‘The Offering’ Ending, Explained: Did Claire And Her Baby Survive? What Happened To Art?

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Directed by Oliver Park, “The Offering” is an old-school horror film about how a Jewish family dealt with a child-stealing demon. While jump scares have been overused in the film, it is somewhat entertaining to watch. The female demon Abyzou, also known as the “taker of children,” has been a part of ancient culture and depicted in various art forms. In Near Eastern and European myths and folklore, Abyzou was blamed for miscarriages and infertility. She was said to have been driven by envy since she was infertile. In “The Offering,” Abyzou is called into the mortal world again, and she is determined to take what she wants.

Spoilers Ahead


‘The Offering’ Plot Summary: What Is The Film About? 

It all started with the death of Yosille Fishbein, a scholar. The old man dedicated his life to finding a way to bring his wife over from the other side. But in the end, he gave up. His cause of death was determined to be suicide, and his body was brought into Saul, the embalmer’s chamber. Meanwhile, Saul’s son, Art, and his wife, Claire, came to visit him. Saul had not approved of their marriage because Claire did not belong to their community. The father and son had stayed out of contact for years until recently, when Art decided to reconnect with Saul and get together as a family. Saul, too, had become more accepting of his son’s decision and welcomed Claire with open arms. He was unaware of the actual reason behind Art’s sudden interest in meeting his father. Art was a real estate agent, and for the last two years, he barely did any business. To get a loan from the bank, he needed to enlist his father’s property as collateral. He struggled to tell his father the truth; after all, it was a selfish move.

When Yosille’s body was brought to Saul’s chamber, he asked Art to handle the business while he went out. Art was shocked when he noticed the dagger that was pushed into Yosille’s chest. He pulled it out and removed Yosille’s clothes. He came across a strange blue stone tied to a string that he had hung from his neck. While examining the amulet, he dropped it from his hand, and it broke into pieces. He pushed it into the drain when his father entered the room. Saul took a look at the dagger, and when he analyzed the scriptures engraved on it, he realized it was not an ordinary one. He asked Art to leave while he went through Yosille’s possessions. From the moment Art left the chamber, he could hear strange demonic whispers across the corridors. The whispers quickly became unbearably loud, high-pitched noises. Art somehow managed to go to sleep even after the strange occurrence. Claire sensed someone entering their room, but no one was there when she looked around. As she switched off the washroom lights, someone turned them on. Suddenly she came face-to-face with Yosille, who tried to rip her baby out of her body. The panic woke her up from sleep, and she was relieved to realize that it was just a dream. But the mirror reflection showed a red blood stain on the bed sheet, indicative of how the baby’s life was in danger. Was the amulet connected to the sudden presence of the supernatural? And how did Yosille die?


What Happened To Sarah Scheindl? Why Did Yosile Kill Himself?

Saul contacted Charim after examining the scripture on the knife, who explained that God’s hidden name was written backward in the scripture to summon demons and then seal them to a body. He further asked Saul if he had found an amulet on the body preserving a holy letter; he replied negatively since he had no knowledge of the pendant. Charim clarified that a body without a pendant meant it was not sealed, and therefore, there was no chance of a demon living in the body. The demon was powerless when it was contained in a body, and all it could do was play with the minds of those around. Unless the body was burned, there could not be much danger. After the confirmation from Charim, Saul asked for the body to be buried.

Meanwhile, Heimish, Saul’s assistant and family, found out the truth behind Art’s sudden visit. Saul was completely heartbroken; all this while, he wanted to believe that his son had returned to mend ties with him, but it was just an elaborate plan to get financial help. Claire was as surprised by the news as Saul. She did not know that her family was suffering from a financial crisis. She was shocked to realize that they were bringing a child into the world, but he could not be honest with her. Art apologized for the situation. He wanted to leave the house, but Claire encouraged him to stay and apologize to his father. Art gathered up the courage to talk to his father, but he could not enter the room, knowing how badly he had broken his heart. Saul could sense someone in the room, but when he looked around, hoping to find Art, there was no one. The lights started to flicker, and he was suddenly confronted by a demon. The demon took his soul, and Saul was found dead the next morning. Art grieved over the loss of his father; he regretted not talking to him the previous night. He never got the opportunity to express his affection for him. Saul was said to have died as a result of a heart attack, and Heimish blamed Art for his father’s fate. He handed over the documents for the house, signed by his father. Before dying, Saul signed the papers to save Art’s life.

During the funeral, Claire started to see and hear the spirits around her. She noticed the little girl, Sarah, among the crowd as she asked Claire for help. Sarah had vanished, and her body was discovered after days of searching. No one knew what had happened to her, but the scars of the demon were left behind. Claire panicked and reached out to Art for comfort, but he was lost in his own world. He, too, could hear whispers and screams. At times, he was in a trance state where his body did whatever the spirits asked of him. He woke up at midnight and drew a sigil on the floor. He started to believe that he was losing his mind.

