curtain 2.18 Trickster God 2.19 Lesser god 2.20 A Combination of Identities Previously Mentioned 2.21 Moses 2.22 An Embodiment of the Island 2.23 Creator of the Utopian Society 2.24 Satan 2.25 Isn't evil 2.26 Jacob's Enemy is "Good" 2.27 Fatalist 2.28 Female and Smoke Monster 2.29 Logic, Smokey, Great Cycle 2.30 James Sawyer 2.31 Duality 2.32 JudeoChristian God 2.33 Morpheus 2.34 Devil's advocate 2.35 Jacob’s Enemy’s name is Thomas 2.36 Jacob's Enemy's name is Calvin 2.37 Nemesis has always been Locke 3 Other Appearances 3.1 Christian Shephard 3.1.1 Counter-Evidence 3.2 Dave (Hurley's imaginary friend from the hospital) 3.3 Alex (Ben's daughter) 3.4 Kelvin Inman 3.5 Ben's Mother 3.6 Ana Lucia 3.7 Libby 3.8 Richard Alpert in the jungle meeting young Ben 3.9 Locke's Father 3.10 Method of appearing as others 3.11 Rousseau's Expedition 3.12 Boone 3.13 Jacob's nemesis is Matthew Abaddon 3.14 Yemi 4 Hierarchy 4.1 Leader 4.2 Adviser 4.3 One who has been cast out 4.4 Inability To Touch 4.5 Magical Servant or Bound Divine Being 4.6 Good Eats 4.7 Relationship to Babylon 5 5 The Loophole 5.1 Kicking Jacob into the fire 5.2 A Loop 5.3 Nemesis Caused the Failed Pregnancies 5.4 Jacob is Mr.X's Constant

Jacob's enemy orchestrated the Time Flashes to manipulate John Locke

While at first the time periods visited seemed random. This is because we were learning about them primarily through the eyes of several different survivors. However, when focusing on John Locke's experiences only, and using current insight regarding the events of the Season 5 finale, a pattern begins to develop: John Locke's experiences during his time-traveling better serve to enhance his faith and his connection to the Island, and these experiences were a direct result of the manipulation of time traveling by an outside force; conceivably and specifically, Jacob's enemy. Let's look at John Locke's final moments on the Island:

• "Because You Left"
  • The Beechcraft First time jump; 1990's-ish. A crucial moment in John Locke's history with the island was the discovery of this airplane and the events that transpired. Look it up. Huge impact on John to experience this crash firsthand. This would likely influence his faith that the Island is guiding him somehow. Then he is shot in the leg and left for dead. Until...
    • Meeting with Richard. And guess who else? Jacob's enemy in John's body, and Ben listening in the distance. Jacob's enemy manipulated Richard to go over there. The words that Richard used to persuade John were the words of Jacob's enemy. He was manipulating all of them. John's mission is to leave the island, retrieve the Oceanic 6 and Ben and bring them to the island for some unknown purpose. This is also where we learn that John might have to die to accomplish this. So the flaw in logic is that the man impersonating John Locke after the return to the Island on Ajira 316 would have to know that John would die, and that the success of this plan would somehow lead to the events of "The Incident" for all parities involved. He would have to know the future. However, conceivably an enemy that had the ability to time travel might know a thing or two about the future or the past.
• "The Lie" and "Jughead"
  • The Flaming Arrows. During "The Lie" the survivors, not including John Locke, are attacked on their camp by a mysterious group or archers. After they escape, They reunite with John, after he saves them from a group of people in U.S. Army fatigues. We learn in "Jughead" that these individuals were a group of people living on the island including Charles Widmore, Eloise Hawking, and...
    • Meeting with Richard, part 2. Part 1, technically. John makes his way into camp and meets with a version of Richard who is meeting John Locke for the first time. We know that John has a history with Richard. We know that Richard visited him in the hospital the day he is born, and that it was this future/past John that suggested he do that. Richard visited him as a boy, and was always telling John how special he was on the Island. Richard has a ton of faith in John. I think that this is the direct result of this experience. My belief is that the individual who is causing the time travel is using this particular experience to manipulate Richard Alpert. He will listen to whatever John Locke says to him. John always speaks the truth, and Richard recognizes this through all of his experiences with John over the years. So when Jacob's enemy comes to town in John's body, no matter how outrageous his demands, Richard will always obey.
• "The Little Prince"
  • The Hatch, dude. The Hatch! After another time switch, John Locke and his people are taken to a night that happened a few months prior during Season 1 of the show. The events of that night at the hatch, where John sees the light from the underground facility is one of the most important moments from John Locke's life. The moment his faith is solidified. John is calling out to God, and God answers. Of course, it's not God. It's Desmond. But that doesn't matter. For the character of John Locke, this seals the deal. He has total faith in the Island. Whatever happens, John is going to go full force. Now he knows what he has to do. He is going to follow the path set out for him by Jacob's enemy without question. He thinks he is doing what is best for the Island, for his friends, and for himself and his devotion, but he's not. We know now that it was a manipulation, and I believe that John had to come to this decision by no other means. The enemy knew that John would have to experience a string of miracles, as he always does, before he would be convinced to do his bidding.
    • Back to the Future. The survivors travel through time again. Probably to "now," meaning 2007. It is a time after Ajira 316 has crashed on the island. They are pursued by unknown assailants. They travel again, out of harm's way. It's 1988 and Danielle and her team of scientists are living on the island. There are a series of jumps through time before John finally makes it to the Orchid station to complete his task of leaving the Island. These time jumps do appear to be more random in nature, but the rapid pace with which they occur begin to take their toll on the individuals involved. Charlotte, Miles, and Juliet could be dying. People everywhere are lost and alone. John is the only one who can stop the turmoil. While the current events of the time periods visited may not have any direct impact on the storyline of John Locke, the well-being of everyone on the Island is his priority as leader. They arrive at a modern version of the Orchid Station, before quickly being transported to an earlier time where they find a well that John Locke enters. While John is going down the well, the group is taken to a time before a well even existed. The result of this is John ending up at the bottom of the well with a broken leg. Very similar to what happened during "Because You Left", John is injured (in the leg), and meets with an eerie individual who instructs him further on his path. This time it is Christian Shepard. We don't fully understand yet who Christian is working for, or the how or why. He has stated in the past to John that he represents Jacob and his desires. We don't know what's going on with that. But he has the information that John needs to return to the island after he has fulfilled his mission. He also tells him how to leave. John leaves with the assistance of a big wheel.
• "The Life and Death of Jeremy Bentham"
  • John travels to the modern day in our dimension to reunite the Oceanic 6 and return them to the Island. John is a failure in his mission and is filled with self doubt. He discovers that maybe Richard was right. We know what happens after that. John dies. This new guy takes over John's identity. For what greater purpose, we cannot know, yet. Part of that plan involves manipulating Benjamin Linus to kill Jacob, with some assistance from Richard Alpert. Things that have been set in motion for some time, but at least begining with the time traveling.

Identity

Jacob as a Religious Icon

Many people have noted the contrasting colors between the Nemesis and Jacob, with Jacob wearing white and Nemesis wearing black. Jacob represents a Christ-like figure that someone has appointed as a divine entity or disciple.

In the same way, Nemesis represents Satan. The conversation the two had at the beginning of the season finale mirrors the discussion God had with the devil regarding humanity. In the book of Revelation, it is prophesied that the devil will be bound by chains prior to being set free to deceive humans shortly before the end of time. This mirrors my theory that Jacob's Enemy was previously imprisoned in the cabin by the surrounding perimeter of ash. The ash kept Nemesis in, but people could still go into the cabin (e.g Locke and Ben were still able to visit the cabin and hear the Nemesis in "The Man behind the Curtain").

But, just as explained in Revelation regarding the end of the world, Jacob let his enemy out of the cabin to roam the Island and deceive the people. Yet, Nemesis simply couldn't kill Jacob. In the Bible, the Devil could not kill Jesus,any attempt to do so would have been thwarted by Angels appointed by God to watch over his Son. To fulfill the prophesies, become a martyr, and the Christian Savior of the human race, humans had to kill Jesus. Nemesis deceives Ben into killing Jacob in order to keep his hands out of it.

• Adding to the above theory, it's important to note Faraday's remark before he was killed about how we, as in humans, are 'variables'. Perhaps Jacob and his nemesis are in some way bound by Fate, and hence unable to harm one another, but seeing as Jacob's nemesis manages to convince Ben to kill Jacob out of his own desire, this does not count as the nemesis's action. Also, the fact that the nemesis actually kicked Jacob into the fire seems to me to show that it is the action of Ben 'rejecting' him, rather than the stab wounds themselves, which kill him.

Jacob's Father

Jacob's Nemesis is his father. Several characters have had difficult relationships with their fathers, making for common, recurring theme in the show. This would explain Jacob's rebellious remarks to Nemesis when they are talk about the ship they watch as it approaches the island. Jacob seems to want to prove Nemesis wrong, thus proving that he knows what he is talking about, just as a boy would react to his father's unsolicited advice. Nemesis believes Jacob's hard work in bringing people to the island is an effort to ignore the inevitable; the demise of the island's people.

In some ways, Jacob seems more like the father. Especially with this show as Ben and Locke both killed their fathers.

Conflicting Sides of Jacob

The black/white motif represents competing forces within a single being. The conflict exists between Jacob's scientific side and Jacob's faith-based side. One cannot kill the other, but one can watch the other be destroyed.

When Ben took Locke to see Jacob in the cabin in "Man Behind The Curtain," the person that speaks to Locke is actually Jacob's Nemesis. During Jacob's flashbacks in "The Incident Pt 1 and 2," he appears to have no issue with technology, but in the cabin a flashlight caused someone or something to become agitated. Somehow, Jacob manages to get off the island from time to time, possibly utilizing modern transportation, and he wears modern clothing. We have not (yet) seen Jacob's Nemesis off the island.

Holy Trinity

Along the lines of the "Nemesis is Jacob" and "Nemesis is his Father" theories, combined with the various Christian theories about, could they represent the Father and the Son, with the Holy Spirit represented by a third entity. This could be the Smoke Monster, which judges Ben - the Holy Spirit is involved in the judgment of sin and in making people aware of their own sin. This would back up the idea that Jacob will resurrect, if he represents Jesus. If the door is closed with Jacob left inside the statue foot, this could provide a very good cave with a boulder over the door.

Esau

• Jacob has somehow supplanted his enemy who may be the rightful leader, as Jacob supplants Esau's birthright in the Book of Genesis.

According to the Bible, Esau and Jacob were twins, born to Isaac and Rebekah. Before they were born, God told Rebekah that her older son would serve the younger son (Genesis 25:23). This was an unusual concept in ancient times because the oldest son was regarded as the heir of the father's wealth, power and authority (though it occurs repeatedly in Genesis). Esau was born first. But when his twin brother Jacob was being born, Jacob's hand was holding onto Esau's heel. This was taken as a tangible sign of the struggle between the brothers at birth. Later in life, Jacob continued to show that he wanted to be his father's heir. One day, Esau returned from an unsuccessful hunting trip and was famished. He saw that Jacob had been preparing food and he asked for a serving. Jacob asked him if he would be willing to sell his rights as the first-born son in exchange for a bowl of food. Esau agreed. (Genesis 25:29-34.)Regardless of whether Esau was being serious or flippant in selling off his birthright, Jacob sought to make good on the deal and, with his mother's help, tricked his aging father into giving Jacob the blessing that traditionally would been reserved for the first-born. After Jacob had received the blessing from his father, Esau vowed to kill Jacob. During the beach scene with Jacob and Nemesis, Nemesis tells Jacob, "You know how much I want to kill you."

