Subject: Re: Galilee of the Gentiles Date: Thu, 12 Feb 1998 23:19:09 +0000 To: "Hebraic Heritage Newsgroup"<heb_roots_chr@geocities.com>
From: Batya Wootten To: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com Subject: Re: Galilee of the Gentiles In a message dated 98-02-12 00:52:22 EST, you write: << Why is Galilee called Galilee of the Gentiles? >> Those of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, or Ephraim, were slowly assimilated into, and finally the ruling class of Israel's capital, Samaria was taken captive by, Assyria, around 722 B.C. To answer your question, I submit the fourth chapter of my forthcoming new book, Who Is Israel? And Why You Need To Know (footnotes will not come through). Ephraim's name, as an individual, is mentioned only fourteen times in Scripture. We are told he was born in Egypt, being the second son of Joseph and Asenath (daughter of Potiphera, priest of On). And, Joseph said he named him Ephraim, because, "God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction" (Genesis 41:52). Ultimately, Ephraim was brought before his grandfather and pronounced heir of Israel. He is last mentioned in Genesis 50:23: "And Joseph saw the third generation of Ephraim's sons." After that, the man named Ephraim disappears. The one whose name meant "doubly fruitful" fades away, leaving no record of his ever having passed his rich blessing on to another. A House Divided After Jacob blessed Ephraim, Ephraim's descendants were thereafter regarded as a single tribe. Years later, ten of the twelve tribes of Israel collectively became known as "Ephraimites" (1 Kings 11:31; Judges 12:5). This came to pass because some time after the children of Israel entered into the land of Canaan, they divided into two houses: Judah and Ephraim. While all twelve tribes were Jacob's descendants (2 Kings 17:34), the northern kingdom of Ephraim was called "Israel," and the southern kingdom was called "Judah" (1 Kings 12:21). The Lost Tribes The Northern Kingdom of Israel consisted of ten tribes (1 Kings 11:35), and it lasted for about two hundred years (975-721 B.C.). But because Ephraim most often followed after the pagan customs of their Gentile neighbors, for a season, some Ephraimites joined the more Godly people of Judah. During this time, they were subjects of Judea: "But as for the sons of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah, Reheboam [Judah's king] reigned over them" (1 Kings 12:17). But sadly, Judah fell into the same sins (Ezekiel 23:1-49). So the Ephraimites returned home (2 Kings 16:3; 17:19). Scripture speaks of some intermingling and intermarriage between these two kingdoms. However, while a man from one tribe was free to move to the territory of another, he could not take his land inheritance with him. Further, land inheritance could be "sold" on a "lease" basis, but could not be "permanently sold" (houses in walled cities could be sold: Leviticus 25:13,29-31). This law limited tribal intermingling. Moreover, if one did move to the territory of another tribe, that move would not, could not, change ones tribal lineage. Thus, in all probability, each "house" included at least a small representation of each tribe, but still, each remained a distinct entity until the very end. In fact, there was continual warfare between Israel and Judah-which warring ceased only when Ephraim's northern foe, Assyria, carried the people of Ephraim away into captivity. Thus, they became known as The Ten Lost Tribes. Ephraim And The Samaritans Of the Israelites taken captive by Assyria, the New International Version Study Bible tells us: "There is some evidence that Israel experienced its first deportations under Tiglath-Pileser III (745-727 B.C.), a cruelty repeated by Sargon II (722-705 B.C.) at the time of the fall of Samaria. The latter king's inscriptions boast of carrying away 27,290 inhabitants of the city as booty []....they were sent to Assyria, to Halah (Calah?), to Gozan on the Habor River, and apparently to the eastern frontiers of the empire (to the towns of the Medes, most probably somewhere in the vicinity of Ecbatana, the modern Hamadan)." During this time, the Assyrians practiced a unique method of controlling newly conquered lands. They scattered the leading citizens among other nations and then moved other conquered leaders into the newly subjugated land. Thus, all were destabilized and so were less likely to unite and revolt. Assyrian records indicate noble families were taken captive, while agricultural workers were left behind to care for the crops. The Israelite farmers and fishermen left behind to feed their conquerors's, ultimately were assimilated into the Assyrian Empire. Ephraim was scattered "in Halah, at the [River] Habor, at the River Gozan, and in the towns of Media." Then, "The king of Assyria brought men from Hamath and