Myth of the lost tribes

[theophilus]

Many people believe that ten of the tribes of Israel have been lost and there have been many theories as to where they are now. But the mystery can be easily solved if we will simply look at what the Bible says about the subject.

James 1:1 says that the letter is addressed to “the twelve tribes in the Dispersion.”

In Acts 26:7 Paul speaks of the promise “to which our twelve tribes hope to attain.”

James and Paul were both referred to Israel as consisting of twelve tribes.  They were apparently unaware of the fact that ten of these tribes had been lost.

When Joseph and Mary took Jesus to the temple to present him to the Lord one of the people they met there was a woman named Anna.

And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
Luke 2:36-38 ESV

She was a member of the tribe of Asher, one of the “lost” tribes.

1 Chronicles 9:3 tells of some of the people who returned to the land after the exile.

And some of the people of Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manassah lived in Jerusalem.

Ephaim and Manassah were also among the “lost” tribes. Ezra 6:17 describes the offering at the dedication of the rebuilt temple.

They offered at the dedication of this house of God 100 bulls, 200 rams, 400 lambs, and as a sin offering for all Israel 12 male goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.

It seems apparent from this that if the ten tribes were ever lost they were found again before the Israelites returned to their land.

The belief that ten tribes were lost arose from the fact that the nation of Israel, made up of these tribes, was conquered by Assyrian and its people scattered throughout their empire. Later Judah was conquered by Babylon and went into exile but was later allowed to return after the Persians conquered Babylon. What people seem to overlook is the fact that the Babylonians conquered all of the land controlled by Assyria and so the Israelites who had been exiled by the Assyrians were all now under Babylonian rule and were allowed to return along with the exiles from Judah.

 

[biscuit1953]

Name one Jew living today that can trace his personal ancestry to a particular tribe other than possibly the tribe of Levi.

 

[bgwilkinson]

Wasn't the lost tribes idea something that Joseph Smith used in addition to his King James Bible to invent the religion of Mormonism?

Is British Israel-ism in view here?

 

[biscuit1953]

Wasn't the lost tribes idea something that Joseph Smith used in addition to his King James Bible to invent the religion of Mormonism?

Is British Israel-ism in view here?

Exactly.  Only God knows where they are and He will once again distinguish between them in the future (Revelation 7:4-8).

 

[subllibrm]

Yeah, whatever. What about the lost chord?  8)

 

[Ransom]

Many people believe that ten of the tribes of Israel have been lost and there have been many theories as to where they are now.

The British-Israelism version of this myth (which claims that the 10 lost tribes dispersed to northern Europe and became the Angles, Saxons, Celts, and so forth) is refuted by the letter to the Galatians.

The Galatians were Celts who had come from western Europe and settled in southern Asia Minor. Yet by the Spirit, Paul calls them "Gentiles" instead of "Israelites."

 

[prophet]

Many people believe that ten of the tribes of Israel have been lost and there have been many theories as to where they are now.

The British-Israelism version of this myth (which claims that the 10 lost tribes dispersed to northern Europe and became the Angles, Saxons, Celts, and so forth) is refuted by the letter to the Galatians.

The Galatians were Celts who had come from western Europe and settled in southern Asia Minor. Yet by the Spirit, Paul calls them "Gentiles" instead of "Israelites."

They were the "Gauls" werent they?  As in Charles de Gaulle?

Anishinaabe

 

[subllibrm]

Many people believe that ten of the tribes of Israel have been lost and there have been many theories as to where they are now.

The British-Israelism version of this myth (which claims that the 10 lost tribes dispersed to northern Europe and became the Angles, Saxons, Celts, and so forth) is refuted by the letter to the Galatians.

The Galatians were Celts who had come from western Europe and settled in southern Asia Minor. Yet by the Spirit, Paul calls them "Gentiles" instead of "Israelites."

They were the "Gauls" werent they?  As in Charles de Gaulle?

Anishinaabe

your post took a lot of gall.

 

[prophet]

Many people believe that ten of the tribes of Israel have been lost and there have been many theories as to where they are now.

The British-Israelism version of this myth (which claims that the 10 lost tribes dispersed to northern Europe and became the Angles, Saxons, Celts, and so forth) is refuted by the letter to the Galatians.

The Galatians were Celts who had come from western Europe and settled in southern Asia Minor. Yet by the Spirit, Paul calls them "Gentiles" instead of "Israelites."

They were the "Gauls" werent they?  As in Charles de Gaulle?

Anishinaabe

your post took a lot of gall.

a gall-on of it?

Anishinaabe

 

[subllibrm]

Many people believe that ten of the tribes of Israel have been lost and there have been many theories as to where they are now.