In "The Incident" Jacob offers Nemesis food, but he rejects the offer, claiming he has already eaten. In the Biblical story, Esau comes to Jacob hungry and looking for food and Esau "sells" Jacob his birth right for food. Perhaps he is referring to this when he says he just ate.

Sherem

Jacob and Sherem are two rival characters in Mormon scripture. Sherem is a "sign-seeker," concerned with reason over faith. He and Jacob have an ideological rift, each one trying to be the leader of the people. Sherem ultimately concedes to Jacob, who is the "good guy." Having accepted defeat, Sherem suddenly drops dead, and Jacob continues to lead his people. [1] [2]

Smoke Monster

Nemesis was confined to the cabin by the circle of ash which was intact when Locke and Ben went there the first time. It is implied that Smokey is taking human forms but that has not been proven. Someone or something has appeared in various forms and locations on the island since the first season.

Jacob's enemy is the Smoke Monster in human form. When it took Alex's form, it told Ben to do exactly as "Locke" said, suggesting a connection between the two. He then appeared to Ben as "Locke" and told him to kill Jacob, which is what Jacob's enemy stated he wished to do on the beach. Jacob himself recognized Ben as a loophole when he met him.

Except when Ben told 'Fake Locke' about what Alex had said to him, he seemed genuinely surprised. Fake Lock may be 'acting a part' while appearing as Locke, also he's surprised that Ben is willing to follow John. He was testing Ben to ensure he would follow what seems to be John Lock's instructions.

Nemesis (Titus Welliver's character) himself is not Jacob's enemy. Rather, the Monster is Jacob's enemy, and it is using the form or appearance of someone who died in order to interact with Jacob.

Nemesis is not the Smoke Monster; supporting evidence: Fake Locke seemed surprised to hear what Smokey told Ben, and second, Ben summoned the Smoke Monster to deal with the Boaties; it seems strange that Ben would be able to summon something as apparently powerful and devious as Jacob's enemy to help him out.

• When Ben called the Monster from his house to be judged, John Locke appeared instead. This suggests that perhaps the smoke monster did come when called, albeit in the form of the deceased Locke.

• • Agreed. It is very convenient that under the temple, when 'Locke' went to get a vine to pull Ben out, the smoke monster appeared. They're never in the same place at the same time.

• In episode 3.05 - The Cost of Living, the Monster wants Eko to repent for sins of the past, to which Eko replies "I have only done what I needed to survive." The Monster then kills Eko. Years earlier, Jacob's enemy says to Jacob that if these people in the ship come to the island, it will only end in sin.

• When Ben went to see the Monster, Locke disappeared and reappeared in the tunnels, leaving Ben just enough time to be "judged", and returned mere moments after Alex was out of sight. It's possible that the Monster (Jacob's enemy) appeared to Ben as Locke, then later judged Ben in smoke form, and finally took the shape of Alex, all in the name of manipulating Ben to follow Locke's (the Monster's/Jacob's enemy's) orders.

• • It is likely the "monster" cannot shape changed in front of people, and therefore has to move away or seize a quick moment when it is not seen so it can shape changes.

• We have seen that the Monster can "pull" memories from people (Eko, Juliet, Ben). In this way it essentially learns about these characters' pasts. This can explain how Jacob's enemy knew everything about Locke's past (his death, his time spent on the island, etc.) and how he was therefore able to impersonate him so well.

• • The monster never pulled memories from Juliet.

• • • It did to Juliet and Kate when they were fighting and it came at night and "took pictures" of her and Kate.

• Jacob does not refer to the Monster (Jacob's enemy) by name, because as Ben said, "we don't even have a word for it".
• Locke told Ben that he knew where to find the Monster, and proceeded to lead Ben directly to the Monster's home. He was privy to this information because he (Locke) is the Monster (Jacob's enemy).

• Ben says to Sun, "What's about to come out of that jungle is something I can't control." Seconds later, Locke emerges. Ben is unaware that he was correct, and cannot control Locke, because he is the Monster (Jacob's enemy).

• The Monster (as Locke) tells Richard he must give the real John Locke the compass and tell him that "he has to die." The Monster (as Locke) does this because he needs Locke's body to fulfill his plans, which are to manipulate Ben into killing Jacob.

• Alex tells Ben that she knows he plans to kill John Locke again. She has this information because she, Locke, and the Monster are all the same entity, and therefore have shared knowledge regardless of the Monster's form.

• If we think of the Smoke Monster as a 'judge' figure, it can only harm those who have done wrong. This is why it is frustrated at not being able to harm Jacob (a symbol of purity perhaps?) and needs to coax someone else to kill Jacob of their own free will.

• It makes a lot of sense that the smoke monster and the Enemy are the same entity. It also makes sense that it is the Enemy who is plotting everything for quite a while - and we have to take into consideration that many things that Ben has done in the name of Jacob were actually ordered by the Enemy, acting in his place. Also, following a recurrent theme on the show, it also appears that the Enemy doesn't see himself as bad, just as Jacob feels that what he is doing is right. Jacob seems to be more like a believer, a man with faith in mankind, willing to endure some trouble to get to the end, and believing above all in free will. The Enemy, on the other hand, seems to have a little less faith in humanity, and more willing to follow a strict moral code. Their conversation on the beach shows that quite clearly. Also, for some reason, neither seems able to directly act against each other or even others' - which is why the Enemy needs a loophole to kill Jacob.

• • When in the form of the Monster, the Enemy has a tendency to make moral judgments, as he did with Eko, Juliet, and Ben. Jacob doesn't seem prone to do the same. When he caught Katie stealing, for example, he only made her promise she would not do it again.
    • However, Ben did say that Jacob was not a forgiving man. "Two for the Road"

• • • The monster didn't judge Juliet.

• • When Ilana gets to the cabin, she says that Jacob hasn't been there for a while. It seems like the Enemy has been running things.

• • • The nemesis/monster was the one who created the ruckus in the cabin when Ben was "showing" John who Jacob was.

• • When Jack´s father, also raised from the dead, appears to Locke in the well, he puts things in motion in order to get Locke off the Island. Also, he remarks that he can not help Locke, which is more evidence that he can not act directly.

• The idea that the Jacob's enemy is the Monster is also supported by the comment Rousseau made when describing the Monster as a "Security System" that protects the island. Jacob's enemy was visibly upset with the boat coming to the island in the beginning of "The Incident"; indicating his desire to protect the island from the destruction people would inevitably bring.

• When Locke first encountered the monster he said to Jack "I've looked into the eye of this Island... and what I saw was beautiful." At this point he could have seen a manifestation of Jacob. When everybody else has seen the Monster (the black smoke), they have seen the manifestation of Jacob's enemy. As only the Leaders can see Jacob.

• Or, Jacob's enemy is not the smoke monster; in this scenario, the Monster's original function is to act as a security guard in that it is able to absorb the experiences of living and dead people. If no-one on the island was able to procreate, then the only way to save the civilization from extinction is to "record" the experiences of the dead and save them in a sort of shared memory bank. Jacob and Jacob's enemy have access to this.
• I do not believe that the Smoke Monster and Jacob's Nemesis are the same person. I believe that when Ben fell into the pit, that the Smoke Monster was only involved in the part where Ben is shown the flashbacks between him and his daughter. When the Smoke Monster goes away, that is when the Smoke Monster lets him live. Jacob's Nemesis then comes in as the form of Alex and tells Ben to follow Locke's every order or be destroyed.
• We know the smoke monster has taken on the form of the deceased (Alex) and Jacob's nemesis has as well (Locke) which does indeed seem to imply a connection. Some believe that the same character also has taken the form of the deceased Christian. Perhaps the character we see at the beginning of The Incident episode is also deceased. That would explain why he cannot kill Jacob either because he cannot physically touch him just as Christian couldn't help the injured Locke up in the wheel chamber.
  • Jacob's enemy is the smoke monster, and when it scans people, eg. Mr Eko, Juliet, John etc. he is scanning them to see if he can find the "loophole". In season 1, after it scanned Locke, it tries dragging him into a hole but is stopped by Jack and Kate, when they throw dynamite down the hole. The monster can take the form of dead bodies if they are not buried, Yemi, Christian etc. Also, Amy insisted they buried the bodies of the hostiles in 1974. In 2004, at Colleen Pickett's Funeral, her body is burned by the others and sent out to sea, because the others didn't want the monster to take her form. The Fake Locke/ Monster tells Richard to tell the real Locke when he is injured, after being shot by Ethan, that he has to die. After Locke's body is brought back to the island on Ajira 316, the smoke monster becomes Locke, so he has found his loophole to kill Jacob.
• The Monster hates sin. People brought to the Island because of Jacob bring sin. To stop the sin committed on the Island,the Monster has to stop Jacob from bringing more people by killing him. However the Monster can only kill those who have "committed sin". As Jacob doesn't commit sin, only uses the Others to do his will, the Monster has no power to kill Jacob. The Monster found his "loophole", and used Ben to kill Jacob.
• If the enemy is the smoke monster and manifests as the deceased, how is it able to appear as Locke on Hydra Island where the smoke monster has not ever been seen?
• John Locke had his body secretly inhabited by the nemesis without his knowledge ("Help me") while Locke was in the cabin, and they broke the line on the way out. The nemesis could have been just waiting for Locke to die to take over, which can only happen on the island. It would make sense that Jacob would want Locke to leave the island and then die so that he could never travel back. It was Christian who agreed that Richard has to die in the cave, who could also be a servant of Jacob. I expect the monster who lives in the temple is a servant of the nemesis, and thus ordered Ben to obey Locke.
• If the Smoke Monster functions as the "protector" of the Island, it may have wanted to kill Jacob because he keeps bringing people to the Island. In |The Incident, Part 1 Jacob and his nemesis share words on whether or not the ship off in the distance is here to cause damage or not. The Nemesis knows that Jacob is bringing people to the Island, or at least believes, as evidenced by him saying "I don't have to ask. You brought them here. Still trying to prove me wrong, aren't you?"

Aaron

Nemesis is a grown up Aaron from the future, perhaps the result of not being raised by Claire. He is also the smoke monster, stripped of his form by Jacob, which is why Jacob now looks like a grown up Aaron (blonde, blue eyes). This is why he wants to kill Jacob so badly. The Man in Black was simply a dead body that Aaron used to converse with Jacob. This is why, as Christian Shephard, he was able to hold baby Aaron (himself), and not touch anyone else (like Locke), at least until he found his loophole.

Nemesis, The Manipulator

The loophole the Nemesis/Smoke Monster found lay in its ability to manipulate Ben through his fear, vanity, and insecurity. He used the free will of another against Jacob by preying on the weakness and venality in that person's soul. This is very much the style of evil used by Screwtape in C.S. Lewis' theological epistolary novel. When Ben asked, "What about me?" Jacob's response was to answer--in a very Christlike manner--a question with a question. "What about you?" In other words--What will YOU choose? As Dan told us, individual free will is the variable.

Jacob's True Rival Died

• Alternatively, the Monster can pull memories from the dead (Yemi, Alex). The Monster may have always been Jacob's rival, or it may have incorporated the memories of Jacob's rival after his death. The Monster may have learned information in this way that led it to also oppose Jacob, while remaining a distinct entity.

Merely One Entity of the Smoke Monster

• If the smoke monster is indeed reflective of the mythological Cerberus (the three headed guard dog of Hades) then the three heads/entities of Cerberus on the island are Jacob, Jacob's Enemy and Richard.

• • We have seen the smoke monster possess dead bodies. This would therefore explain why both Jacob and Jacob's Enemy can take the form of people we know to be dead (i.e. Jacob into Christian, Jacob's Enemy into Locke).

