THE FALSE LEGEND OF THE TEN TRIBES
THE FALSE LEGEND OF
THE TEN TRIBES
JAN LILLEBY
There is much unrest and confusion among Christendom as to the status of Israel in regard to the twelve tribes; both in the USA as well here in my homeland Norway.
There are always some loud-mouths pondering on with the tribal issues of Israel of old.
Some say that Israel has been dispersed throughout the entire earth, and the Western nations such as European continent, USA and Canada, and many others, - referring to the action taken by the Assyrian king Sargon II about 721 BC, who sent the Northern Kingdom’s inhabitants out of the land, letting them occupy many cities. Thus we have the heresy of ‘The Ten Tribes Are Lost’.
Here in Norway there are voices declaring that these ‘disappeared’ ten tribes, they are in effect the present day’s Israelites, making up the population in these Western nations, no less.
But this is a total heresy, and comes from the confusion one gets when the Bible is not studied well enough.
I have written an article on this issue, in which I prove that these ten tribes never went away into oblivion or got assimilated with Gentiles abroad.
The article is unfortunately only in my native language, Norwegian – but I can drop some of the info in it here:
The King Sargon II (he died in 705 BC) himself wrote in his chronicles that his army deported 29290 Israelis from the Northern Kingdom! In 2 Sam. 24:9 we read quite another story, telling of hundreds of thousands inhabitants. So less than 30000 people was a very small number of deported Israelis, - which was only 3,7 % of the total population. There is no way that the ten tribes disappeared. Just this small portion of almost 4% was deported. End of story, end of speculations.
AMP Bible, says -
“So when they had gone about through all the land [taking the census], they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 9And Joab gave the sum of the census of the people to the king. In Israel there were 800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000.”
Consequently, the legend in Christendom of the ten tribes going lost, is a hoax.
Historians hold that these deported 29290 people, were probably the elite class of their time, the rich and the wealthy, people of high social status. While the common Israelis they were left alone. It was as simple as that.
PAUL’S OWN SPEECHES ON JEWRY
When Paul was questioned by King Agrippa II in Acts 26, 1- 7 - he said,
“2“I consider myself fortunate, King Agrippa, since it is before you that I am to make my defense today regarding all the charges brought against me by the Jews, 3especially because you are an expert [fully knowledgeable, experienced and unusually conversant] in all the Jewish customs and controversial issues; therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently.
4“So then, all the Jews know my manner of life from my youth up, which from the beginning was spent among my own nation [the Jewish people], and in Jerusalem. 5They have known me for a long time, if they are willing to testify to it, that according to the strictest sect of our religion, I have lived as a Pharisee. 6And now I am standing trial for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers. 7Which hope [of the Messiah and the resurrection] our twelve tribes [confidently] expect to realize as they serve and worship God in earnest night and day. And for this hope, O King, I am being accused by Jews!
The outline in red: Paul referred to an existing situation regarding Israel’s tribes in the apostolic era. He used present tense, ‘they serve and worship God in earnest night and day’.
This utterance of Paul before Agrippa II at Caesarea in 59-60 CE testifies to us that these tribes, all ten of them plus the southern ones, Judea and Benjamin, were in full existence and serving (worshipping) God.
And as we read the verses above and those below, - how is it that Paul called all Israel for “my own nation, the Jewish people” - ???
It was ordinary speech to use the expression or name ‘Jews’ or ‘Jewish’ even if it was about the whole nation, the twelve tribes. This is so all through the New Testament scriptures.
Below I have more solid quotes in that regard, proving this important fact. It was without any doubt that people saying ‘The Jews’ they always spoke of it in the meaning of the entire nation.
In Flavius Josephus’ books on the Jewish War 66-70 CE, he used that way of expression.
When he told that the Jews went into rebellion against the Roman Empire – it was his way of saying, Israel went into rebellion. The whole nation rebelled against Rome, and was destroyed in 70 CE as the history books shows.
There was no distinction between Israel and the Jews. It was the very same. Paul always used ‘Jew’ or ‘The Jews’ when speaking of his national belonging. He just once mentioned that he was from the tribe of Benjamin.
