Jacob Goldstein (Earth-616)

Prior to 1939, Jacob Goldstein and his brother Johann were scientists in unspecified fields, with Jacob collecting rare stones and studying the legends of the Golem of Prague. When the Nazis invaded Warsaw in 1939, Johann fled to the United States of America and adopted the name John Gold, but Jacob chose to stay behind, despite facing harassment from Colonel Eisen.^[1] At some point, Jacob agreed to aid the local resistance, hiding a decanter of heavy water that had been stolen from Eisen's castle in his home.^[2]

While Jacob remained in Poland, his brother had meanwhile gone to work on a secret project in the United Kingdom, but his identity was discovered by Nazi agents who threatened to kill Jacob if John did not do their bidding.^[1] Under duress, Johann created the Blue Bullet rocket suit, but the construction of the suit caused a power outage during a mission by Union Jack and Spitfire. This led to a fight with the Invaders, who easily subdued the Blue Bullet. John desperately explained his situation to the team, and they agreed to help extract Jacob.^[3]

The Invaders arrived in Warsaw, but Jacob, now operating a bookshop, refused to leave. The Invaders' presence attracted Nazi forces, leading to a fight. The Invaders easily repelled the Nazis, but were forced to surrender when the Nazi tanks trained their fire on the Jewish civilians. The Invaders were captured and taken away to Colonel Eisen's castle.^[1]

Wracked with guilt over the Invaders' capture, Jacob resolved to actively resist Eisen and his men. Searching for an edge, he found an old book on creating golems, and set to work creating one using clay and the heavy water that he'd previously stashed in his home. As he wrote the word "emeth" on the golem's forehead and began to pray for its animation, lightning struck Jacob's house, bringing it down upon him. In the ensuing collapse, Jacob somehow became fused with the massive golem, causing it to take on his appearance.^[2]

With his massive, durable body, the Golem saved a child from harassment by the Nazis, easily shrugging off their bullets and stomping them underfoot. At first, he focused solely on protecting the child, before being reminded by an old man that the Invaders also needed rescuing. The Golem thus smashed through the ghetto walls and made his way towards Eisen's castle, where he easily broke through the castle's walls and soon liberated the Invaders. Terrified of the Golem, Eisen tried to buy him off with offers of money and power, but the Golem refused, instead pushing Eisen off a ledge to his death. After Captain America inquired of his identity, the Golem erased the "e" from the "emeth" on his forehead, causing him to transform back into Jacob Goldstein. The Invaders offered to let him join their team, but he declined, choosing to stay in Warsaw and aid the resistance.^[2]

Sometime later, the hero Doctor Nemesis, having grown disillusioned with America's entry into World War II and its alliance with Stalinist Russia, changed his name to Doctor Death and hatched Project Mojave, a plan to kidnap scientists and force them to create the Oscillotron, an earthquake-generating machine that Dr. Death intended to use to create a massive earthquake to cripple America's war effort, forcing them to abandon the war. In pursuit of this goal, he kidnapped John Goldstein, intending to both force him to work on the Oscillotron and to force Jacob, who had since relocated to New York, to serve in his new team, Battle-Axis, to ensure John's safety. Eager to protect Johann, Jacob reluctantly became the Golem again.^[4]

Under Dr. Death's orders, the Golem attacked Human Torch and Sub-Mariner, easily subduing them both and bringing them back to Project Mojave's secret base under the Mojave Desert.^[4]

Soon, the other Invaders arrived to rescue their comrades, and Golem was forced to fight Captain America and the Blazing Skull, managing to incapacitate them both with a single blow.^[5]

While the Invaders were in custody, Golem explained to them that he was working under duress; Dr. Death would not release his brother unless Project Mojave came to fruition. However, upon realizing that the plan would also unleash toxic gas into the atmosphere, he had misgivings about whether his brother's safety was worth his compliance.^[6]

Eventually, the Invaders escaped, and Golem initially chose not to intervene, fearing that choosing a side would cause his brother to be harmed, but as it became clear that the Invaders were winning, he aided them. As Dr. Death attempted to start the Oscillotron, John tried to stop him, but was shot by the Nazi Sky Shark. Enraged by the death of his brother, Golem went on a rampage, killing several Nazi soldiers as Namor destroyed the Oscillotron.^[6]

After the battle, Golem reverted to being Jacob. His subsequent activities are unknown.

• Transformation: Jacob was able to assume a golem form, in which he grew to a height of three meters, and became both super-humanly strong and durable enough to withstand gunfire. He was able to reverse the transformation by erasing the "e" in the word "emeth" on his forehead.
  • Superhuman Strength: In his golem form Jacob was able to hurt Namor with the power of his blos.^[4]
  • Superhuman Durability: In his gome form Jacob's body is made of clay far harder than stone and could endure the flames of the Human Torch and the blows of Namor without visible damage.^[4]

Goldstein had some knowledge of Kabbalistic practices and was also an expert in geology.

As the Golem, Jacob appears to have possessed reduced intelligence and poor impulse control, causing him to be prone to fits of rage.