• • • It is more likely that Jacob's Enemy was impersonating both Christian and Locke. Jacob's Enemy needed Locke to die in order to posses his body, so he took the form of Christian and helped Locke turn the wheel to leave the island, knowing Ben would kill him there.

• • • • It's not more likely at all because whenever we see Christian, he has on conspicuous white shoes which are significant due to the whole white (Jacob) / black (Jacob's enemy) debate. Therefore is most probably Jacob.

• • • • However, Christian's white shoes are explained as being the shoes Jack buried his father in. They are unlikely to hold any significance to the black/white symbolism as they were merely a way of showing the viewers that Christian's body was 'reanimated' exactly as it were from the coffin. Clothing included.

• • • • It is more likely that Jacob's Enemy was impersonating Christian since he was the one who told Locke not only to leave the island but also to die, which seems to have been a necessary part of him taking on his identity. It was also pointed out that it was not Jacob who had been inhabiting Jacob's cabin, and the line of ash was broken in the first scenes in which we saw the cabin. Christian stated that he was not Jacob the first time Locke appeared to him. We have seen Jacob appear as himself several times, but Jacob's enemy only appeared as what we are assuming was himself one time in the show.

• • • What if when Jacob appeared in that last episode and when Jacob's enemy appeared in the first scene neither of them were actually appearing as 'themselves' at all, because what is 'themselves' - the smoke monster. They take the form of other bodies. That is the whole point.

In order to prevent Nemesis from stealing the identities of the dead, the DHARMA Initiative and the Hostiles have an agreement to bury all bodies immediately.

• • • • Though Richard originally told Locke he had to die (though technically later chronologically), it is not until the apparition of Christian Shepherd confirms that he must make that "sacrifice" that Locke begins to believe the full weight of his destiny.

• • • • Christian aged like a normal old man off the island, but on the island he is dead and only a small amount of time passed. Thus we can't expect him to look much different. In fact, specifically, Christian has aged in appearance equally in the time on the island as to the time he has spent as an actor recording the scenes. He has aged years.

• • • • Richard stated that he has not aged because Jacob kept him that way. Although Jacob knew who Locke really was, Richard did not. Richard also stated that Jacob was the one who would save them all in answer to the question of what lies beneath shadow of the statue. It is stretching to make Richard equal to either Jacob or his Nemesis.

• Perhaps the man we saw was the Monster taking the form of someone Jacob used to know. Jacob’s Enemy, Locke, and Christian are all manifestations of the Monster, who takes the form of the dead. The Monster wants the island to stay pure and free of sin. It wants to kill Jacob for bringing people to the island and corrupting it, but Jacob is a good man, so the monster itself must let him live. The monster wants to find someone else who would have no problem with killing Jacob. It does so by manipulating Ben, who is perhaps the first leader of the Others to ever hate Jacob.

Apep

Jacob and his Nemesis are gods or lesser gods, with opposing views of mankind; Jacob would be Sobek, and his opponent Apep (see Wikipedia info below).

• SOBEK: was depicted as a man with the head of a crocodile. Sobek's ambiguous nature led some Egyptians to believe that he was a repairer of evil that had been done, rather than a force for good in itself, for example, going to Duat to restore damage done to the dead as a result of their form of death. He was also said to call on suitable gods and goddesses required for protecting people in certain situations, effectively having a more distant role, nudging things along, rather than taking an active part.

• DUAT: This was the region through which the sun god Ra traveled from west to east during the night, and where he battled Apep. It also was the place where souls went for judgment. The structure of Duat, and the dangers faced there by the souls of the dead, are detailed in texts such as the Book of Gates and the Book of the Dead.

APEP: In Egyptian mythology, Apep was an evil demon, the deification of darkness and chaos, and thus opponent of light and Ma'at (order/truth). Apep was viewed as the greatest enemy of Ra, and thus was given the title Enemy of Ra. As the personification of all that was evil, Apep was seen as a giant snake, crocodile, serpent [=> smoke monster]. It was thought that his terrifying roar would cause the underworld to rumble. Myths sometimes say that Apep was trapped there, because he had been the previous chief god and suffered a coup d'etat by Ra, or because he was evil and had been imprisoned. On the occasions when Apep was said to have been killed, he was able to return each night (since he lived in the world of the dead already). As Apep was thought to live in the underworld, he was sometimes thought of as an Eater-up of Souls. Thus the dead also needed protection, so they were sometimes buried with spells that could destroy Apep. The Egyptian priests even had a detailed guide to fighting Apep, e.g. defiling Apep with the Left Foot.

TAWERET

The colossal statue which Jacob is seen living in is that of Taweret, also known as 'Great One'. Taweret is paired and married to Apep, god of evil.

Anubis

• Jacob's enemy is Anubis. Being a god of the underworld Anubis may be able to take the form of dead people such as Locke, Christian, Boone, Eko, Charlie, and Yemi. Also when Ben confronts the Monster in the Temple, there is Ben's Moth a hieroglyph of Anubis and the Monster facing each other, perhaps saying the Monster follows Anubis. When "Alex" tells Ben to listen to whatever Locke says, it is because the Monster is conveying Anubis's message of wanting Jacob dead and knows that "Locke's" goal is killing Jacob.

• • In the Book of the Dead Anubis plays some very prominent parts, the most important of all being those which are connected with the judgment. After a person's death, it was Anubis' job to lead them across the desert to the west and into the Hall of Judgment and then further into the Paradise of Osiris. Anubis works with Lady Ma'at with the judging scales of the deceased heart being judged by Ma'at's feather of truth and cosmic order. A passage from the Book of the Dead reads:"If your heart is free of lies and sin from your life, then it is light and you may pass onto the afterlife. If it is heavy with guilt and sin, then it will be fed to Ammit, the devourer where it will be gone forever, never to pass through to the afterlife." Then the deceased stood before each of the 42 assembled gods, or Netjeru, and to each in turn he denied that he had committed any of the 42 sins (Note the number 42 used twice). Once approved Anubis then escorts the deceased to their destination. If the heart was lighter than a feather then the soul was judged by the god of the underworld, Osiris.....However, for those who failed the judgement, punishment was severe. Outside the hall of judgement Ammit 'the destroyer' (a.k.a The Smoke Monster) lay waiting to consume them. In Egyptian mythology, Ammit was the personification of divine retribution for all the wrongs one had committed in life.
  • The Monster has been referred to as Cerberus, in mythology Cerberus is the dog that guards the underworld. If Jacob's enemy is Anubis (the god of the underworld) then the connection between the Monster and Jacob's enemy may become clearer as both entities have involvement with the underworld and the dead.

• • • In most works the three-heads of Cerberus each respectively see and represent the past, the present, and the future (Somehow could be associated with the flash backs, except for the fact that there were no flash forwards). Cerberus was always employed as Hades' loyal watchdog, and guarded the gates that granted access and exit to the underworld.

Jacob as Sobek

Jacob is Sobek, the crocodile-headed Egyptian Creator God represented by the statue, and there may be a war going on between the two deities. The statue of Sobek, shown holding two ankh, represents his ability to undo evil and so cure ills (like curing Locke’s paralysis).

Set

Jacob's enemy is Set, the Egyptian god of chaos and hostility, considered to be the epitome of evil. While generally considered an enemy of Horus, Sobek was a friend of Horus, so Set and Sobek would also have animosity between them.

The Man Behind the Curtain

• Jacob's enemy is the person that made the cabin shake in the episode The Man Behind the Curtain. He was the one that escaped when the circle of ash was broken.

• • • Perhaps the ash ring had already been broken by the time Oceanic 815 crashed on the Island. And we have only seen the unbroken sections of the ring until Ilana's group happened upon that particular section.

• • • Or perhaps the ash ring limits the "reach" of the Smoke Monster's powers to the Island. We have seen Jacob off-Island, but haven't yet seen his Antagonist anywhere but on the Island.

• • • Or perhaps the Cabin/Ash ring limited the Smoke Monster's ability to create "substantial" apparitions. One that has physical substance; and can physically interact with real human beings like Ghost Alex grabbing Ben in the temple and/or "Flocke" (putting hands on others shoulders).

• This is why Locke heard the voice say "help me" because the enemy needed Locke's help to kill Jacob.

• • This is because Jacob's Enemy took over the cabin. Assuming the black dirt on the ground observed by Llana around the cabin is indicative of the smoke monster's presence and Jacob's Enemy is the smoke monster, this is why she is alarmed to see the dirt, goes into the cabin with such caution, and then (after reading Jacob's note) tells the rest that Jacob is no longer there.

• • • Jacob's enemy (in the form of Locke) did not seem aware that the monster had ordered Ben to obey Locke or risk being destroyed.

• • • • But then why did the monster order Ben to obey Locke in the first place? The monster must either be Jacob's Enemy or at least on Jacob's Enemy's side.

• • • • • Not necessarily; maybe Locke wasn't meant to die and was to be obeyed, but the Monster didn't know that it wasn't really Locke walking about on the island.

• • • • • Unless Jacob is the one controlling things - unless Jacob wanted Ben to kill him in order to set things in motion.

• • The same rules apply to Ben and Widmore as to Jacob and his enemy

• • Only Locke heard the voice say "Help Me" because Nemesis knew that Locke would mention this to Ben, and so Ben would feel even more betrayed by Jacob for never appearing/speaking to him.

• It is also possible that Jacob's enemy simply pretended to be Jacob in that context in order to enrage Benjamin Linus, who had never seen Jacob, by appearing to John Locke without preamble.

• • This could be considered the first step in his plan to eventually assume Locke's identity, building Ben's hatred of Jacob as best to make eventual use of him as the tool for Jacob's murder.

• • • When impersonating Locke, Jacob's enemy says "you have no idea what I've been through to be here". This seems to be a direct reference to all the forms he had to assume until that point; plus, we now know that was Jacob's Enemy disguised as Locke who set in motion the acts that would later cause "real" Locke's death - without "fake" Locke, Richard wouldn't have told "real" Locke that he had to die. It is possible that Locke was misled to assume he was some sort of leader, probably by Jacob's enemy himself, and was played by him all along - Richard told Jack that he had been checking up on Locke and that he didn't seem to be that special.

• • • This was further proved by Walt's appearance to John saying "he has work to do", indicating the monster and Esau are the same (the producers confirmed that Walt's appearances are the smoke monster). The "work to do" was to fulfill the loophole to kill Jacob. Also, Christian (smoke monster) said to Vincent that Jack "has work to do" possibly meaning that Jack must assist in the loophole succeeding by way of interacting with Locke.

Trickster God

• Jacob's enemy is a trickster god rather than any particular deity from an existing mythology. The trickster archetype appears in many myths and the trickster seeks to break the rules set by other powers. Examples include Loki, Eris and Coyote. Jacob's enemy maliciously exploits the weaknesses of others. For example, manipulating the daddy issues of numerous characters or their personal beliefs and insecurities (Locke).

• • If there is indeed a Trickster God, it is more likely that it is Jacob. In the bible, Jacob tricks Esau into giving up his birthright. Also, the trickster's desire to break the rules seems more in line with Jacob, who seems to believe in free choice, than his Enemy, who seems much more rigid (especially if the Enemy is aligned with or identical to the Smoke Monster, which appears to judge people according to a rigid moral code).

• • Loki was pretty much known as the god of mischief, deceit, and lies. He was also often associated with fire, and even sometimes evil in general. Loki's meddling is what caused the god Hodur to kill his own brother. Being mean and playing tricks on the other gods and goddesses is what pleased him most. Loki often evaded capture by fleeing in the form of a salmon. He is representative of change and chaos. Loki is a shape-shifter and is known to take many forms. In some forms of art he is known as having bright red hair, eyes, and attire.

• • • Actually, only once in the entirety of the Norse mythos does Loki take the form of a salmon to escape the gods, and that one time is in fact the time he is captured by the gods and bound to a rock to await Ragnarok.