Same way of addressing the people and the nation, we also find with Peter. His Pentecost speech went: Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem; men of Israel listen to….; therefore let all the house of Israel recognize…; - and yet Peter knew very well that he spoke to all the twelve tribes since they were there at the annual Pentecostal Holiday Celebration. Acts 2:5 is clear:
“Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout and God-fearing men from every nation under heaven.” Luke, the author of Acts, used Jews, and Peter the apostle, used ‘Men of Judea and all the house of Israel.
Acts 22:3; - 17-21 AMP-Web Version –
“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strictness of the law of our fathers, being ardent and passionate for God just as all of you are today.
NOTICE: Even as Paul was of the tribe of Benjamin, he called himself a ‘Jew’. This proves that being a Jew was not literally meaning that such a Jew was of the tribe of Judah. No matter which tribe you came from, they all considered themselves as a Jew. It’s a fact. Both the Romans as well as the inhabitants of Israel/Palestine, used the nickname ‘Jew’ for all of them, regardless of any tribal ancestry.
17“Then it happened when I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple [enclosure], that I fell into a trance (vision); 18and I saw Him saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about Me.’ 19And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know [without any doubt] that in one synagogue after another I used to imprison and beat those who believed in You [and Your message of salvation]. 20‘And when the blood of Your witness Stephen was being shed, I also was standing nearby approving and consenting [to his death], and guarding the coats of those who were killing him.’ 21“And the Lord said to me, ‘Go, I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”
Acts 23:27-29 – AMP- Web Version -
“This man (Paul) was seized [as a prisoner] by the Jews and was about to be killed by them, when I came upon him with the troops and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman citizen. 28And wanting to know the exact charge which they were making against him, I brought him down to their Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court); 29and I discovered that he was accused in regard to questions and issues in their Law, but [he was] under no accusation that would call for the penalty of death or [even] for imprisonment.”
Acts 24:26, 27 – AMP -
“At the same time he was also hoping to get money from Paul [as a bribe]; so he continued to send for him quite often and talked with him. 27But after two years had passed, Felix was succeeded [in office] by Porcius Festus; and wishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul imprisoned.”
Here it seemed clearly that even the Roman officers and the procurator, meant the entire nation Israel – when using the expression “Do the Jews a favor”. Like I already pointed out above.
Phil. 4:4-6 - AMP -
“…though I myself might have [some grounds for] confidence in the flesh [if I were pursuing salvation by works]. If anyone else thinks that he has reason to be confident in the flesh [that is, in his own efforts to achieve salvation], I have far more: 5circumcised when I was eight days old, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews [an exemplary Hebrew]; as to the [observance of the] Law, a Pharisee; 6as to my zeal [for Jewish tradition], a persecutor of the church; and as to righteousness [supposed right living] which [my fellow Jews believe] is in the Law, I proved myself blameless.”
Here we find Paul saying it straight forward, confessing his national origin. Of the NATION OF ISRAEL, TRIBE OF BENJAMIN, and a HEBREW OF HEBREWS. He called his countrymen for ‘My fellow Jews’.
Tribe of Benjamin had Jerusalem as their land parcel, so that Judah was their neighbors in the era of the apostles. He was of the NATION OF ISRAEL, but still he did not come from any of the ten tribes up north. You see this?
It is entirely obsolete to try to differ between the two.
Let me also quote James 1, as he greeted these tribes,
“1James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To the twelve [Hebrew] tribes [scattered abroad among the Gentiles] in the dispersion: Greetings (rejoice)!”
How could two of the most prominent among God’s servants – James and Paul – refer to the twelve tribes (greeting them) if ten of these were gone?
THE DESTRUCTION OF ISRAEL 70 CE
Oh, I almost forgot: Have you considered the effects of the destruction of Israel in 70 CE, as ALL THE 12 TRIBES were scattered out in the Middle-East and Egypt. Thousands of Jewish prisoners of war were sent to Alexandria and tried sold as slaves, but no one would buy. Josephus wrote of this in his books, that all prisoners from age 17 were sent to Egypt…even spouses. But many of them were sent to Rome and ended as slaves or victims of the Gladiator games.
Just as Moses prophesied in Deut. 28:68,
“The LORD will bring you back to Egypt in ships, by the way about which I said to you, ‘You will never see it again!’ And there you will offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but there will be no one to buy you.”
