| “ | Guh... Do you fully comprehend your actions? How will you repent for a sin this grave? Do you think yourself capable of carrying that cross? Praise my name, before it is too late! Praise my glory! | „ |
| ~ YHVH |
YHVH (pronounced Yahweh or Yehowah) is the main antagonist of Shin Megami Tensei II. He appears as the final boss of the game no matter which path Aleph, the protagonist, chooses to take.
Personality[]
YHVH is an important figure in the entire Shin Megami Tensei series, and is often seen as a firm and lawful, otherwise ruthless figure who holds little empathy towards humanity. Throughout the entire series, YHVH is portrayed as a vain dictator who has created the universe in a way that will allow him to completely subjugate it. Lucifer, his former right-hand man, rejects his reasoning and takes one third of the heavenly host in an attempt to overthrow him, but fails and is banished to the demon world, becoming its ruler. Lucifer often refers to YHVH as 'the true enemy'.
Shin Megami Tensei[]
The protagonist can choose to follow the Lawful alignment in Shin Megami Tensei, where he aligns with YHVH. YHVH's plan is to create the Thousand Year Kingdom of God, consisting of new angels and ruled by him. YHVH decides to purge the world of what he deems undesirables, and sends Thor as an agent to destroy Japan.
YHVH plays a minor role in the Neutral alignment, wherein the protagonist destroys both the angels and demons, hoping to create a new, free world raised by mankind. In the Chaos alignment, the protagonist can choose to align with Lucifer, where the protagonist destroys the angels and restore the olden gods. Lucifer eventually thanks him for doing so, but warns him to be careful, as the 'true enemy' still remains.
Shin Megami Tensei II[]
YHVH appears as a respected figure in Shin Megami Tensei II, he is worshiped by the peoples of Tokyo Millennium. They are foretold that a savior will descend from God, and show the citizens salvation. Since the Messians running Tokyo Millennium are angels, and because the aforementioned 'savior' has yet to arrive, they began fearing that YHVH has abandoned them. They believed that, if they carried out the plans as YHVH foretold, YHVH would once again appear before them. In order to do so, they need a savior they could control. That savior is Aleph, the protagonist.
In ancient times, YHVH created Lucifer and Satan respectively, Satan was used as an instrument to judge the world, humans, angels and demons alike. However, Lucifer's pride allowed him to revolt against God, and was banished from heaven. Depending on Aleph's choices and alignments, he can either choose to side with YHVH, or to defy and defeat him.
In the Neutral and Chaos alignment path, Satan decides to use the Megiddo Ark (a powerful laser weapon within Eden) to destroy all life on the planet as his judgment. He is killed by Aleph before he can carry out his plans, and his death prompts the appearance of YHVH. In the Law alignment, Satan will chose to align with Aleph as he deems that YHVH is to be judged for his crimes. However, he crumbles to dust after defeating his creator. Should Aleph chooses to align with Lucifer, after defeating his creator, Lucifer will return to his angel form, after defeating YHVH. Lucifer does not crumble to dust like Satan, nowhere is this shown or even implied.
In any alignment, prior to Aleph's battle with YHVH, he is forewarned that by defying God's Will, Aleph will suffer a never-ending cycle of punishment, as YHVH would torture Aleph, kill him, reincarnate him, and continue torturing him until the end of time for committing the 'Ultimate Sin': slaying God. After his defeat, he warns that as long as people continue to seek his salvation, the Great Will of the universe would continue to ressurect him over and over again.
Strange Journey[]
YHVH is shown here to have been defeated and broken into various fragments, the largest and most powerful of which is his Demiurge , sealed deep within Sector Grus of the Schwarzwelt by Alilat, one of the ancient mothers hoping to bring about their world of chaos. YHVH's most faithful servant, the Herald Metatron , disguises himself as a soldier and convicnes to protagonist to godeep within Grus, claiming that treasure could be found. After Alilat is encountered and defeated, Metatron reveals his true for mand motive, presenting Alilat's remains, the Nabatea Stone, as his reward. Should the protagonist agree, Metatron will lead the protagonist to the deepest point of Grus, where a female voice will beg him not to follow the angel's request. Once lead to the Demiurge's chamber, it will be undetectable until the Protagonist uses the Enemy Search C application, where it will proclaim itself 'creator of all, unparalleled by any' and attack. Once defeated, Metatron will attempt to fuse himself with the Demiurge, while the female voice will beg the protagonist to turn off his Enemy Search and destabilize both the Demiurge and Metatron, allowing her to seal away both of them. Should the Protagonist seal them away, Metatron will curse him and he is rewarded with a Chakra Elixir by the female voice. Should the Protagonist allow the fusion to occur, the Demiurge will reward him with a Chkra Elixir and depart, unless he is Law-aligned in which the Demiurge will offer to join the Protagonist, hoping to regain its true power as YHVH.
Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse[]
YHVH is the true antagonist of the game. Early on, He is revealed to be the ultimate target of the Divine Powers, whose divinity He had oppressed. He is not only a force of Law, but is also playing both the forces of Law and Chaos, as revealed by Lucifer in his defeat. Following the defeat of Lucifer, Merkabah , and the Divine Powers, YHVH becomes the main antagonist for the final arc. YHVH's throne is located in the deepest reaches of His Universe, and sends iterations of demons and angels (notably prefaced with 'A.') toward the party. After the defeat of Satan near His throne, a battle is initiated with YHVH. In the battle, YHVH claims to promise salvation and goodwill to those who revere Him. However, He is denounced by the party for His cruelty and failure to bring His promises about. After being denied His divinity, YHVH devolves into a demonic amalgamation of the deities He condemned and the destruction He plagued humanity with. Even if defeated, YHVH is still persistent in other alternate universes, and will also still persist as long as humanity believes in Him.
Devil Survivor[]
YHVH is mentioned in Devil Survivor as the being responsible for masterminding the Tokyo Lockdown. His followers claim that it was an act of mercy to allow humanity a chance to prove itself, as his angels had originally planned to take control of humanity by force until he vetoed them, suggesting an appropriate test to ascertain if such drastic action was neccesary. Here he is portrayed as far more benevolent, as he will not oppose the protagonist unless the protagonist attempts to flee from his responsibilities as a participant in the War of Bel, or outright opposes him by becoming King of Bel to lead the demons of chaos and humanity in a war against him.
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Trivia[]
- Despite being characterized as a being who constantly opposes the protagonists, the creators of the Shin Megami Tensei game series have stated that "God is not the source of all evil in the MegaTen universe". The opposite is true, as YHVH's actions are a sign of something wrong with the universe itself.
- YHVH is often equated with God. However, this is not the best description, as he is only one avatar of the Great Will.
- YHVH is YHWH with the W replaced with a V.