Lesser god

• Jacob and his enemy are both lesser gods, trapped on the island/Earth, either banished or otherwise (perhaps as Loki and Bartleby in the film Dogma). They obviously have supernatural powers of transport (appearing to various Losties as children), foresight ("they're coming" and knowing where/when Locke would fall out of the building), and shapeshifting/manifestation. Jacob is trying to find a way off of the island/Earth (through some unknown method) by bringing various groups of people to the island.
  • Ben says that "everyone answers to someone, and Richard answers to Jacob", without mentioning if Jacob answers to anyone. This may be a higher god, such as Amun Amon in Egyptian culture.
  • Neither Jacob nor his enemy is allmighty. There are rules even they must obey. Therefore there may be some powers/beings that these two answer to.

A Combination of Identities Previously Mentioned

• The Temple was Jacob's enemy's home like the statue was Jacob's home. Thus making him Anubis, and the smoke monster his minion. Jacob would be the God of life, and thus they are direct opposites and enemies. When Richard is brought Ben and has to think of a way to save him, he brings him into the temple and Jacob's enemy heals Ben by becoming one with him and giving him energy/time to heal himself through the island. This is why Ben is never the same again, yet shows moments of his humane side, for many years he essential has two souls living in his body. When Locke comes back to the island, Jacob's enemy leaves Ben and becomes Locke (the ring around his cabin was broken so he could walk around without having to be someone else (maybe he had part of his soul in Ben and part in the cabin and both could be united again)). This is hinted at when Locke manipulates Ben into killing Jacob, it is something the old Ben would have done and he wasn't so easily manipulated. It could also be why Ben was never allowed near Jacob before, and only one leader at a time could be in Jacob's presence. Also, he was not Christian as Christian could not touch Locke at the FDW, but Locke clearly touched Ben in the last episode as they were walking to Jacob's cabin (during the scene in which he reveals to Ben that he is going to kill Jacob).

Jacob’s enemy is Cerberus. The Island has several Cerberus Vents (CV) that are identified on the blast door drawing that Radzinsky worked on while in the Swan station. In Ancient Greek mythology, the god Hermes and the monster Cerberus (smoke monster?) are thought to derive their origins from the golden jackal. The Egyptian god of embalming, Anubis, was portrayed as a jackal-headed man, or as a jackal wearing ribbons and holding a flagellum, a symbol of protection. Did you notice that the big statue has four toes? That's how many toes a jackal has on its feet. Back to Hermes - I think Jacob is a version of Hermes. Hermes helps people with injuries, which might tie into why people can heal quickly on the island. Hermes embodied the spirit of crossing-over: He was seen to be manifest in any kind of interchange, transfer, transgressions, transcendence, transition, transit or traversal, all of which involve some form of crossing in some sense. This explains his connection with transitions in one’s fortune. In the final episode of season 5 we see Jacob/Hermes show up at the transition point of people’s lives (Kate/stealing, Locke/becoming a cripple, Sayid/losing his wife, Jack/surgery, etc.). Jacob gives Jack an Apollo candy bar (the one that had jammed in the vending machine). Medicine and healing were associated with the Greek god, Apollo. In many Greek myths, Hermes was depicted as the only god besides Hades, Persephone, Hecate, and Thanatos who could enter and leave the Underworld without hindrance.[all of this was sourced from material found on Wikipedia]

Moses

• Ben hit the bullseye with his blind guess.
  • Moses and the Pharaoh were brothers. The Pharaoh's mother adopted Moses after finding him in a basket by the river. Moses had to leave for 40 years after killing an abusive guard, and returned with his biological brother Aaron to defeat his step-brother the Pharaoh.
    • The idea that Pharaoh and Moses were brothers comes from Hollywood versions of the story. The account in Exodus says that Moses is found by Pharaoh's daughter (Ex. 2:5-9). While Moses is in Midian, Pharaoh dies and a new one comes to power. It could be Moses' "brother" but it could also be a member of a new dynasty. Though many of have tried to say that Pharaoh was Ramses II, biblical scholarship is quite unsure about who the Pharaoh was.
  • "Otherman" gives Jacob a knowing look right after Ben makes the Moses reference. Jacob being the Pharaoh counterpart? The rival being the one destined to lead his people out of the Island/Egypt.
• Precisely. That is why Claire's baby was abandoned. To symbolize Moses.
• Like the storey in the bible about Moses, god took the jews to the "promise land" the island could be the promise land.

An Embodiment of the Island

• Jacob's enemy is the embodiment of the Island itself. Jacob is the master of the Island and the Island is tired of being controlled by him (as hinted at by Jacob's enemy saying that he wanted to kill him). It is because of this control that the Island could not kill Jacob except through using a loophole (getting another person to do it). It is possible that Jacob uses the Island as experiments which are along the lines of "lets see what happens when I do this" or "can I get this to happen with minimal interference". The Island does not like being used in such ways (which is hinted at by Jacob's enemy's disapproval of Jacob bringing the ship to the Island.)
• This idea would be similiar to the relationships between Prospero, Ariel and Caliban in William Shakespeare's THE TEMPEST. Prospero was the sorceror who controlled Ariel and Caliban to do his bidding; like causing the tempest that brings a passing ship to the island (much like Jacob's enemy is accusing Jacob of bringing the Black Rock to the island). Perhaps Jacob's enemy resents Jacob's control over the "magics" of the island, like Caliban.
  • In THE TEMPEST, Prospero freed the spirit Ariel from a tree it had been imprisoned in. If The Smoke Monster is an analog of Ariel (controlled its Prospero analog Jacob), then perhaps this gives us a reason why people on the island are able to escape the Monster when they hide in a banyan tree; it's been imprisoned in a tree before and does not wish to be imprioned again

Creator of the Utopian Society

• He is the creator of the Utopian Society as envisioned by John Locke the philosopher. Jacob is the creator of government/society. As Jacob invites other to join society they only enter into contract/fight etc.. He believes in the purity of the Utopian Society and sees that when main enters society he gives up his rights and can not accept this. The line from Jacob that I see it as progress supports him being Locke or another philosopher who commonly say man is happiest in a state without laws/rules. As shown be Ben & Richard Jacob appears to be heavy on rules/laws and bringing people into a society.
• Apollo was also the god of colonization.
• And Jacob gave Jake an Apollo bar that was his? But didn't Jacob also buy an apollo bar? (Well over thinking things here but still is funny)

Satan

• Jacob's enemy could easily represent a Satan-like entity to counter Jacob's God-like personality.
  • The carving in the chamber of Anubis and the Smoke Monster facing each other represents Jacob (Anubis) standing against the other man (Smoke Monster).
  • His dark clothes at the beginning of Season 5 finale contrast Jacob's light clothes.
    • John said in Season 1 that there are 2 sides; one is light and one is dark. However, it is unlikely that Esau is the literal Satan as this might offend viewers. Lost is deeply rooted in science fiction with only slight hints or comparisons to Bible chronology.

Isn't evil

• Jacob's "enemy" isn't his enemy, but his antagonist. The both resemble the human struggle of good and bad, right and wrong, whereby a definition is in the eye of the beholder. Where Jacob sees the arrival of the ship (probably the Black Rock) as progress, his antagonist wants the purity of the island secured and sees the island in danger. One wants to protect, the other one wants to expand and become more powerful. It's a rivalry between two completely different points of view, a battle of wills, the force between plus and minus, electromagnetism. To achieve their wills, either party would do what it takes. Even kill. It's a force of nature. Now, when the equilibrium is destroyed, the "winner" can't be stopped.
  • To amplify the electromagnetic thing: Nemesis (or Esau or Samuel or Locke) wasn't able to kill Jacob because of Coulomb's Law. Coulomb's law is an equation describing the electrostatic force between electric charges. The Coulomb barrier, is the energy barrier due to electrostatic interaction that two nuclei need to overcome so they can get close enough to undergo nuclear fusion. If a nucleon actually brakes the barrier, it starts tunneling (look up Quantum Tunnelling) and becomes one with the other nucleon, they fuse. This is the Loophole the Nemesis found (abstract thinking). When the fusion reaction is a sustained uncontrolled chain, it can result in a thermonuclear explosion, such as that generated by a hydrogen bomb One Faraday equals 96485.3399 coulombs (the Faraday constant), by the way. In physics and chemistry, the Faraday constant (named after Michael Faraday) is the magnitude of electric charge per mole of electrons. There is strong relevance between the show and the four fundamental forces of physics. To understand more, watch the movies Hancock and Matrix.
  • When taking a break, Richard and Fake Locke talk about why Locke is alive again. Richard says that he is not aging because of Jacob, "and if I had to guess, he's the reason you're not in that coffin anymore". That's a direct hint. Jacob is indeed the reason that "Locke" is back on the Island. Just that it's Nemesis, in the form of Locke, who has come back.
    • Fake Locke then says "I agree completely. That's why I'm doing this, so I can thank him". A direct lie. He has come back to kill his enemy. Jacob and Nemesis are equal in power and thus none of them can win their mutual "game" (except for a loophole, which Nemesis has now found). The whole situation of Jacob's antagonist talking to Richard, a servant of Jacob, proposes that Jacob and Nemesis are playing a game that is bigger than anything else on the Island.
• Jacob is Fate. He touched the Losties he touched at pivotal points in their character development. Kate thinks she's getting away with something, and dragging someone she thinks she loves through the ordeal with her. Touched!=Fate! Young James Ford is writing a letter of revenge to "Sawyer" Touched=Fate!(this is fulfilled when Sawyer(Ford) kills Anthony Cooper and starts answering to James) Jack is arguing with his dad, and feels like he's got something to prove to himself, and everyone, in a stressful situation. Touched!=Fate! Being touched by Fate also means you'll end up on the island. The Enemy/Smokey on the other hand is Free Will. He can Judge and kill you based on the choices you've made. He also uses the ability to look into your past to his advantage (i.e. Locke and his destiny, Ben and "Alex"). The events of 1977 and 2007 coincide to the Losties, and are happening simultaneously on the show. With Jacob dead, there is no longer Fate. The 1977/Incident events can now alter the future.
  • In that case, we've seen the Losties being subjects to the struggle between Jacob and Enemy/Fate and Free Will. Apparently Jacob's Fate brought the Losties to the Island to make live where Enemy's Free Will leads towards death (Boone, Eko, Charlotte when they jump in time which is certainly due to Enemy, etc...).
  • The only problem with the Enemy being the embodiment of Free Will is that some of Jacob's actions seem more about free will than his enemy's. Their argument on the beach is about what the Enemy "knows" will happen if the people are brought to the island, that they will kill and destroy. Jacob seems to want things to just play out, instead of controlling them. Also, at the end of the episode Jacob tells Ben that no matter what Fake Locke has told him, he still has a choice. He can either kill Jacob, or leave. He is telling him he has the free will to make choices, where Fake Locke (especially if you believe he is the Smoke Monster too) would have Ben believe that he has no choice in the matter. The Enemy wants Ben to believe that it is his Fate to kill Jacob.
    • In consideration of the opposing viewpoints of fatalism and free will, were they to fight it stands to reason they would do things against the other ideology. So if Jacob "let's things play out" that would be a fatalist approach, where as the Nemesis would wish to be "controlling" is indicative of attempting to exert ones free will. However, this poses an interesting contrast in later actions. Perhaps the moment Jacob and the Nemesis meet is the point at which that struggle culminates with Ben as the weapon. Each side takes a reverse approach, with Jacob appealing to the sensibility of Ben by suggesting he has a choice and Nemesis is suggesting that based on his past experiences that he does not. Fate does not say that we do not have a choice, but that we will make the choice no matter what. Free will says that because we have a choice, it is important and we should draw upon reason to make it. Those are the absolutes. Perhaps both are right, and the conflict itself is a fallacy; a fight for the sake of fighting. We can make decisions based on past experiences, or trust in the moment. Science vs. Faith.