After the death of Saul, Art took on the responsibility of looking after his chamber. He called men to bury Yosille’s body, but they wanted a police report before doing so. Since Art chose to distance himself from Heimish, he had to figure out a way to deal with the issue alone. He could either transfer custody to the next of kin or get a police clearance. Art visited Yosille’s house to find his family contacts. His house was covered in spiritual motifs and books. He found an audio recording of Yosille describing the demon as a shapeshifter and a trickster and how he fell into the trap of the ancient predator. Art recognized the sigil on the floor; it was the same one he had dreamed of drawing the previous night. Under the wooden floor, Yosille had kept hidden a video recording titled “The Miracle of Sarah Scheindel.” In the video, Yosille proudly disclosed that he had conjured the archangel of life, Martiel. He performed a ritual to bring his wife back from Heaven with the help of the archangel. Sarah Scheindel was with Yosille in the video. He had brought her into his house to perform the ritual for him. He believed that the archangel was with them in the room, and with Sarah’s prayers, his wife, Aida, would be returned to him from Heaven. But instead, he had conjured Abyzou, and she took Sarah’s life as an offering.

Meanwhile, Claire was greeted by Yosille’s wife. Aida knocked on her door and demanded to see her husband’s body. Claire tried reaching out to Art, but the phone connection was unstable. She had no other option but to take Aida to her husband’s body. Upon seeing Yosille’s face, Claire was shocked. He was the same man who tried to snatch her baby in her dream. Aida spoke about the dream and asked Claire to burn the amulet. The demon came in the form of Aida to burn the amulet since that would release the demon that the body kept sealed in it. After burning the amulet and the body, Abyzou was free and ready to unleash her darkest power. Claire ran from Abyzou and tried calling Art, but her phone was snatched away. She tried hiding from Aida, but she found her. When Art entered his house, he found Sarah there. She gave Art two options: either he could offer a child’s life to the demon to save Claire and his baby, or he would lose them forever. Art called Heimish to help him with his situation.

Heimish, upon realizing that it was the work of a demon called Chayim for assistance, Chayim explained that Yosille had trapped the demon in his body and in the amulet, and now that the body and amulet were destroyed, Abyzou was free. She hunts for desperate people who would agree to feed her, and they must stop her before things go out of control. He decided to complete what Yosille had started. Abyzou’s target is to always put a child in the sigil to feed on it, and by using the amulet, they would bind the demon to it and recite prayers to force it inside. Art had to kill himself in order to trap the demon in him. To complete the binding ritual, he had to stand within the sigil and create a protective circle with the ashes of Yosille’s body. He would call upon the demon while wearing the amulet, and when the demon would enter his body, he would kill himself. The demon soon entered the room and killed Chayim. Art and Heimish were left to finish the ritual and save Claire and the baby.


‘The Offering’ Ending Explained: Did Claire And Her Baby Survive In The End?

As Art and Heimish worked on finishing the protective circle, the demon took Heimish’s life. Art was left all alone to complete the ritual. As Art read the prayer, the demon started playing with his mind. He saw Claire, and the demon dragged her into a room and closed the door. He could not stay within the circle after hearing his wife scream for her life. He then entered the room to protect her. Claire was hanging from a wall, and he tried climbing it to save her but failed at it. He continued to read prayers, and the demon entered his body. He tried to kill himself with the dagger but struggled to do so. Heimish appeared and helped him push the dagger into his chest. Art soon realized it was not Heimish but the demon who helped him. He had moved out of the sigil and had dropped the amulet while trying to save Claire. Therefore, the ritual was left incomplete. The demon managed to kill Art in the process. When Claire woke up, she realized that she was sitting under the table, and it all felt like a dream. She bravely crawled out from under the table. Everything in the house was kept in perfect order, and she started to accept that it was one elaborate dream. She saw Art enter through the door, and she was relieved to learn that he was alive and well. Art, in a demonic voice, asked her if the baby was okay. She looked under and realized that she was standing within the sigil. Art turned into Abyzou and fed on Claire and her baby.

Yosille had fallen into Abyzou’s trap, believing that she would bring his wife back. After feeding Sarah by mistake, he decided to give up on his pursuit. He trapped Abyzou by offering his body to her and killing himself the minute he was possessed. Abyzou started playing mind games from the moment she was partially released when the amulet broke into pieces. By burning the amulet, Abyzou was completely free. She offered Art a choice: feed her another child or save his baby and lose his unborn forever. Art tried to trap Abyzou instead, but he failed to do so and lost his life in the process. By playing with Claire’s mind, Abyzou brought her within the sigil and fulfilled her wish in the end. Since no one was able to trap Abyzou, “The Offering” ends with the belief that she continues to roam around the mortal world, hunting for children.


“The Offering” is a 2022 Drama Horror film directed by Oliver Park.

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Srijoni Rudra
Srijoni Rudra
Srijoni has worked as a film researcher on a government-sponsored project and is currently employed as a film studies teacher at a private institute. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Film Studies. Film History and feminist reading of cinema are her areas of interest.

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