For years, the Attack on Titan fanbase has been deeply divided over the possibility of an Anime Original Ending (AOE), and no character holds more keys to this debate than Zeke Yeager. Our theory poses that Zeke’s unusual Titan Shifter abilities and his entire character arc are intrinsically linked to biblical prophecy—specifically, the Prophet Ezekiel and the Valley of Dry Bones.
By examining clues hidden within the Shingeki no Kyojin manga, spin-offs like Attack on School Castes, and the evidence supporting the highly researched and documented ANR Theory, we make the case that Zeke Yeager is the ‘Wallist Priest’ destined to complete the time-loop narrative that the anime’s original ending failed to deliver.
Explore the evidence with us and see that while Eren may be the true architect of the AOE and AnR timelines, Zeke Yeager is a major catalyst and has a unique part to play in this story.
While Hajime Isayama’s known for taking inspiration from Norse Mythology to write Attack on Titan, it is a little-known fact that Isayama-sensei may have also taken stories from the bible. Specifically, the Book of Ezekiel in reference to the deuteragonist and Wallist propaganda priest, Zeke Yeager.
The Prophetic Connection: Zeke Yeager and the Book of Ezekiel
A few nights ago while browsing Reddit, I came across a Reddit AoT theory post referencing Zeke Yeager and the Valley of Dry Bones in the bible. Naturally, the story of Attack on Titan has had quite a few “real-world” biblical implications – the chief one being the parallels to Eldians and the Holocaust of the Jew-ish population.
Another two similarities I’ve noticed myself have been the comparison of the Marleyan Helo’s figure to St. Michael slaying the Dragon (or St. George slaying the Dragon, depending on the time period you are in).
Helos slays the Dragon, St. George or St. Michael also slays the same dragon, apparently
Then there is the Story of Gog and Magog – the twin giants who were set to devour the world and “trample it underfoot” once the walls of their prison came down. The walls were (magically) impenetrable – neither being able to dig under nor jump over them.
The walls on Paradis island bear a similar fate, with the story of the miner coming to mind that later disappears – most likely due to Military Police shenanigans to silence the (speculative) population and keep the peace.
There is also a line in the Gog and Magog story about the deceased springing back to life at the end of the world – which would explain the (otherwise out of place) scenes of the Survey Corps appearing and riding with Hange at her death during the Rumbling.
(Or Sasha coming back to save Kaya from a titan during the Rumbling).
Because I am insane and can’t seem to let Attack on Titan go, after reading the above-mentioned Reddit post, I distinctly remembered Zeke Yeager being a Wallist Cult Member in the Attack on School Castes timeline.
Isayama wants Attack on Titan to be on our minds for 10 years, at least.
Beyond the Anime: What Does Attack on School Castes Reveal About Zeke?
For those of you unfamiliar, Attack on School Castes is a “spoof” segment that was periodically drawn and released in the Shingeki no Kyojin manga while it was still ongoing.
I, along with several other fans, speculate that this is an actual, real timeline that Eren Yeager has lived through – you can read any of the various time-loop theories on Reddit or even Twitter to get the gist of that theory.
I myself even proposed that School Castes is the first timeline, beginning with Eren Yeager’s wish to destroy the world, followed by the transportation to the manga timeline, various spin-offs, OVAs, and mini-series, which finally culminate with the anime timeline.
Eren, Armin, Mikasa, and even the Founder Ymir attending the Final Attack on Titan movie in Attack on School Castes has also been promoted by Isayama for maybe 2 – 3 years now, along with a final exhibition.
Obviously, the movie is currently in theaters at the time of writing this – late December, 2024 – and the exhibition was recently held months prior where Isayama and Eren’s VA Yuki Kaji planted The Tree on That Hill (which Yuki Kaji declares is “real” in a tweet) and Isayama heavily promotes integrated art of Attack on School Castes and the characters in real, modern-day life outside of the “cruel world” depicted in the manga and anime.
Like a lot of fans, I personally believe this is foreshadowing for the full release of a School Castes OVA or film – to tie up loose ends, and correct the wrongs Eren Yeager committed due to the “mess of memories” in his head.
Why is Zeke short for Ezekiel? Decoding the Messiah Complex
In the bible, Ezekiel was a priest who was taken to Babylon in captivity by King Nebuchadnezzar, alongside other Jewish captives. In Attack on Titan, Zeke Yeager is the son of Dina Fritz, the last surviving member of the royal family on the continent (and possibly the world) outside of Paradis Island.