Jacob's Enemy is "Good"

• There were four points in "The Incident" episodes that suggest Jacob's Enemy is, in fact, the "good" guy: 1.) When Illana and her crew are talking to Lapedis, they tell Lapedis they're the good guys (they're associated with Jacob). Lapedis counters that often those who got out of their way to tell you they're the good guys are often the bad guys. 2.) Jacob doesn't necessarily benefit a number of the O6 when meeting with them off the island. In fact, he kills Sayid's wife, leads Sawyer on a life of revenge, and keeps Kate from being penalized for her theft. Those are hardly "good" actions at all, but could easily be interpreted as "bad." 3.) Rose and Bernard -- Bernard in a Moses-like image complete with beard and staff -- seem to echo the ideas of Jacob's Enemy: leave well enough alone. They probably aren't specifically aligned with the nemesis, but the show clearly went out of its way to highlight Rose and Bernard's thoughts, which echo Jacob's Enemy's thoughts. 4.) At the end of "The Incident" finale, the screen goes white AFTER Jacob is killed and the bomb is set off. This could suggest that good has taken over through Jacob's Enemy, or it could also mean that by Jacob dying, he has taken over as good, and had intended to die all along. ... All four instances suggest that Jacob's Enemy might actually be the "good" guy.
  • To counter this, before Jacob is killed, Enemy (as Locke) tells Ben that things will be different when Jacob is gone. The writers have promised "dark times" coming to the island, which we have not yet seen. It seems to follow that the "things will be different" is the advent of these dark times.
    • Jacob did want the 6 to come back to the Island. If they did indeed change the future, then Jacob may have planned this to save his own life, by preventing Locke from having ever come. Anything could be in store.
      • Or Jacob's Nemesis (along with the help of Heloise Hawkins who wants to get revenge on Jacob for being kicked out of the Island) wanted all of the O6 back on the island so that he could kill them all to keep the island's location unknown from anyone from the real world to prevent any other attempt to spoil the island properties (Dharma, Widmore, etc...)
  • Adding to "Jacob's Enemy is Good" … in the first scene on the beach, Jacob's antagonist says "Do you have any idea of how badly I wanna kill you?". That's usually not the way a "bad guy" reacts. However, a good guy in a stalemate position where no one can win at the moment, would want to express his feelings. All in all, this scene suggests that Jacob is indeed the one who will sacrifice in order to reach his goals while his enemy will have to wait and suffer.
    • He wanted to kill Jacob because he has done something in the past that …
      • … initiated the loop they are appearently in.
      • … had his enemy loose something or someone he loved.
    • Jacob seems to be bored of their conversation and ignores his enemy as he later does with Ben. He's the "bad guy" in this relationship.
  • Jacob's enemy does not want what he describes basically as evil to come to the island with the ship. Jacob on the other hand does want it to come. It's unclear as to whether the "progress" he spoke of is the evil itself or if he thinks he can bring some progress to them before they bring it to an end.
  • If Jacob's enemy is in fact Christian in Christian's appearances on the island as there is a good deal of indications that he is, the first time we see him is when he leads jack to water and shelter (as well as Adam and Eve).
• I think that Jacob's enemy is not his "enemy" at all. While they have opposing viewpoints on the goodness of humanity, they seem to have a very civil relationship. Yes, I realize the "enemy" tells Jacob he badly wants to kill him, but maybe Jacob wants to be killed and wants his "enemy" to find this loophole. He did call Jacob "friend." Perhaps killing Jacob would be doing him a favor. Curiously, at the end, the "enemy" seems to be the one manipulating people, while Jacob is the one who offers Ben a choice. Perhaps Jacob must be killed by Ben's own free will and that is why he was cold to him. Jacob tells his "enemy", "They're coming," and is pushed into the fire. I think he was pushed as a reaction to Jacob's statement, because, if you notice, the "enemy" almost tenderly bends down and puts his arm around Jacob while trying to hear what he is saying. I think Jacob has to die quickly before "they" show up.

Fatalist

The Enemy is angry at Jacob for perpetuating the cycle of violence and destruction which he feels will continue so long as people are brought to the island. He clearly wants the cycle to end, but by stopping new people from coming. Jacob seems to imply there may be some breakthrough to end the cycle.
But what does the Enemy want? No people on the island, or does he want a select group which is already there to not be interfered with? Either way, he seems to be correct in thinking that the cycle continues. Also, Jacob has spoken to several people about things turning out "alright", and he stressed the fact that people have free will. This may further imply that his disagreement with the enemy is over the issue of fate vs free will. Another significant point is that Jacob seemed unconcerned about violence, death and corruption, calling it "progress" . This seems to indicate that Jacob is not necessarily purely "good", and by contrast, the Enemy is not necessarily "evil", since he is arguing for an end to the destruction. Or it may be that their disagreement is on a level that is beyond good and evil - something concerning the growth of humanity as a whole.

Female and Smoke Monster

Jacob's enemy is a female presence, despite appearing often in the garb of deceased men. This true, it would let it represent Tawaret or Ammit, possibly - either of these Goddesses could have issues with Anubis/Jacob - especially since he is now living in the statue of his defeated rival. The duality of Yin/Yang Male/Female is a strong spiritual theme and it was very clear that the enemy displayed female characteristics - feeling abandoned by Jacob/Anubis (wrath of a woman scorned), being the passive and peaceful one (referring to the ship and the inevitable conflict), and the emotional attitude of fake-Locke in the Foot. Jacob seemed much less prone to passion and while this is a traditionally chauvinistic view (that the female is more passionate/emotional) it does fit into the larger balance. For the island, there can be no true spiritual balance between two male forces.

• Their battle (or "issues") are an eternal struggle that is integral to Egyptian mythology and the death of one by the other is inevitable but cyclical (as in Horus killed by Set to represent Day --> Night).
• Is Babylon: In the Book of Revelation, Babylon is the name of a whore who rules over the kings of the earth and rides upon a seven-headed beast. In one of the Bible's most famous cases of numerology, the beast is assigned the identifying number 666.
  • This is actually a popular myth that can be traced to a mistranslation many, many years ago. Translated correctly, the number of the beast is in fact 616.
• This would fit in with the theory that Jacob and his enemy are the skeletonsAdam and Eve. The black and white stones symbolising good and evil. The producers stated that the skeletons would be a sign that they had planned things early on and that an esater egg anagram found in an episode would shed light on the mystery. I would suggest this anagram becomes Jacob.

Expounding on idea above, the monster/nemesis may be responsible for the infertility as part of her wrath or imprisonment. When this demon-ess/goddess is in control (season 6) fertility will no longer be an issue.

• Furthermore, having seen Juliet in the final scene detonating the bomb could also support a new beginning cycle of Tawaret being in control again. Juliet is a fertility doctor and once again brings the possibility of procreation to the island (hence - the inverted screen & "things will change").

Logic, Smokey, Great Cycle

• It should also be pointed out exactly how well the logic points to the smoke monster as the identity in terms of overall story-telling (the "looks-like-a-duck, quacks like a duck, probably a duck" thing that was brilliantly applied to the black rock "ambiguity"); the monster has been the central mystery of LOST since episode 1 and this is the perfect time (final cliffhanger) to "unleash" it both figuratively (all mysteries begin to be revealed) and literally (gains/regains control of the island). It's also possible that the cycle of Jacob v. Smoke or Sobek v. Apep will now be reset, and therefore time will also reset, sending the audience and whatever characters back to the island's ancient past when/where this primal 'evil' force was the dominant deity. We will then be able to see Jacob's rise to power in defiance of this being, not to mention the whole nature of the Egypt-stuff - and this seems to be where they're taking us anyway (just not sure on the when!).
• Or, Jacob and his enemy are from the far future, where civilisation is dead or dying. They are trying to prevent this, but are trying to achieve it in different ways. They have different ideas as to what makes the perfect outcome. They have travelled back in time from the far future to the distant past, and have competed with other to shift events and change the timeline. They have attempted this many times and failed to achieve what either of them set out to do. The smoke monster is a remnant of this future civilisation, an attempt to preserve the memories and likenesses of the dead, the only way their civilisation could be saved.

James Sawyer

• The way Jacob's enemy behave towards Jacob resembles the way Sawyer behaves towards Jack, since Jacob might be some kind of Jack's reincarnation, Jacob's enemy might be Sawyer's reincarnation as well.
• Maybe just like Jack and Sawyer they both fell in love with the same person and that person died.
  • that's why he doesn't want to bring anybody to the Island. He said: "they come they fight and they destroy."

Duality

Jacob's enemy is unable to kill Jacob because they are each one side of the same coin.One being light and one being dark (at this point I am not really sure who is who). If Jacob's enemy were to destroy Jacob he would in turn destroy himself. He must find a way to rid himself of Jacob while still being able to live himself. Once more is revealed about the "loophole" rules I believe that this will become clear.

At the beginning of "The incident", Jacob is shown in white while his nemesis wears black. In season one Locke explain backgammon to Walt saying "Two sides. Two Players. One is white, one is dark". The two then play backgammon, with one using black pieces, and the other using white pieces. This could mean that whichever one who played with white pieces is aligned with Jacob, while whoever played with black pieces (probably Locke) will align with Jacob's nemesis.

Red is also shown in contrast to black and white. For example when the raft leaves in season one Sawyer wears a black shirt, Jin wears a white shirt, and Michael wears a red shirt. This could mean that there is a third person, possibly leading the people who are Jacob says are coming in "The incident". and this person is aligned with people associated with red.

• That would be Ilana's crew, she is wearing red
• Juliet, when she detonates Jughead (with whatever consequences) is wearing red.
• Sun is wearing red while waiting outside the statue.

JudeoChristian God

The side of God that demands justice, judges and assigns people to heaven/hell. As opposed to Jacob who represents the merciful/forgiving side of God.