In that huge calamity and disaster hitting Israel, all the files of who is who regarding tribal ancestry, were lost. The fire took it all.
This means that in our time no one knows exactly from which tribe their fathers came. And still, they call themselves generally for being a Jew.
THE FUTURE NEO-ORGANIZATION OF THE TWELVE TRIBES
And so we come to the sensation regarding the twelve tribes of Israel. This is found in Rev. 7 and 14 where we can learn of the neo-organization of the 12-tribe system in Jewry. It happens as we read of the Great Tribulation in Israel in near future.
These 144 000 tribal men of Israel in the tribulation told, are not men randomly picked out from the regular common population in Israel when the tribulation starts.
The 144 000 will be chosen by Moses and Elijah, the two witnesses in Rev. 11, and they are actually genuine real ancestors of the lineage of Abraham! It takes divine Holy Spirit anointing to separate these 144 000 from out of the Jewish population in Israel; an anointing which God has given only to His prophets, Moses and Elijah. In particular it was first Moses who was dealing with the tribal affairs of the Hebrews at Sinai, later taken over by Joshua when Moses died and went to heaven as Michael, the angel of the Lord, brought him there.
On behalf of Christ and God His Father, Moses and Elijah segregates these 144 000 believers in Christ, as they are entering total celibacy and dedication to Jesus Christ.
The many preachers in Christendom forgets these 144 000 in Rev. 7 and 14, and are misleading their assemblies much when saying that the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom were lost and gone. We meet them all in Rev. 7 and 14 – so the whole ‘legend of the missing ten tribes’ is a hoax. The thing is, at present no one knows from which tribe they, as Jews, came from. All files were burnt in 70 CE as I mentioned above.
I shall end this article by just have you reading the relevant Bible passages by yourselves, from AMP Web version,
Rev. 7:2-8, on the 144 000 genuine Jews of the lineage of Abraham, ---
“2Then I saw another angel coming up from the rising of the sun, holding the seal of the living God; and with a loud voice he called out to the four angels to whom it was granted [to have authority and power] to harm the earth and the sea,
3saying, “Do not harm the earth nor the sea nor the trees until we seal (mark) the bond-servants of our God on their foreheads.”
4And I heard how many were sealed, a hundred and forty-four thousand; [twelve thousand] sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:
5Twelve thousand were sealed from the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand from the tribe of Reuben, twelve thousand from the tribe of Gad,
6twelve thousand from the tribe of Asher, twelve thousand from the tribe of Naphtali, twelve thousand from the tribe of Manasseh,
7twelve thousand from the tribe of Simeon, twelve thousand from the tribe of Levi, twelve thousand from the tribe of Issachar,
8twelve thousand from the tribe of Zebulun, twelve thousand from the tribe of Joseph, and twelve thousand from the tribe of Benjamin were sealed (marked, redeemed, protected).”
Rev. 14:1-5 gives more details about these 144 000 tribal Jews,
1Then I looked, and this is what I saw: the Lamb stood [firmly established] on Mount Zion, and with Him a hundred and forty-four thousand who had His name and His Father’s name inscribed on their foreheads [signifying God’s own possession].
2And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound of great waters and like the rumbling of mighty thunder; and the voice that I heard [seemed like music and] was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps.
3And they sang a new song before the throne [of God] and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one could learn the song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchased (ransomed, redeemed) from the earth.
4These are the ones who have not been defiled [by relations] with women, for they are celibate. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased and redeemed from among men [of Israel] as the first fruits [sanctified and set apart for special service] for God and the Lamb.
5No lie was found in their mouth, for they are blameless (spotless, untainted, beyond reproach).”
My final comments to the above quotes is that these tribal, segregated Jews, 144 000 in number, will be the basic foundation (called first fruits, v. 4) for the NEW ISRAEL for which Jesus shall be ruler and king in the millennial Kingdom of God on earth.
Rev. 20:4 says of these, that they shall be ruling with Christ for a thousand years, - and there are absolutely NO GENTILES among these servants of God,
«4And then I saw thrones, and sitting on them were those to whom judgment [that is, the authority to act as judges] was given. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had refused to worship the beast or his image, and had not accepted his mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.”
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