In 2 Kings 24:14 – 16, it references that the Babylonians took “all the princes, and all the mighty men of valor, even ten thousand captives…none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land.”
14: And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land.
15: And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king’s mother, and the king’s wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.
16: And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.
2 Kings 24: 14 – 16
Although interpreted quite loosely, those carried off to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar could be a reference to the 145th Fritz King carrying away his chosen set of people to Paradis Island. As we know in Season 4, the King left behind a resentful group of Eldians worldwide – specifically in Liberio, Marley – who lamented not being taken away to Paradis with the royal family.
Another version of this bible verse calls those carried away “chief men’ of the lands, or “chieftains” – which is Zeke’s title in the Eldian titan shifter subset of the Marleyan military.
2 Kings 24:15 The bible verse continues to state that King Nebuchadnezzar carried away the King of Judah, Jehoiachin, to Babylon – including the latter King’s mother, wives, officers, and the “mighty of the land” into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.
We could loosely interpret this (again) on the 145th Fritz King with the Strong Will (Utilizing the Founding Titan to send his will forward in the Vow to Renounce War) who brought the main royal branch that survived the ancient titan wars to Paradis Island to start over until the fated day of their demise (i.e. the walls coming down – Ragnarök, the end of the world, the Gog and Magog prophecy) while Dina Fritz’ family branch was left behind in Marley.
The Wallist Priest of Dry Bones: Zeke’s Cult in School Castes
In the bible, the Lord made Ezekiel a “watchman on a tower” or a prophet who foretold visions and prophesied of Israel and the surrounding nation’s destruction by the Lord; who for all intents and purposes, is Ymir Fritz and then Eren Yeager in the Attack on Titan Universe.
Ymir is “the goddess” worshipped by Zeke Yeager’s Wallist cult in Attack on School Castes, while Eren Yeager is “Humanity’s hope” after Erwin’s death and worshipped as Paradis’ “Savior” by regular Eldians and Yeagerists alike in the manga.
(In the anime, not so much – it was toned down how much support Eren had by the common people for some reason.)
Much like Ezekiel of the bible, Zeke Yeager is given a “holy mission” to save the Eldian people by his mentor, (and the former Beast Titan inheritor) Xavier.
I have a theory that Zeke’s mentor Xavier and Grisha’s mentor the Owl were both Eldian Restorationists tasked (possibly by Eren – we know Eren used the Owl to try and save Armin and Mikasa, and himself in later timelines) with uniting the two Yeager brothers, who gave the Restorationists their first real chance at freeing Eldia from tyranny in centuries.
Yelena is a Marleyan who views Zeke as a “divine savior” of the Eldian people in the manga, and worships both the Yeager brothers as living deities. In the School Castes timeline, Yelena is one of Zealot Priest Zeke’s devoted followers.
Zeke’s Royal Blood Ability: Can He Create Life from Dry Bones?
As a royal Eldian directly descended from Ymir, Zeke can manifest unique abilities from his titan. Did Falco’s Jaw Titan Transformation Foreshadow Zeke’s True Power?
Zeke can unlock and bestow ancient techniques and abilities to titan shifters through his spinal fluid as in the case of Falco unlocking the Beast Titan’s ancient flying form wielded by a past shifter. This is similar to Royal Eldian non-shifters like Rod and Historia who could unlock Eren’s repressed titan memories while in human form.
Zeke can also create titans by transforming normal people with Eldian blood who come within the slightest contact with his spinal fluid. The Marleyan army infamously used Zeke’s abilities in war against foreign countries, and Zeke used his spinal fluid in gas form against Connie’s village, Ragako, in Season 2.
Of course, we also cannot forget Zeke’s spinal fluid being used against the Military Police at Niccolo’s restaurant, and it being used to covertly turn Levi’s forces into titans during Zeke’s captivity in the Titan Forest.
The Valley of Dry Bones: Analyzing Zeke’s Titan Creation
In the bible, the Prophet Ezekiel was taken to a Valley of Bones by the Lord. After being asked by the Lord to “prophesy over them”, Ezekiel did so…Ezekiel did as he was commanded, and suddenly the bones came together after a “sound”.
This sound spoken of in the bible could be the crack of thunder that appears when a shifter summons their titan from Ymir in PATHs.