• Jacob’s enemy is Cerberus. The Island has several Cerberus Vents (CV) that are identified on the blast door drawing that Radzinsky worked on while in the Swan station. In Ancient Greek mythology, the god Hermes and the monster Cerberus (smoke monster?) are thought to derive their origins from the golden jackal. The Egyptian god of embalming, Anubis, was portrayed as a jackal-headed man, or as a jackal wearing ribbons and holding a flagellum, a symbol of protection. Did you notice that the big statue has four toes? That's how many toes a jackal has on its feet. Back to Hermes - I think Jacob is a version of Hermes. Hermes helps people with injuries, which might tie into why people can heal quickly on the island. Hermes embodied the spirit of crossing-over: He was seen to be manifest in any kind of interchange, transfer, transgressions, transcendence, transition, transit or traversal, all of which involve some form of crossing in some sense. This explains his connection with transitions in one’s fortune. In the final episode of season 5 we see Jacob/Hermes show up at the transition point of people’s lives (Kate/stealing, Locke/becoming a cripple, Sayid/losing his wife, Jack/surgery, etc.). Jacob gives Jack an Apollo candy bar (the one that had jammed in the vending machine). Medicine and healing were associated with the Greek god, Apollo. In many Greek myths, Hermes was depicted as the only god besides Hades, Persephone, Hecate, and Thanatos who could enter and leave the Underworld without hindrance.[all of this was sourced from material found on Wikipedia]

Morpheus

The nemesis is Morpheus[3], the son of Hypnos, the Greek God of sleep. Morpheus has the ability to take any human or animal form and apear in dreams. This is substantiated by Simeon Hobbes twitter post; "Your body is the temple of knowledge. O Jacob, grant me wisdom as I walk amongst the Oneiroi." The Oneroi are all the sons of Hypnos, described as black winged demons, one of which is Morpheus. We also know that there is a Greek connection to the story based on Jacob's banner. --Nerdutory 15:30, 18 May 2009 (UTC) Jacob’s enemy is Cerberus. The Island has several Cerberus Vents (CV) that are identified on the blast door drawing that Radzinsky worked on while in the Swan station. In Ancient Greek mythology, the god Hermes and the monster Cerberus (smoke monster?) are thought to derive their origins from the golden jackal {Does this tie in with the golden Pontiac?}. The Egyptian god of embalming, Anubis, was portrayed as a jackal-headed man, or as a jackal wearing ribbons and holding a flagellum, a symbol of protection. Did you notice that the big statue has four toes? That's how many toes a jackal has on its feet. Back to Hermes - I think Jacob is a version of Hermes. Hermes helps people with injuries, which might tie into why people can heal quickly on the island. Hermes embodied the spirit of crossing-over: He was seen to be manifest in any kind of interchange, transfer, transgressions, transcendence, transition, transit or traversal, all of which involve some form of crossing in some sense. This explains his connection with transitions in one’s fortune. In the final episode of season 5 we see Jacob/Hermes show up at the transition point of people’s lives (Kate/stealing, Locke/becoming a cripple, Sayid/losing his wife, Jack/surgery, etc.). Jacob gives Jack an Apollo candy bar (the one that had jammed in the vending machine). Medicine and healing were associated with the Greek god, Apollo. In many Greek myths, Hermes was depicted as the only god besides Hades, Persephone, Hecate, and Thanatos who could enter and leave the Underworld without hindrance.[all of this was sourced from material found on Wikipedia]

Devil's advocate

The ABC recap calls him "the Man in Black"; a term used by Stephen King in the Dark Tower series for Walter O'Dim, aka Randall Flagg, a trusted missionary of the "Crimson King," or Satan. The writers have said from the beginning that King is a huge influence on the show. Jacob's nemesis may be "Satan's" way of being part of the corporal world, just as Flagg is in DT.

• Flagg is a character in many of King's books and can take on different forms. Also in the DT books the Crimson King is never referenced as "Satan". CK is an evil being trapped on a balcony of the DT. Satan is another name for The Devil and resides in Hell not the DT.

Jacob’s Enemy’s name is Thomas

Jacob’s views on mankind are similar to Jean-Jacques (often translated as John Jacob) Rousseau, that mankind can be good. His nemesis, on the other hand, thinks that men are evil from birth, similar to Thomas Hobbes’ philosophy. If he indeed is the monster, or even if he has an alliance with the monster, either one’s name is Thomas.

Jacob's Enemy's name is Calvin

Jacob Arminius, an early modern theologian, argued in favor of free will of mankind. His views were a response to and contrasted with John Calvin. Calvin's primary belief in his interpretation of scripture was based on the idea of predestination; that is, that mankind has little to no choice in their actions, having been "predestined" by God before birth. Jacob's views on free will fall in line with Arminius, whereas as the MIB's views on mankind fall in line with Calvin's.

Nemesis has always been Locke

Locke has always been the Nemesis since the crash. Why can Locke walk after the crash? He's Flocke from the beginning. The Locke-in-the-Box was the original Locke who actually died in the crash. He was not killed by Ben in LA, and he kept the paralyzed Locke until the Ajira crash.

• That's unlikely, since he doesn't know a single thing about what's happening before his real death. Why would he need answers if he already has been on the island? Why did he cry so hard at the hatch when Boone died, if we knew that the nemesis felt no real emotion for any mortal?

• • His "real" death? Maybe his "real" death was on the Oceanic. The Locke drinking game is drink one for every use of the phrase "supposed to happen." Hm, who would know what's supposed to happen more than, let's say, the Nemesis? Would not the Nemesis do anything and everything to find "the loophole," a multi-century vendetta?

• • • If the Nemesis wants to kill Jacob, why would he wonder about his destiny and why he was chosen? The Nemesis has been in the island for so much time, he could know about DHARMA. Why did Locke spend so much time knowing about the hatch? And why would he get dreams and visions if indeed he was the Nemesis?

• • • • He was playing everyone. Again, why can Locke walk after the crash? Ben needs spinal surgery, but Locke can walk after a plane crash that kills hundreds? The Others can plant Ethan, but the Nemesis can't plant himself, and leave the paralyzed Locke's body for use later in his schemes in LA? The nemesis knows what's "supposed to happen." He needs the both the survivors and the Others to exploit "the loophole."
• The island heals people, i.e. Rose's cancer. Besides, Locke doesn't tell other people what he has seen in his visions. We (the audience) actually see it.

Other Appearances

Christian Shephard

• Just as Jacob's enemy pretends to be Locke, he also pretends to be Christian Shephard; he tells Jacob that he went through a lot to find a loophole, and that included convincing Locke to move the island, turn the wheel, convince the Oceanic 6 to come back, and die.
  • Indeed, if Jacob's enemy takes the form of Christian Shepard he may also be responsible for the reappearance of every dead person including Horace Goodspeed who told Locke he must go see Jacob, where he then encountered Christian. All done with the intent of ultimately getting Locke to die so he can use his form for an audience with Jacob and then reattain his leadership position.

Counter-Evidence

• Alternatively, Christian is indeed Christian -- the writers confirm him as 'undead' -- but works for Jacob's enemy, not Jacob.
  • The above is undermined by the fact that when we see Christian Shephard on the Island, he wears white shoes. Given the significance of black and white to the two characterisations (Black - Jacob's Enemy, White - Jacob), it is more likely to be Jacob inhabiting Christian's body rather than his enemy.
  • However, Christian's shoes are merely the same shoes Jack buried his father in and may not hold any other significance
    • This is because both are entities of the smoke monster and therefore, like the smoke monster can possess dead bodies (see above).
      • When Locke sees Christian under the well before he turns the wheel again, his shoes aren't white. The Christian that was wearing wearing white shoes has said that he could speak on Jacob's behalf. The one without the white shoes could be the smoke monster using that previous trust John had in Christian against him
• Christian's body is missing from its coffin. Locke's body was not missing. Also, we see the dead bodies of other on-island manifestations that are seem associated with the nemesis or smoke monster (e.g., Alex, Eko's brother).

Dave (Hurley's imaginary friend from the hospital)

• Hurley encountered Jacob's enemy in the season 2 episode "Dave". The Nemesis appears as Hurley's imaginary friend from the hospital. At the end of the episode, Nemesis tries to get Hurley to throw himself off of a cliff. If Hurley had done this, the nemesis would have been able to take over Hurley's form and infiltrate the group that way.
  • Not necessarily, the episode "Dave" was intended to show us some of Hurley's flashbacks and to help Hurley learn a lesson about self-control. Because Dave appears to convince Hurley to eat/commit suicide, Hurley is overcoming his inner demons. There are other episodes like this (i.e. "The 23rd Psalm" with Eko overcoming his past, also season 2).

Alex (Ben's daughter)

• It could also be said for similar reasons above that he appears as Alex in the tunnel insisting that Ben do exactly as Locke says. Locke (as Jacob's enemy) conveniently disappeared for that moment and could have reappeared as Alex to further push Ben to ultimately kill Jacob.

Kelvin Inman

• Knowing The System failure would bring 815 to the Island and therefore a "loophole" to him, took the form of Inman to lure Desmond out of the Swan so no one would be around to push the button.
• Jacob's Enemy pushed the button himself, because he needed the magnetic disturbance to be kept in check until 815 came around. When Desmond showed up, he took the form of Inman (who had committed suicide long before, and was now a spot on the wall), and manipulated Desmond along the lines of the theory above.
  • Jacob seems to have intended to bring 815 to the island, seeing as he gave lists for the Others to have join them.
    • In addition that the Nemesis appears to not like people coming to the island as he mentions in the beginning of The Incident, "How did they find the island...you brought them here, didn't you?"So, it is Jacob who brings other to the island and the Nemesis wants the island to him/her self...including getting Jacob off it for good as well.
  • Sorry if I'm wrong but didn't Ben make the list? When it showed the plane crashing Ben told Ethan and Goodwin he wanted them to make the lists, and as far not wanting people on the Island is possible that he was willing to allow these people on for a chance to kill Jacob
    • During his showdown with Jacob, Ben said that Richard was the one who always handed him lists and pieces of paper from Jacob.
    • Ben (to Ethan and Goodwin) You run, you can make that shore in an hour. Ethan, get up there to that fuselage. There may actually be survivors... and you're one of them. You're a passenger. You're in shock. Come up with an adequate story if they ask. Stay quiet if they don't. Listen, learn, and don't get involved. I want lists in 3 days. Go.
      • This is meant to clarify the above: There are multiple references to a "list" or "lists" in the show. When you place this line in its proper context he means to say "I want lists of the people on the plane". Later, in "One of Us" we see him go to Mikhail and start to compile more comprehensive files. From these two moments I would conclude that he wants Ethan and Goodwin to write down who survived the crash and then he would compare it to what Mikhail's files on background information of those people. We see these files in later episodes, most noteably in "The Brig" when Locke looks at the files on himself and Sawyer. Then there is another kind of "list" that is referred to in "Another 48 Days" by Goodwin that seems to distinguish between "good people" and "bad people". Ben talks about getting lists from Richard that Jacob wrote. This is referring to the second category of lists (good people and bad people).

Ben's Mother

• Another example is the appearance of Ben's mother. Ben, as a child, saw an apparition of his mother immediately prior to meeting Richard Alpert. Richard was only intrigued by Ben after Ben's mention of seeing his dead mother. Jacob's enemy has been using this unique power to manipulate events for a long time.
  • I don't think Ben's mother was the enemy. She tells Ben to be patient and wait, just like Charles, Richard and thus Jacob have.
    • I think she actually is. Jacob's enemy is willing to make Ben hate Jacob, because Ben is always made to be patient and wait In the end he believes Jacob doesn´t consider him worthy enough to meet him. Linus is really angry just before stabbing Jacob, and says: "when I dare to ask to see you myself, I was told: you have to wait. You have to be patient". His "mother"'s words fed his hatred over many years.
    • Ben's mother was confirmed to be an apparition of the island, but one different from Yemi (Monster) and Kate's horse (Undead).
    • Yeah, Ben's mother died off Island and her body wasn't taken there, so Smokey couldn't take on her form.
    • When the first ship came, Jacob's enemy said he would find a loophole to kill Jacob. Then when he did kill jacob he said something to the effect of, "You have no idea what I had to go through to do this." How many years had he been planning this assasination? Long enough to even lure Ben into Jacob's own company?
      • This would follow the tradition on LOST of infiltration by becoming "one of them" (Ethan, Goodwin, Juliet, Jack at "New Otherton", Losties in the DHARMA Initiative...and the ultimate infiltration so far--"Flocke").
• The ghost of Ben's Mother was Jacob, who was long-term grooming Ben into becoming the leader of the Others and his eventual "assassin". The dynamic of the interaction seems to encourage Ben to be patient, similar to what Richard Alpert (Jacob's liason?) will eventually prescribe. Another clue being that she has been the only ghost in the show so far of someone whose dead body is presumably not unburied somewhere on The Island. Perhaps Jacob wields not only the ability to take the form of the dead, but is also not limited to those not buried or even on The Island. This could also speak to the theory of Jacob's Antagonist being imprisoned in the ash-ringed cabin (symbolically an "island" on the Island) and possibly having his apparitional powers limited only to those not buried and actually on The Island. Granted, Ben's Mother's Ghost never allows young Ben to touch her, which seems, so far, to be Jacob's favorite method of affecting those whose lives he seemingly intervenes in, but there's more than one way to skin a cat.
  • Assuming that a Smoke Monster's ability to shape-shift into a "believable" apparition is limited only to creatures that it has actually physically "observed" or come in contact with, one might note that it has been shown (so far) that only Jacob, and not his antagonist, has been off-island; and that only Jacob could have come into contact with Ben's Mother.
    • Hurley saw the apparition of Dave on the island. Unless he really was just 'seeing things' again, is this not proof that Smokey can take on the form of non-Island people? Dave tried to get Hurley to kill himself by jumping off a cliff so this does not seem like something Jacob would initiate. Perhaps one could argue that Hurley is an exception to the norm (like Desmond) as he sees the dead off Island too, but it does seem that Smokey might have the ability to scan for people's experiences and re-animate them without actual physical contact.
      • Its already been confirmed by Darltom that Dave wasn't an apparition, Hurley was just imagining him.