Sephar-vaim, and settled them in the cities of Samaria in place of the sons of Israel. So they possessed Samaria [Israel's capital] and lived in its cities" (2 Kings 17:6,24, TNKH; 1 Chronicles 5:26). These transplanted people, as well as those who lived among them, ultimately became known as "Samaritans." They were generally despised by those of Judah-which lasting hatred was soon returned (Luke 9:52-53; John 4:9; 8:48). Many Miles Apart-Generations Later To understand what happened to Ephraim, we need to see that at the time the Ephraimites were taken captive, they had their own king and were functioning as a separate kingdom (2 Kings 17:1-3). Also, the locations they were taken to varied in distance from 250 to 350 miles basically north of Babylon-the place where Judah was later taken (see map section, this book). It was 135 years later, or several generations, before Judah was taken captive. Further, Judah was settled "by the river Chebar" (Ezekiel 1:1), while Ephraim was scattered "beyond the Euphrates River" (1 Kings 14:15). This means there were many miles (considering the limited methods of transportation), and several generations (assuming they had children by age forty), between the deportation of Ephraim to Assyria, and the later deportation of Judah to Babylon. Further, these two peoples were openly hostile toward one another when they occupied the Promised Land. And yet, it is as though most historians and their students have been "blinded" to the differences between these two kingdoms. It is as though they do not see their different deportations and times, nor their different prophecies and promises. Assimilated Into the Foreign Milieu After Assyria conquered them, what happened to the Ephraimites as a people? The Encyclopaedia Judaica says: "It is evident that as a rule they did not possess the status of slaves or of an oppressed population. The exiles were first settled in Mesopotamia as land tenants of the king...the craftsmen among them were employed in state enterprises. Eventually, some of the exiles achieved economic and social status and even occupied high ranking positions in the Assyrian administration....The striking of roots in Mesopotamian society by a large part of the descendants of the Israelite exiles resulted in their eventual absorption into the foreign milieu." All Jews Were Israelites But Not All Israelites Were Jews If we are to understand "Israel," we must realize that these Ephraimites were Israelites, and not Jews. During the time they lived in the land, they were never once called Jews. They were called Israelites. When they were scattered, they were Israelites who lived and worked in Assyria. They struck roots in Mesopotamian society. They were absorbed. For all outward appearances, they became "foreigners." As prophesied by Jacob, they became "Gentiles" (Genesis 48:19). The Judahites were taken captive more than a century and a quarter later. These were the Jews. The Jewish people always sought to maintain a separate identity from the nations in which they lived. However, the Ephraimites wanted to be like the Gentiles. For that reason, the Father allowed them to become lost among the nations. He allowed them to become "Gentiles." So went the fate of Ephraim. >From this brief history it appears the hallmark of the people of Ephraim is that they are lost-which is hardly a picture of a great congregation of people mightily blessed by God. A Second Birth? Where are the Ephraimites today? The Encyclopaedia Judaica says the first century historian, Josephus, stated in his Antiquities: "The ten tribes are beyond the Euphrates till now, and are an immense multitude not to be estimated in numbers." Also, the late Jewish Believer and theologian, Alfred Edersheim, in his highly respected work, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, says: "The great mass of the ten tribes was in the days of Messiah, as in our own, lost to the Hebrew nation." Edersheim also calls them, "Those wanderers of the ten tribes whose trackless footsteps seem as mysterious as their after-fate." And, in his study of rabbinical thought regarding the lost tribes, Edersheim concludes: "As regards the ten tribes there is this truth underlying...that, as their persistent apostasy from the God of Israel and His worship had cut them off from His people, so the fulfillment of the Divine promises to them in the latter days would imply, as it were a second birth to make them once more Israel." As suggested by rabbinical thought, did the Ephraimites experience a "second birth"? Were the Divine promises made to them fulfilled? Having become lost among the Gentile nations, did they once again become "Israel"? Hope this helps. You can find more info at our web site: www.mim.net Shalom, Batya Wootten House of David ************************************************************************