This is The Valley of Dry Bones prophecy…
In Ezekiel 37: 1 – 14, the Prophet Ezekiel is given a vision of the resurrection of the House of Israel, where the people would be ushered to the land of inheritance after tragedy and destruction.
In the Season 3 anime OP, Zeke’s titans are shown forming first by sinews, then flesh, then skin, and finally bones. All other titans are shown in the series forming this exact same way, with emphasis being put on this specific order of formation in key battles such as Annie vs Eren in Wall Sina.
And as you know, the cracking sound of thunder in the distance and an almost scream-like noise can be heard alongside the titan body formations sent from PATHs.
The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones,
2 And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry.
3 And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest.
4 Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
5 Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:
6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone.
8 And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them.
9 Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.
10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.
11 Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.
12 Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.
13 And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves,
14 And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.
Ezekiel 37: 1 – 14
Attack on Titan’s Yuugure no Tori ED Shows the Eldian Journey to the Promised Land?
When properly analyzed and explained, the Attack on Titan Season 2 ED Yuugure no Tori has a lot of foreshadowing concerning the pact between the Earth Devil (Eren) and the Goddess (the Founder Ymir and then Historia) to destroy the world.
Eren and Ymir’s 2,000-year-old promise spans multiple spaces and timelines through PATHs, and Historia is the “worst girl” in the world who agreed with Eren to “destroy humanity” in the Reiss cave when Rod tries to “bring the goddess” back to the world by injecting Historia with the Titan serum.
Historia also keeps Eren’s true plans a secret, and alongside Floch, are his only confidants in the manga timeline. Presumably, as per Eren Kruger’s ‘request’ for Grisha (and Eren) to have a child, Eren would ideally also be the father of Historia’s child – the first Eldian child born “free” during the rumbling.
Yuugure no Tori could be viewed as a “vision” witnessed by either Zeke or Eren of a place the Eldian people eventually settled – where they could live a life free from the prejudices of their current world and the constant threat of warfare by Marley.
From Manga to AOE: Zeke’s Role in the Akatsuki No Requiem Theory
School Castes could be considered the “inheritance timeline”, as Eldians like Eren and Armin live amongst others without prejudice in a peaceful, modern-day school life. (Maybe Attack on Titan: Junior High also highlights this shift in worlds, with the ‘human world’ and the ‘titan world’ – revealing the main series characters live in the ‘titan world’.)
The events of the manga and anime timelines are only a distant memory at an art gallery, and a massive tree reflecting the Eldian Founder Tree looms in the distance of their city.
This could be viewed as the “uniting of the sticks” of the Tree of Joseph and the Biblical Tribe of Judah as referenced in Ezekiel 37: 15-28. Eren Yeager even gets isekai’d into modern-day Tokyo for a short stint before being transported elsewhere.
How Zeke’s Death Fits the ANR Timeline & Eren’s Goal
In Ezekiel 4-24 the Lord instructs Ezekiel to use symbols to represent the wickedness of Israel and the destruction of Judah.
Zeke’s baseball received from Xavier/Ksaver is a symbol of the sterilization ideology the two shared. Believing that Eldians could never “atone for their sins” or that those on Paradis with stolen memories could never correct their mistakes, Zeke believed it best for the entire race to simply die out by sterility.
This is heavily juxtaposed with Eren’s ideology, based on Carla’s words that he is special simply because he was born into this world (the “cruel world” referenced multiple times by Mikasa) and that if the world decided to take his freedom, then Eren would instead take theirs, first.
If Zeke’s symbol of impending destruction is the baseball, then Armin’s would be the leaf from The Tree on That Hill, Eren’s the raven and dove (their feathers creating the Survey Corps logo) alongside the key to the basement, and Mikasa’s would be the blue butterfly and the pomegranate of immortality which grants Mikasa the ability to travel between timelines.
In Ezekiel 25 – 32, the Lord commands Ezekiel to declare the wickedness of the nations surrounding Israel and prophesize their destruction – Zeke did the exact opposite in the manga and anime.
In the manga, Zeke tells Kiyomi Azumabito that he is the “True Eldian Restorationist”, admonishing people like his (in Zeke’s view) zealot father who selfishly pursued their goals despite hurting those closest to them. It is Zeke’s own trauma from Grisha (like Xavier losing his Ex-Wife and son) that truly motivates Zeke’s (admittedly biased and selfish) actions to sterilize his own population of Eldia.