Ana Lucia

• Ana Lucia appears to Hurley in "The Lie" to help him. It could be Jacob's enemy impersonating her to help Hurley get back to the island.
  • Jacob's enemy could also be behind all of the dead people Hurley saw after his return from the island, including Charlie.
    • Jacob himself visited Hugo to ask him to go back to the Island; why should both Jacob and Esau be interested in Hurley going back?
    • Jacob told Hurley that being able to see his dead friends meant that Hurley was "blessed", so perhaps it was Jacob either appearing to Hurley, or causing the manifestations of Charlie, Eko, Ana Lucia, etc.
    • This could be a red-herring created intentionally by the producers to confuse the audience into associating all apparitions of the dead on the show into the same ilk. Perhaps the ghosts that Hurley sees have to do with his mental illness/"blessing", while other ghosts are the Smoke Monster (Alex). Even more diabolically, at certain times the ghost of Christian may have been Jacob's Antagonist ("This Place is Death") and possibly Jacob (in "White Rabbit"?) and possibly just your run-of-the-mill, stress-induced hallucination. Which may have been what Jack was having when seeing the ghost of Christian off-Island in "Something Nice Back Home".

Libby

• Like Richard and Jacob, was checking up on our Losties throughout their lives. Libby was in the mental institution watching Hurley. She also enabled Desmond to compete in his sailing competition which led to his coming to the island.
• This would accord with the above theory that Jacob's enemy is female.
• Although given recent remarks by the producers that they will not be able to tell Libby's full story as the actress is refusing to be re-cast, we may never know.

Richard Alpert in the jungle meeting young Ben

• In 1954 Richard Alpert looks clean cut and in normal clothes. Then coming across young Ben in the jungle he's wearing older clothing and has longer hair. Then when we see him later in the 70's he's clean cut again. It seems very out of place that in between those years Richard looks so different. If during this one meeting between him and young Ben it's really Jacob's enemy pretending to be Richard, that would explain why he looks the way he does. If Richard is from the Black Rock, that's what he would have looked like when Jacob's enemy possibly saw him last, so that's how he would appear to Ben. (as we saw in season 5 finale, Jacob's enemy was aware of the ship). The reason for doing this is the same reason he's pretending to be other people for years, to get Ben to hate Jacob enough and become so frustrated all those years that he would have no problem killing Jacob when the time came. (long haired Richard told him he'd have to be very patient and right before Ben kills Jacob he uses this phrase.)
  • Smokey can only appear as the dead, so as far as we know now, this couldn't happen.
    • We don't know that Richard is dead, alive, or something else.
  • It may have appeared as Walt?
    • Again, as far as we know, it can only appear as the dead, and Walt (again, as far as we know) isn't dead.
      • As far as we know, there is no prof that smokey is Jacob's enemy, it's only a speculation. As far as we know the only person Jacob's enemy impersonated is Locke, this whole "only dead people" theory is based on a sample of one and nothing proves that he can appear as the dead people only. As far as we know he could certainly be Ben's mother apparition or long haired Richard.
  • Maybe they hadn't decided wether the others and/or Richard were going to be clean cut native or scraggy cast away natives. This was season 2 (or 3).
  • When Kate and Sawyer brought young injured Ben to Richard, he asked 'Is this Benjamin Linus?', but asked it in a sort of rhetorical tone, as if he already knew. And even if he was not sure who it was, it is unlikely he would be able to deduce who he was having not met him before.
• Richard could quite simply have this appearance because the Others want their enemies to think they are as uncivilised as possible while they are in fact quite civilised. Don't forget that Ben was a member of the Dharma Initiative, this was probably the way in which Richard regularly appeared to the DI at the time. Does no one else remember Tom's first appearance to the survivors? They are part of the same faction, don't forget.
  • Not really. He appeared for DI in LaFleur exactly as he showed himself with the same haircut as he had for some of the other appearences. Though he did show up in some other episodes (can't remember which - I think season 4 - when Sayid/Kate asked for help from the Other) with the ragged dirty clothes - no long hair though
• He was just stressed and decided to let his hair grow out. They wear ragged clothing to be less noticable in the jungle (i.e. Season 4 assult on the mercenaries) so that might explain his clothing. Charles Widmore gave him grief and he had lost hope for a canidate as leader (perhaps waiting for John Locke to come back around) but after finding Ben he realized here was a possible filler between Widmore and Locke. He cleaned up afterward.

Locke's Father

If Jacob's Nemesis can appear as the deceased, could this explain the arrival of Locke's Father on the island? He may have taken this form to continue his manipulation of Locke and/or Sawyer. Killing his father was a "test" to allow Locke to assume leadership of The Others, and Sawyer would not have been able to settle down with Juliet until he had killed the original Sawyer.

On a related note, MIB could be Locke's real father. Perhaps Anthony Cooper was just conning Locke for the kidney, and MIB was the man that was "nearly twice" Locke's mother's age in 1954. This would relate to the theological metaphors in the show, as if this is the case, the MIB serves as the "father," and the loophole into killing Jacob (and hence, saving the island/mankind?) would be to sacrifice his son. In a similar parallel, though not precisely the same, the MIB also became the embodiment of his "son" in 2007. Just a thought...

Method of appearing as others

• To appear as another person, he must physically touch the other person. He was able to touch Yemi and Locke (as the Monster or at some other point like in the funeral home) and appeared as them. Jacob has the same ability and can appear as others too, such as Christian and Ana Lucia.
• He physically changes shape to becoming these people.
• He can create versions of these people completely, controlling them as if they were puppets.
• He can act only through dead people -- this explains Hurley's visions.
• In, "The Cost of Living", Colleen's body is set to sea and set aflame. Perhaps Jacob told the Others to do this with their dead to avoid the Nemesis from taking their form. This is assuming that those who are not buried are possessed, and those who are are not.
• This is a beautiful point. Thinking about the rules of burying their dead in Dharma days too. You'd hate to have an impostor walk into your camp.
• Both Jacob and his enemy do appear as others. It's hypothesised that the enemy is constrained to the island whereas Jacob is depicted as meeting with several off the island. Again, notice that he physically touches everyone he meets (with the exception of Ilana who he had apparently met before - notice he also wears gloves and is dressed in black in that scene, relevance?) including Locke. In the case of Hurley who has had many apparitions both on and off the island, his first being Dave when he was in the Santa Rosa Mental Health Institute before he'd been to the island, Jacob says of these visions "What if you weren't cursed? What if you were blessed?".
• Maybe he can read thoughts. In "The 23rd Psalm" in the jungle the Smoke Monster stares into Eko's eyes and after that Eko starts seeing Yemi (the nemesis learnd about Yemi from Eko's thoughts.) The same thing happened to Locke and The Smoke Monster.
• And when Dave appears to Hurley we can assume that the nemesis had "gotten to know" Dave from Hurley's mind (since Dave was Hurley's imaginary friend.)

Rousseau's Expedition

• They entered Smokey's tunnel and died, and Jacob's enemy manifested itself as the science team. This explains "the Sickness".
  • But, Rousseau is able to kill her "sick" companions. We have seen nothing so far to suggest that it is possible to kill manifestations of the enemy/Smokey.

Boone

His plan seemed to involve using Locke to create a loophole to kill Jacob, so he would need to convince Locke to do some of the things he did. He used Boone's form to convince Locke to find Mr. Eko, which would lead us into Locke's journey to lead the Others.

Jacob's nemesis is Matthew Abaddon

• He causes Locke, to go on a walkabout and tells Naomi, to recruit the freighter people (Daniel,Miles,Charlotte,Frank Lapidus) to go to the Island. Hes responsible for the Time travel and that these and the survivors land in 1977 and cause the Incident, that will later cause the crash of Flight 815. So the survivors and the freighter people are chess-figures from Jacobs nemesis and the Others are the figures from Jacob.

and so it goes: the nemesis aka Matthew tells Locke, to go on an walkabout. He is able to take on the form of dead people. So after the crash of Flight 815, he appears in the form of Christian Shephard and tells Locke in the Cabin, that he must turn the Frozen wheel to start the Time travel. So he´s able to take on John Locke's form. He only must tell to Richard Alpert, that he must tell John to return the Oceanic Six and to die. The Oceanic six causes the Incident which causes the Protocol that leads to the crash of Flight 815 and all from Season 1 to Season 5 make happen. Once Locke died, Matthew (who died in the same episode] alias Jacobs enemy takes Locke's form to manipulate Ben, which belongs to Jacob's people to kill this man. That's why he phrases at last: "You wouldn't believe when I tell you what I had to go through"

• Abaddon in the bible book of Revelations, is the angel of the bottomless pit and referenced as coming from smoke.

Yemi

• Would fit if Jacob's Nemesis was the smoke monster, as theorized
• Would provide possible hints to the person and character of Jacob's Nemesis
  • Before Eko's death, "Yemi" tries to elicit a moral change in him. Eko refuses, however, saying, "I did not ask for the life that I was given. But it was given, nonetheless. And with it... I did my best." If Eko had repented, he would likely not have died; we can therefore conclude that Jacob's Nemesis has no problem killing those who disagree with him.
  • Likewise, during their conversation "Yemi" chastises Eko for speaking "to me as if I were your brother." Note that his irritation in this case isn't seen at any other time: he isn't upset with Jack for treating "Christian" like his father, nor Ben for treating "Alex" like his (adopted) daughter, etc. His reaction, then, may indicate that he and Jacob are brothers.
• Would add thematic depth to the short-lived Locke/Eko rivalry: Eko was killed for embracing his own free will and a firm morality whereas Locke survived in virtue of his belief in destiny and corresponding moral weakness ("Boone was a sacrifice the island demanded," etc.).

Hierarchy

Leader

• Jacob's enemy was once the leader of the Others who answered only to Jacob (just as Ben, Charles and Eloise have been). However, there is a binding rule that an appointed leader cannot kill Jacob no matter how much they want to. This is the reason why, as Richard Alpert said, Jacob will only meet with the leader (since he knows it is safe for him).Thus by using Locke's body and position as leader Jacob's enemy can meet him again and use Ben to kill him. Jacob's enemy did not orchestrate Ben's death and use his body because he knew Jacob would never meet him.
  • Does this mean that Ben was never officially sanctioned as the leader of the others? He was never allowed to see Jacob and is obviously not bound by a rule keeping him from killing Jacob. This assumes that once a leader you never become unbound from the rule or the enemy would have been to kill Jacob himself.
• He was behind the purge. When speaking to Richard on the way to the statue, he stated that the other Ajira passengers had to be dealt with.
• Before entering Jacobs 'home' Richard says that only the Leader can enter. This is indeed what happens because Ben is still the leader. Locke is the enemy therefore non-human so not included in the rule - something he and Jacob would sort out between themselves. (Pi)
  • Also, Locke was selected leader because Jacob's enemy exploited the time loop to manipulate Richard and real Locke. Therefore Locke was maybe never a real leader and Ben was still unknowingly the real leader.

