The Ten Lost Tribes - Are They Lost?
QUESTION: On several occasions I have heard mention of the "Ten
Lost Tribes." I was told that this referred to the ten northern tribes
of Israel. Were they really lost? And if so, how can certain prophetic
scriptures regarding Israel be fulfilled.
ANSWER: The ten northern tribes were not really lost. That old
myth, which is found in Jewish and Christian tradition and is
exploited by some cults, is based on a misunderstanding of Scripture.
The theory supposes that when the Assyrians captured the Northern
Kingdom of Israel in 722 B.C., ten of the twelve tribes were carried
off into exile, where their identity was totally obliterated. The
theory, however, ignores many other biblical facts. Assyria did invade
and capture some of the residents of the Northern Kingdom, but not all
of them. By that time, many people from all of the tribes had moved
into the Southern Kingdom. In II Chronicles 11:14-17 we read that
after the civil war that split Israel into two parts:
The Levites left their suburban lands and their possession, and
came to Judah and Jerusalem; for Jeroboam and his sons had cast them
off from executing the priest's office unto the Lord;...And after then,
out of of all the tribes of Israel, such as set their hearts to seek
the LORD God of Israel came to Jerusalem, to sacrifice unto the LORD
God of their fathers. so they strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and
made Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, strong...
If the theory of the Ten Lost Tribes were correct, this would have
occurred by the first century, in the time of Jesus's birth. Yet in the
New Testament we read that Jesus and his family were from the tribe of
Judah (Matthew 1:2-16); Saul of Tarsus was from the tribe of Benjamin
(Romans 11:1); the priests and Levites were from the tribe of Levi
(John 1:19); but Anna the prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, was from
the tribe of Asher (Luke 2:32).
There is other New Testament evidence, as well. Saul of Tarsus, who
wrote much of the New Testament, also considered that representatives
of all twelve tribes were extant and identifiable in his day. He wrote
in Acts 26:6-7, "And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the
promise made of God unto our fathers, unto which promise our twelve
tribes, earnestly serving God day and night, hope tocom..."
There is an entire New testament book addressed specifically to the
twelve tribes of Israel then living. The Book of James begins "James,
a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which
are scattered abroad, greeting."
Some hold to the opinion that all twelve tribes must continue to
exist because God will use them in the end times. Scripture designates
special witnesses near the time of Y'shua's return who will number 144,
000-12,000 from each of the twelve tribes (revelation 7:4). Even in
the New Jerusalem the names of the twelve tribes will be inscribed on
the twelve gates of the city.....
Perhaps most important, however, we have the testimony of Jesus
Himself. When the apostles asked him about their future reward for
following him, he answered, "...ye who have followed me, in the
regeneration, when the Son of man shall sit on the throne of his glory,
ye also shall sit upon the twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of
Israel."
No, the ten tribes are not lost. The Almighty could never lose
anything, let alone the "apple of his eye," those whom he has inscribed
on the palms of his hands (Isaiah 49:16). Contrary to some racist
theories, the ten tribes did not migrate en masse to the British Isles
nor to the United States. They are not American Indians, or British
Israelites, or Jehovah's Witnesses (or any other CULT). They all
existed at the time of Jesus and were identifiable as Jews. They exist
today and will continue to exist. Most Jewish people today may not be
sure of their tribal heritage, but there is One who knows. He who
keeps Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps, and should it suit his
purpose, he is able to reveal it. It should be noted that those
who were gentiles and are called by Yahweh have been grafted in to the
nation. There is no more Jew or gentile; Yahweh says to all, welcome
aboard.
SHALOM in Y'shua! Jim.
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