Sabaoth

The Opposite of Yaldabaoth (Art by William Blake)

### Aliases

Deity (Female name), Sabathiel, God of Hebrews, Yaldabaoth, God of Israel, Tzevaot, Over all the forces of Chaos, Prince of the Archons, Ruler of Saturn, Ruler Over All Forces, Lord Of Host

### Affiliation

Yaldabaoth, False Heaven, Ophite, Seven Chief Archons (formely)

## Physical Description

### Spirit of

Light, Control, Conquest, Pride, Absolute Strength

## Relatives

### Siblings

* Athoth
* Harmas
* Kalila-Oumbri
* Yabel
* Adonin
* Abbede
* Abrisene
* Yobel
* Armoupieel
* Melcheir-Adonein
* Belias
* Iao
* Astaphanos
* Adonaios
* Elaios
* Horaios
* Seth
* David
* Eloiein
* Paraplex
* Hekate
* Ariouth
* Typhon
* Iachtanabas

### Offspring

Cain and Abel (Rumors)

**Sabaoth** is one of the sons of the son of chaos, Yaldabaoth, and is one of his Archons.

## Overview

Sabaoth is one of the many archons created by Sophia's abortion, Yaldabaoth. However, unlike his father/mother, Sabaoth is a benevolent and even good entity. It is even considered the opposite of Yaldabaoth, similar to the dualism of Yesh and Ayin, but on an infinitesimally smaller scale.

## Appearance

Sabaoth's usual appearance is that of a warm colored serpent with a dragons head. This form usually has multiple heads and horns and is mostly depicted as more red. This is the form he originally used when he was birthed from Yaldabaoth, a deity with an equally terrifying form.

On Earth, during a conversation with Satanael in Mumbai, India, he appeared as a thin man, wearing a white kurta, typically Indian attire, and had long honey-colored hair and serene green eyes. In this form, he is even said to have a beauty that only angels like Michael or Gabriel would have, which has happened to him being mistaken for an angel.

## Personality

Sabaoth is practically the opposite of Yaldabaoth, being a benevolent and just entity, defending free will. In fact, due to Yaldabaoth's lies, he used to believe that Yaldabaoth was a perfectly benevolent and just person, which may have reflected in the way he sees the world. Even after he found out that Yaldabaoth was an entity contrary to everything he claimed to be, he still loves his creator and wants to save him from the corruption he suffered.

He also has a brotherly friendship with his uncle, Satanael, as they both had to band together to go against the false aeon's actions and both have similar ideas. However, when it comes to humans, Sabaoth doesn't love them like Satanael, despite wanting their good and being willing to help his uncle protect them. Sabaoth has a bit of Yaldabaoth's personality, often being a tyrant of sorts and not liking it when people go against his orders, but he's already said he can control that side of him.

## History

Sabaoth, like the other archons, was emanated by Yaldabaoth from his chaotic powers. Yaldabaoth lied to his false angels and archons saying that he was the only true God, pretending to be a benevolent and just God who loves all creation, which made Sabaoth admire him from an early age, considering Yaldabaoth the greatest example of love and justice in the all universe. For thousands of years, Sabaoth lived alongside his father, going along with him on several "business trips" across the universe, and because of that, their relationship grew with, Yaldabaoth considering him her favorite son.

However, at some point he receives a visit from a woman with blond hair and tells him that she is his grandmother and warned him not to trust Yaldabaoth, because he was not what he claimed to be, she said that he was not the true God and that there was another besides Yaldabaoth, a much more powerful one and the true source of love and justice.

Sabaoth tried to get this story straight with his father, but the god of ignorance believed that his son wouldn't mind knowing the truth and would stand by him, so Yaldabaoth revealed the truth and said he hated creation, that human beings they were just a bunch of animals for him, and despite loving his followers, for him they were more like pets. Sabaoth revolted against his father and tried to defeat him, but he was easily defeated due to the immense power of the Demiurge, but then Sabaoth prayed to the true God and asked for His help, that's when God answered the Archon's prayer and gave a fraction of His infinite power to the Archon, and so he was able to defeat Yaldabaoth and escape into the universe of God.

After this event, Yaldabaoth found the angel Satanael and made him his new ally, only to suffer one more rebellion and the fallen angel become Sabaoth's ally.

## Myths and Legends

In some Gnostic writings Sabaoth is one of the sons of Ialdabaoth. According to Hypostasis of the Archons and On the Origin of the World, Sabaoth dethrones his father Ialdabaoth. In both accounts, Sabaoth repents, when he hears the voice of Sophia, condemns his father and his mother (matter) and after that is enthroned by Sophia in the seventh heaven. Some Church Father report on the other hand, that Gnostics identified Sabaoth with Ialdaboath himself.

### Name

The name Sabaoth appears in the Old Testament in reference to an army. In the First Book of Samuel, the name is used as a name of God. In Gnostic texts, the name should evidently rendered as "over all the forces (of chaos)".

### In Gnostic sources

Sabaoth and his beneficial functions are associated with Zeus, while Ialdabaoth with Saturn and the forces of evil. After he dethrones his father, he is associated with the sphere of Saturn. Jan Zandee interprets Sabaoth's role as the opposite of Ialdabaoth. The psychics can choose between both; Ialdabaoth representing evil and Sabbaoth representing good. Sabaoth becomes the current ruler of the world and thus fulfills the role of the God of Israel.

Thrown into Tartarus, Ialdabaoth envies his son, whereupon his envy takes on shape and becomes death. From death, envy, wrath, weeping, roar, loud shouting, sobber and grief emerge. Many of these emotions seem to be related to lament during funerals. As mourning was controversial among early Christians, associated with Satan, they might intentionally display disapproval about lamenting the dead and advocates control of emotions. However, this is not explicitly spelled out and some emotions, such as anger for the rulers of darkness, are approved, thus differing from the Stoicism.

After Ialdabaoth brought death into the world, Sabaoth creates a host of cherubim, a notion also appearing in Jewish Merkabah mysticism.

### Non-Gnostic sources

Epiphanius of Salamis, the bishop of Salamis, Cyprus at the end of the 4th century, reports that Severian Encratites (also associated with Sethians) believed Sabaoth and Ialdabaoth to be one and the same, the God of law, and therefore evil. Celsus, a 2nd-century Greek philosopher, identified Ialdabaoth with Cronus and Sabaoth and Adonai with Zeus. Origen (c. 184 – c. 253) denies the equation. That such identifications appears within Gnostic documents themselves, has not been proven.

## Trivia

* He is not to be confused with the avatar of God.