Adviser

• Jacob's enemy has the same position that Richard Alpert now bears, the title of adviser. Something happened to Jacob's enemy, putting him in a position able to take corpses like Locke or possibly Christian, and Richard Alpert filled his position.
• Could the man be Richard, he attempted to kill Jacob and his punishment is to live forever on the island and never age, he helped the "other" Locke to get to Jacob and knew that Ben had to kill him.
  • If that was true, then FLocke (the man in Locke form) could not speak with Richard (unless the man can be two people at once) which he does numerous times in Season 5.

One who has been cast out

• It is clear that Jacob is the authority figure and has the reigns of power; he is calm and relaxed in the presence of his enemy. Jacob's enemy wants to kill Jacob, but in the 1800's he did not have the means to do so and is clearly frustrated at this inability. By his statement that he will "find the loophole" it is clear that he will not rest until he is successful. It resembles one notion of the God/Satan relationship.
• Jacob is his leader and he cannot kill his leader. That is the loophole.
• This theory hints at possible reasons for the tension between the Nemesis and Jacob. If, like Satan, the Nemesis wanted Jacob's power and rebelled in some way, he could have been banished or punished. This clearly would make him angry and motivated enough to want to kill Jacob- even if it took a few hundred years.

Inability To Touch

• Has This Form Of Locke ever Touched Anyone before?

This Would Explain Why he could never kill Jacob himself or accept his food. This is why he made Ben Kill Jacob?

• • This would also explain why Christian, if indeed he was Jacob's enemy, could not help Locke get up after falling down the well.
  • The Locke image handled torches and other objects, and Christian handled the DHARMA recruits' photo when showing it to Sun. Both of them are able to touch things.
    • But the fake Locke kicks Jacob into the fire.
    • Christian is seeing holding baby Aaron in "Something Nice Back Home".
    • He also shakes Richards hand on entering the others camp
    • He also touches Ben during the walk to not-Jacob's cabin.
    • He hands Ben the knife he uses to kill Jacob
    • Jacob offers the enemy food, which he declines, saying he has already eaten (assuming that incarnation and the Locke incarnation have the same form)
    • He eats a mango on the beach with Alana after the second crash then brings a dead boar for the others... so he can even eat and touch things and presumably even kill -- if only a boar.

Magical Servant or Bound Divine Being

We do not know that Jacob has any powers at all. We have only seen that he does not appear to age, something which may have been granted to him. The enemy appears to have either the ability to shape-shift or create illusion. If he was the one in the cabin he can either become invisible, or he is telekinetic. He is clearly bound by some force, limitation or vow which prevents him from killing Jacob. He may also be able to be bound by a magic circle (the line of ash around the cabin).
Is he some sort of genie or mummy?
If the biblical allegory is a clue, perhaps he is like the angel that Jacob wrestled and forced to give him a blessing.

Good Eats

• Jacob offers Mr. Loophole some of his red snapper, but Mr. Loophole tells him "no thanks" because he already ate. But Jacob's offer is sarcastic. He knows Mr. Loophole (being a demon, god, smoke monster, etc.) is unable to eat.

• This might explain why Mr. Loophole (as John Locke) makes love to a mango when he returns.
• This might also be a reference to the time when the Biblical Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of porridge.

Relationship to Babylon 5

Ancient antagonists, with different philosophies, meddling with the present, is similar to the Vorlons and the Shadows in Babylon 5. Jacob seems to represent chaos/free will, as evidenced by his desire to attract the Black Rock, while Jacob's nemesis seems to represent order/authoritarianism, as seen when the smoke monster judges people.

The Shadows kill Vorlon ambassador Kosh for siding with the Humans and other races.

The Loophole

• Just Throwing it Out here is it possible that the relationship between Jacob And Smokey is a reflection of the relationship between Ben and Charles, with the same rules, this is the loophole that stopped Charles from killing Ben and what stopped Ben from killing Charles when he was in his hotel, Jacob hired people to come to the island just as Charles did which could show us that Jacob really is the evil one in this relationship.
• Jacob's nemesis did not only need someone else to kill Jacob, he also needed Jacob's people to lead him to their leader. He probably already knew where to find him, since he visits Jacob at the statue in the beginning of the episode (in the 1800s). Taking Ben to Jacob himself would be too proactive, and "against the rules".
• The Loophole was the time shifts triggered by the moving of the island by Ben. Jacob's nemesis is not immortal, else he will not need to find a loophole; he merely has shape shifting abilities. He somehow found a way of transporting himself during the time shifts.
• The Loophole is that Nemesis couldn't kill Jacob in his own body. The animated body of John Locke is the Nemesis. As to why he used Locke's body instead of any other one, John's one was brought on Ajira 316, acting as the proxy of Christian Shephard. This allowed Nemesis to use Locke's body.
• Another possible theory is that the person to kill Jacob had to be someone that Jacob did not touch or speak to. Note the comment that Ben never did speak with Jacob, and the comment, "What about you." Jacob never considered Ben a threat.
• When Locke is pushed out of the window by Anthony Cooper, we see Jacob approach him. It appears to me that Locke is DEAD, and when Jacob grasps his shoulder, Locke jolts back to life. We all know "dead is dead," that you "don't get to come back from that," and maybe we can assume Jacob plays by those rules too but has the ability to restore one's life if he so chooses. Jacob's enemy, being the opportunist that he is, realizes that Jacob brought back to life someone that Destiny predisposed to die, thus allowing him to freely reincarnate a John Locke doppelganger. Therein lies the loophole!

Kicking Jacob into the fire

• An important observation is that Ben didn't kill Jacob, he was kicked into the fire before the stab wounds killed him. Presumably, this is to say that Jacob's enemy has always been able to perform actions fatal to Jacob. Perhaps, then, Jacob can only be killed ritualistically. It might just be that Jacob's enemy was not allowed to draw the necessary blood himself; in that sense, Ben is either a proxy or an unwitting scapegoat.
  • If it were true that Ben didn't kill Jacob; the fire did, then it could also be said that if Ben hadn't kicked him into the fire and Jacob had died from the knife wounds instead, that Ben didn't kill him, the knife did, which is silly. Ben DID kill Jacob. It can be assumed that Jacob being burned to death was just the writers using the literary technique of foreshadowing, in which Jacob's cabin was burnt, then Jacob burnt himself.
    • It was that Flocke kicked Jacob into the fire (a presumsably fatal action) that is the salient point (rather than what killed him), as nothing seems to be preventing Jacob's nemesis from killing him on a practical level, suggesting a more spiritual aspect to the loophole.
    • It's clear this person didn't see FLocke kicking Jacob into the fire.
• Jacob being kicked into the fire is symbolically significant in relation to the myth of the Phoenix. Jacob will rise from the ashes as does the Phoenix.
• If Esau/the smoke monster could take the form of the deceased why didn't he take the form of Jacob after he was killed? By pushing Jacob into the fire it seems less likely that he would be able to do this. Of course, Esau may not be able to take Jacob's form whatsoever (there are rules to every scenario).
• FLocke can't kill Jacob unless Jacob is first weakened. So the knife from Ben weakens Jacob enough for FLocke to be able to perform a coup de grâce by kicking him into the fire.
• It could be that this is insignificant, and that all that mattered was the actual act of murder. Jacob was gone for after being stabbed a half a dozen times by Ben. In the end, Ben killed Jacob.
  • But with the healing properties of the Island, can we say Jacob is dead at all. After about 50 people fell out of the sky and survived, and Locke certainly seemed dead several times. Mikhail, too.

A Loop

• The loophole is being underlooked. It is not just a loophole that causes Jacob's death, but a loophole to end a greater loop. Jacob and his Nemesis speak about mankind coming to the island, and how "it always ends the same". They were seen mid 19th century. They couldn't have been through many groups of people looking at the way they seem to have thousands of years of knowledge when ships capable of going to other continents were simply not around for thousands of years. Jacob is trying to proove his Nemesis wrong about humanity, and seems to believe in free will. Jacob has and uses the power to cause a loop to continue to occur an infinite amount of times. The loop is the story in Lost. Everything that happened up until some point in Season 5 has happened thousands of times for Jacob to test humanity and proove a point. He set the entire situation up, and uses choice and free will to try to make different outcomes possible each time. It is quite obvious though that "it always ends the same". Until this time, of course. Jacob realized the only way to proove his point would be to cause a loophole, and die. In the loop we know as Lost, instead of convincing Ben not to kill him, Jacob eggs Ben on. This creates the loophole and changes everything that was supposed to happen.
  • Yes, all true, except Jacob does not egg Ben on, he simply states that Ben think about himself, "what about YOU", and that he has a choice. The only person who eggs Ben on is the MiB.

Nemesis Caused the Failed Pregnancies

• Jacob's Enemy caused the failed pregnancies in order to bring Juliet to the island. Juliet coming to the island ultimately leads to her setting off Jughead - something that, in the short term at least, will work to Nemesis' advantage.
  • Jughead doesn't explode. The white light is the pocket of electromagnetism being breached. The reason Jughead doesn't explode is because in Orientation Chang says there was The Incident so the computer keys must be pushed.
  • Seems like too specific and unpredictable a thing for him to forsee. It is not based on character judgments like his manipulations of, say, Ben and John.
• He caused the failed pregnancies to prevent the spread of humans on the island because "they fight, they destory, they corrupt."
• The people in the DI were able to have children.
  • I think it was The incident that caused failed pregnancies.
    • And that's why Eloise had to leave the Island because she was pregnant.
• I have trouble believing that a character based on the idea of having justification for killing would go around causing miscarriages.

Jacob is Mr.X's Constant

Jacob and Mr.X have both been on the island long enough to know they need a Constant. Although they don't get along, they know that they need a Constant. And therefor can't kill eachother, becacause they would loose their constant. And that's why Mr.X had to find a loop hole, that Jacob would be in past and present after he's dead. This could mean Christian works for Mr.X, and that's why he told Locke to move the island, so Jacob would move through time and create Mr.X's loop hole. So when Christian said he was there on behalf of Jacob, he was actually there on behalf of Jacob's oppisite, Mr.X, and also his constant.

v • d • e Theories about Mystery and Mythology of Lost Dreams and visions • Electromagnetism • Pregnancy issue • Healing properties • The "magic box" • The Monster • The Numbers • The Rules • Time travel Whispers • "Adam & Eve" • The Beechcraft • Black Rock • Blast door map • The DHARMA Initiative • The frozen wheel • Hieroglyphs • Jacob • Libby Jughead • Kahana • The Others • The Purge • Walt • Science expedition • The sickness • The Statue • The Temple • United States Army • The Incident Christian Shephard • Charles Widmore • Rousseau • Hurley bird • Eloise Hawking • Jacob's nemesis • Abaddon • Pierre Chang • Alpert • Quarantine

v • d • e Theories about Recurring Characters (More than five appearances and/or a centric episode) Aaron • Alex • Richard Alpert • Leslie Arzt • Mikhail Bakunin • Bram • Cindy Chandler • Pierre Chang • Anthony Cooper • Naomi Dorrit • Tom Friendly Horace Goodspeed • Eloise Hawking • Penelope Hume • Ilana • Jacob • Jacob's nemesis • Diane Janseen • Noor "Nadia" Abed Jazeem • Martin Keamy • Frank Lapidus • Roger Linus • Edward Mars • Karl Martin • Bernard Nadler • Rose Nadler • Omar • Phil • Danny Pickett • Stuart Radzinsky Ethan Rom • Danielle Rousseau • Christian Shephard • Goodwin Stanhope • Vincent • Charles Widmore • Yemi