I agree Lord Angmar, that he is not a Valar. For a while I believed he was maybe a Maia, but now Im not so sure. I was reading some bombadil essays today and found this.
Quote:
Despite this strong case for the theory that Bombadil is a Maia, there are questions that it leaves unanswered. To begin with, Tom tells the hobbits, "Eldest, that's what I am." This seems to be an important clue to Bombadil's nature, and is repeated at least twice at the Council of Elrond: Elrond tells us that Bombadil's Elvish name "Iarwain Ben-adar" means "oldest and fatherless", and as quoted earlier Glorfindel says that Tom would be "Last as he was First".
What could "Eldest" or "First" mean for one of the Ainur? Only three answers seem reasonable: that Bombadil was the "first" Ainu created by Iluvatar, the first Ainu to enter Ea, or the first Ainu to reach Arda or Middle-earth. However, none of these seem consistent with Glorfindel's word "Last": Sauron at least would remain after Bombadil was gone.
Related is Tom's claim (from "In the House of Tom Bombadil") that "He knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless--before the Dark Lord came from Outside." This almost certainly refers to Melkor (the dark was never truly fearless once he set his evil in motion), but it could refer to his original arrival in Ea or to his return to Arda from the "outer darkness" in the days of the Lamps. The former interpretation might suggest that Bombadil was present in Ea before any of the Ainur arrived, although such a reading is not necessary.
Another question left unanswered by the claim that Tom is a Maia is his indifference to the Ring. As Gandalf says in the Council of Elrond, "if he were given the Ring, he would soon forget it, or most likely throw it away. Such things have no hold on his mind." This attitude is entirely opposite that of all the other Maiar involved with the Ring in the book: Sauron, Saruman, Gandalf, and conceivably even the Balrog are all strongly drawn to the Ring. More generally, even the Valar sometimes fell victim to Morgoth's plots, and the Ring may have provided abilities that even a very powerful Ainu could lack.
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After some study, The theory I lean towards the most is this.... I believe that Bombadil was placed in ME By Illuvatar himself. NOT AS ILLUVATAR... but as a spirit sort of representing what Illuvatar was. The only thing that really throws a kink in this is the explanation of Goldberry. Maybe Goldberry was another earth spirit placed on ME to satisfy Yavanna and her love for Me. (as a protector of nature and things that grow). I have never found any writings that say whether or not bombadil and goldberry arrived at the same time, or exactly how goldberry met bombadil. So I am really just making my guess or assumption. But I do believe it is clear that he is not a Valar.