Judah and Israel Not Yet United after being Separated in 722 BC





Judah and Israel Not Yet United after being Separated in 722 BC

To understand where prophecy may be taking us as we try to decode the prophetic scriptures, we need to go back and review old testament scriptures and world history. So that we can look correctly into future events. A main theme of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel is the re-gathering of Judah and Israel as one nation. If we miss interpreting this correctly it changes how we might interpret events described in future prophecies.

We will be looking to see if we can answer the following questions.

Who is Israel as a people?

Who is Judah as a people?

Who are the people of the 10 lost tribes?

Who is a Jew?

Who is an Israelite?

Who are you?

The earliest time in scripture that the word Jew is used is recorded in 2 Kings 16:6. This describes a war between Judah and the other ten tribes called Israel. The ten northern tribes that make up Israel were about to be over-run by Judah. The King of Israel asked the King of Syria to defeat the "Jews". Here we see the King of Israel calling the people of Judah Jews.

2 Kings 16:5-7

5. Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Ramali'ah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not over come him.
6. At that time Rezin King of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there untop this day.
7. So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiig'lath-pile'ser king of Asyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son; come up, and save me out of the hand of of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the King of Israel which rise up against me.

So we see term Jew does not speak of the people of Israel but only to the people of Judah.

Josephus also wrote about the people of the northern tribes claiming to be Hebrews but not Jew.

Quote from Jewish Antiquities Book 2 Chapter 8.

Seeing that Alexander had so greatly honored the Jews, determined to profess themselves Jews; for such is the disposition of the Samaritans, as we have already elsewhere declared, that when the Jews are in adversity, they deny that they are of kin to them, and then they confess the truth; but when they perceive that some good fortune hath befallen them, they immediately pretend to have communion with them, saying that they belong to them, and derive their genealogy from the posterity of Joseph, Ephraim, and Manasseh. Accordingly, they made their address to the king with splendor, and showed great alacrity in meeting him at a little distance from Jerusalem. And when Alexander had commended them, the Shechemites approached to him, taking with them the troops that Sanballat had sent him, and they desired that he would come to their city, and do honor to their temple also; to whom he promised, that when he returned he would come to them. And when they petitioned that he would remit the tribute of the seventh year to them, because they did but sow thereon, he asked who they were that made such a petition; and when they said that they were Hebrews, but had the name of Sidonians, living at Shechem, he asked them again whether they were Jews; and when they said they were not Jews, "It was to the Jews," said he, "that I granted that privilege; however, when I return, and am thoroughly informed by you of this matter, I will do what I shall think proper." And in this manner he took leave of the Shechenlites; but ordered that the troops of Sanballat should follow him into Egypt, because there he designed to give them lands, which he did a little after in Thebais, when he ordered them to guard that country.


Now we will examine the words that Moses spoke to all the tribes during the Exodus out of Egypt.

The last speech that Moses made to his people before they crossed the Jordan into their promised land is a key to proper understanding. Moses told the people of the blessings they would receive upon entering the promised land. Then he warned them and prophesied that if they turned away from the Lord they would be scattered among all the nations of the world, and their numbers would be so many that they would be compared to the sand of the sea and the stars of heaven. Then Moses says, (Deuteronomy 30:1-3) WHILE YOU ARE AMONG THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD YOU WILL COME TO KNOW THE LORD AND WORSHIP HIM WITH ALL YOUR HEART; and THEN THE LORD WILL CAUSE YOU TO RETURN TO YOUR LAND.

THEY COME TO KNOW THE LORD WHILE THEY ARE STILL AMONG THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD BEFORE THE RETURN TO THEIR LAND. Is that what you see happening in Israel today?

The Bible says that Judah, or the Jews, will return before Israel returns to their land. Zechariah 12:7 states that the tents of Judah will be saved first so the glory of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem don't magnify themselves against Judah. What is the Glory of David? None other than Jesus Christ, and the followers of Jesus Christ. So Judah was returned first so that the Christians wouldn't magnify themselves against Judah. Can you see what may have happened because many extremists over the past blamed the Jewish people for crucifying Christ.

To continue we will look at Ezekiel's prophecies. We should remember that the true word of God is absolutely sure, and although this is looking to a future event it is sure and could very well be HISTORY WRITTEN IN ADVANCE.

Ezekiel 4: 4-6

4. Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity.

5. For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days; three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear iniquity of the house of Israel.

6. And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again upon thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year.

Ezekiel is told to lie on his left side for 390 days representing the years that Israel would be in captivity under siege.

When did this captivity begin? It began in 722 BC when Assyria overthrew Israel, and took them captive to the north to an area near the Euphrates River.

When did this 390 year siege end? It ended in 332 BC when Alexander the Great overthrew the Persian empire.

When did Judah's captivity begin? It began 136 years after Israel was taken into Assyria. Babylon did the same thing to Judah as Assyria did to Israel. They took them from their land to Babylon and held them captive.

How did Judah's captivity end? It ended when Cyrus, the king of Persia, threatened Babylon. This allowed Judah to become a self-governing autonomy within Babylon, and ended their captivity at the end of 40 years, in 546 BC. Judah did not return to their home land for another 10 years in 536 BC. The last of the tribe of Judah returned with Ezra in 458 BC.

Important points are that Judah was taken captive when only 136 years of Israel's siege was completed. They were taken to two different nations. Israel was taken to Assyria and Judah was taken to Babylon. When the last of Judah returned, Israel still had to serve 123 years of the sentenced punishment prophesied by Ezekiel.

We need to realize that reading scripture of this period, scriptures addressed to Jerusalem, the capital city of Judah, refers to the people of Judah. Prophecies to Benjamin refer to Judah because Benjamin became part of Judah when the 10 northern tribes separated. On the other hand scriptures that relate to Samaria, Israel's capital, relate to the 10 tribes of Israel. Prophecies relating to Ephraim are also to the ten tribes because during that period Ephraim was a leading force.

Since Israel and Judah separated in 976 BC they have never come back together. Even to this day they are not together, and don't even recognize each other. But Judah and Israel will be re-gathered as one nation in our generation.