Zeke continues on to preach the nobility of Eldian euthanization by disguising it as something wonderful – fooling all of the Anti-Marleyan Volunteers (except Yelena) and ultimately leading to Eren’s inevitable betrayal due to their dueling ideologies.
Zeke foolishly declares that Eren Yeager is “not my enemy” during the Raid on Liberio for all to hear, and in PATHs, spends decades trying to change Eren’s mind before learning he miscalculated his baby brother’s true intentions the whole time.
Despite Zeke believing that all Eldians should perish due to the sins of their past, and that the Paradis Island Eldians should die because they cannot learn from the mistakes of their past due to stolen memories, for whatever reason it never dawned on Zeke that his father Grisha HAD learned from the sins of his past after raising him.
Not wanting to impose his will on Eren as he did Zeke, Grisha and Carla raised Eren freely with love and care. Eren’s only problem is that – to paraphrase Levi: Eren is a true monster because he has a mind that refuses to be caged.
While captured by Levi, Zeke was willing to die at the thought of failing Xaver in the Eldian Euthanization plan. Zeke truly believed that he was doing what was right for his people, despite the situations surrounding him implying otherwise.
Eren even says as much to Zeke while traversing PATHs – that it is useless to try changing his mind, as Zeke will not find a pathetic little brother who needs saving in him.
Had Zeke healed from that pain and received closure sooner, instead of inheriting the Beast Titan that carries those feelings, thoughts, and memories of inadequacy and self-doubt – maybe Zeke could have gotten on board with Eren’s goal of saving the island, and Zeke could have tried to save Eldians everywhere who were being oppressed, but still wanted to live with the help of the volunteers.
Willy Tybur is an excellent example of an Eldian who wanted to still live despite all of the prejudice and injustice his people faced in their world. Kaya Blouse is another, realizing that the only difference between herself, Falco, and Gabi is where they grew up.
Zeke eventually does realize he was wrong to let the pain he held onto cloud his judgment for so long, and willingly allows Levi to kill him after a chat with Armin in PATHs.
While at first it seemed random reading Zeke’s death chapter when the manga was still ongoing, looking back, it’s still weird, but maybe Zeke was learning from the sins of his past and excited to start over again in a new lifetime through reincarnation.
In Ezekiel 33 – 48, Loosely interpreting the events, the Lord disapproves of Israel’s subpar leadership.
Zeke and Dina Fritz both disapproved of the 145th Fritz King’s actions to wipe the Eldians on Paradis’ memories and the Oath to Renounce War, which binds the Royal Bloodline’s Founding Titan recipients to his will.
Zeke also finds the Survey Corps leadership under Erwin Smith pitiful during the suicide charge, lamenting the soldiers who bravely died and gave their hearts to a cause they believed in as tragic fools who could never learn from their mistakes.
Zeke even distrusts people supposedly close to the Warrior Unit in Marley like Magath, expecting he would be eavesdropping on his private conversation with Colt concerning a special memory Colt might inherit from his beast titan. There is also Zeke’s knowledge that Marley was always listening while the Warriors were being briefed on the Wily Tybur situation before he declared war in Liberio.
In short, Zeke Yeager seems to disapprove of both Paradis and Marley’s leadership, while only choosing to believe in his own deluded fantasies about how Eldians can atone for their sins, and his false beliefs about his little brother Eren, and how much Eren really needed him, emotionally.
In Ezekiel 38 – 39, there is a battle described before the second coming of Christ which we would attribute to the Rumbling. In the manga, the Rumbling is referred to as the “Battle of Heaven and Earth”.
It could be seen as a transition of power (like Ymir handing Eren the bucket in School Castes) with the first Christ-Goddess Ymir deciding to pass her power onto Eren Yeager as the new god of the Eldians.
Krista/Historia then takes up the new mantle of “Goddess” and Ymir is reincarnated into a new life free from slavery as Historia and Eren’s child….if fan theories are to be believed.
But, what do you think?
But, tell me your thoughts: Do you think Zeke Yeager fits the profile of Ezekiel the Prophet from the bible? Are titans being summoned from PATHs a direct reference to the biblical Valley of Dry Bones?
Leave your thoughts in the comment section below, we’d love to hear from you! Also be sure to follow us for more Attack on Titan Theories and Analysis!
☆ In Asian Spaces ☆ Ephesians 6:12 ☆
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