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Bible Question: What
ever happened to the 10 tribes of Israel that were captured and
taken away? Judah was returned after their capture, but I can't
find in scripture as to what happened to Israel when they were
captured.
Bible Answer: There
are at least three different opinions about the phrase "the
ten lost tribes" of Israel. Some understand this to mean that
some or all of the Anglo-Saxons are the ten lost tribes. This view
is mere speculation and cannot be supported by scripture. Some believe
ten of the tribes are lost because there is no clear traceable
family lineage existing for many of them. One such person is Rabbi
Jonathan Packman in Israel,
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The
first Jewish Diaspora is the one historians know least about
- there are no traces of where these Jews dispersed to.
The Diaspora of 720 BC was initiated when the Assyrians forced
the Jews out of Israel. Ten tribes left the Promised Land
and were never heard from or found. These are known as the
10 lost tribes. |
The last view says that the Ten Tribes were never lost. We believe
this last view is correct. The explanation follows.
Lost Tribes. Before and during the reign
of King Solomon, the term "Israel" referred to all of the Jewish people
in the land of Palestine. The nation at that time was called Israel. But King
Solomon sinned by not loving God and worshipping other gods. As a result, God
responded by dividing Solomon's kingdom into a northern and southern kingdom.
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Now
the LORD was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned
away from the LORD, the God of Israel . . . So the LORD said
to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and you have
not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded
you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you, and will give
it to your servant . . . However, I will not tear away all
the kingdom, but I will give one tribe to your son for the
sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem which
I have chosen. (NASB)
1 Kings 11:9-11, 13 |
So the Lord kept the tribes of Judah and Benjamin for King David's
line and gave the remaining tribes to King Jeroboam (1
Kings
11:30-31).
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Then
Ahijah . . . said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten
pieces; for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Behold,
I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and give
you ten tribes . . . (NASB)
1 Kings 11:30-31 |
The northern kingdom was called Israel and the southern kingdom was
called Judah because it included two tribes: Judah and Benjamin (2
Chron. 11:23). |
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