The British-Israelism version of this myth (which claims that the 10 lost tribes dispersed to northern Europe and became the Angles, Saxons, Celts, and so forth) is refuted by the letter to the Galatians.

The Galatians were Celts who had come from western Europe and settled in southern Asia Minor. Yet by the Spirit, Paul calls them "Gentiles" instead of "Israelites."

They were the "Gauls" werent they?  As in Charles de Gaulle?

Anishinaabe

your post took a lot of gall.

a gall-on of it?

Anishinaabe

With a gallon we could milk this for quite a long time.

 

[Ransom]

They were the "Gauls" werent they?  As in Charles de Gaulle?

Right. "Galli" is what they were called in Latin (hence Julius Caesar's "Gallic Wars"), while "Celtae" was their name in their own language. They invaded the British Isles quite early on (continually between 700-100 BC), and a colony of them expanded east into Asia Minor in the 3rd century BC. Jerome even recognized them as still speaking a dialect of the same language as the Gauls, in the 4th century AD.

 

[prophet]

They were the "Gauls" werent they?  As in Charles de Gaulle?

Right. "Galli" is what they were called in Latin (hence Julius Caesar's "Gallic Wars"), while "Celtae" was their name in their own language. They invaded the British Isles quite early on (continually between 700-100 BC), and a colony of them expanded east into Asia Minor in the 3rd century BC. Jerome even recognized them as still speaking a dialect of the same language as the Gauls, in the 4th century AD.

Thanks for the flesh-out.

Anishinaabe

 

[ChuckBob]

Why anybody with any education knows that the lost tribes of Israel morphed into the American Indian tribes here in North America.


ChuckBob

 

[prophet]

Why anybody with any education knows that the lost tribes of Israel morphed into the American Indian tribes here in North America.


ChuckBob

That's  what  Ole Joe and the bicycle boys keep tryin to tell us.

We sure forgot a lot of traditions, if it's true.

One is clothes.

Anishinaabe

 

[ChuckBob]

Why anybody with any education knows that the lost tribes of Israel morphed into the American Indian tribes here in North America.


ChuckBob

That's  what  Ole Joe and the bicycle boys keep tryin to tell us.

We sure forgot a lot of traditions, if it's true.

One is clothes.

Anishinaabe

Seriously, if you compare some of the Cherokee religious beliefs and early Judaism it will make you say, hmmm. It's been years since I've studied it but I remember there were several similarities.

ChuckBob

 

[prophet]

Why anybody with any education knows that the lost tribes of Israel morphed into the American Indian tribes here in North America.


ChuckBob

That's  what  Ole Joe and the bicycle boys keep tryin to tell us.

We sure forgot a lot of traditions, if it's true.

One is clothes.

Anishinaabe

Seriously, if you compare some of the Cherokee religious beliefs and early Judaism it will make you say, hmmm. It's been years since I've studied it but I remember there were several similarities.

ChuckBob

You mean, like our high priest?  Atoning Sacrifice?

That stuff was around before Jews.

And this...

Act 2:5
5 And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.

Maybe the Great Cherokee Nation is under Heaven, too?

Anishinaabe

 

[theophilus]

Name one Jew living today that can trace his personal ancestry to a particular tribe other than possibly the tribe of Levi.

Jews may not know which tribe they are part of but God does.  He will reveal this information when it is needed.

 

[biscuit1953]

Name one Jew living today that can trace his personal ancestry to a particular tribe other than possibly the tribe of Levi.

Jews may not know which tribe they are part of but God does.  He will reveal this information when it is needed.

Exactly.  In Revelation 7 the Jehovah Witnesses claim that only 144,000 JW's born before 1914 will reign with Christ in heaven but clearly these are 12,000 Jews from the 12 tribes of Israel. Some people claim that because Revelation has a lot of symbolism in it then they can mean anything someone wants them to mean.  Unless clearly explained otherwise the text should be taken at face value. 

I know that Galations 6:16 is used as a proof text by many Covenant Theologians to prove that the Church is called Israel but the book of Galations is dealing with Gentiles who were mixing the Law with grace in order to obtain salvation.  The ones leading the charge and deceiving them were Judaizers or Jews demanding that Gentiles live according to the Law of Moses.  They overlook the fact that in Gal 6:15 Paul clearly teaches that salvation by faith alone results in a new creature or creation.  He then blesses the two groups that accept salvation by grace without the Law.  The first group is the Gentile Christians to whom the book was written.  The second group is the "Israel of God." Paul contrasts the Jewish believers with the Judaizers who refused to accept his teachings on salvation by faith alone.  The conjunction "and" in verse 16 separates the two groups.

No matter how you slice it the twelve tribes of Israel today are known only  to God.