From: Eddie Chumney
To: heb_roots_chr@hebroots.org
Subject: Chabad: An Overview of the Ten Lost Tribes
The following articles comes from a
Chabad Chassidic
Ultra-Orthodox website. It is located at:
http://www.moshiach.com/tribes/overview.html
The author of this article
does NOT believe that
Yeshua/Jesus is Messiah. However, the Chabad believe that the
restoration of the two houses of Israal MUST preceed the coming of
King Messiah and the Messianic Era and the prophecy of Ezekiel
37:15-28 has NOT happened yet. Furthermore, the article below
explains that Joseph in the story of Joseph revealing himself to His
brethren represents EPHRAIM or the Northern Kingdom of Israel. The
Talmud also explains that EPHRAIM today are assimulated among the
Gentile nations. The Talmudic belief is that the Ten Lost are NOT
lost forever but will join the rest of Jewry at the advent of the
coming of King Messiah. Enjoy!
Eddie Chumney
Hebraic Heritage Ministries
Int'l
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The
Ten Lost Tribes: Overview
http://www.moshiach.com/tribes/overview.html
Of
the first things that come to mind when thinking
about
Moshiach, is the Return of the Ten Lost
Tribes
who were exiled and separated from the rest
of
Jewry, thousands of years ago.
The
Ten Tribes were exiled during the First Temple
Era
- over 2,000 years ago, and have been separated
from
the rest of Jewry ever since. But ultimately,
they
will be redeemed, and join the rest of Jewry -
at
the time of Moshiach.
This
essay addresses the various opinions expressed
in
the Talmud regarding the fate of the Ten Tribes,
and
the big question: Will the Ten Tribes actually
return?
During
the next few weeks, we will discuss
communities
and tribes who are thought by many
researchers
to be the descendants of the Ten Lost
Tribes
of Israel. Stay Posted.
***
Let's
start from the beginning:
Over
1,000 years before the Ten Tribes were exiled,
Yakkov's
beloved son - Yosef, was kidnapped by his
brothers
- and was sold as a slave. Ultimately,
after
many years of separation, he was reunited
with
his father and brothers. The Torah describes
how
when Yosef revealed his identity to his
brothers
"Yosef could not restrain himself . . and
He
cried in a loud voice..." (Genesis, 45:1-2)
This
phenomenon was going to repeat itself on a
much
larger scale - with the children of Yosef
along
with the another 9 tribes.
(Yosef
represents the Ten Tribes, since the Ten
Tribes'
capital was Mt. Ephraim [1]. (Ephraim was
Yosef's
son)).
This
reunion will also be a tearful one, "With
cries
they will come, and with mercy I will lead
them"
(Jeremiah 31:8) [2].
The
Prophet Yechezkel (37: 19:22) speaks of this
reunion:
"I
am taking the rod of Yosef, which is in the hand
of
Efraim, and the tribes of Israel - his friends,
and
I will put on them the rod of Judah, and I will
make
them into one rod, and they will be one in my
hand
. . Now I am taking the sons of Israel from
the
nations to which they went, and I will gather
them
from around and bring them to their land. And
I
will make them into one nation, in the land, in
the
mountains of Israel. And one king will rule
over
them, and no longer will they be two nations,
and
they will not separate to two kingdoms
anymore."
I.e.
until now there has been separation within
Jewry.
First in the form of two kingdoms and later
they
were separated completely. When Moshiach
comes,
G-d will make us "into one nation and no
longer
will we be divided into two nations."
RABBI
AKIVAH: THE TEN TRIBES WILL NOT RETURN
Although
it seems so clear that the Ten Tribes will
return,
when we take a look at the sources, we see
that
it's not quite as simple as it seems.
Let
us quote the Mishnah in Sanhedrin (110b):
"The
Ten Tribes will not return as it says
(Nitzovim
29:8) "And he threw them to a different
land
like this day". Just as a day passes and will
never
return, they too will be exiled never to
return,
these are the words of Rabbi Akivah.
"Rabbi
Eliezer says, just like a day is followed by
darkness,
and the light later returns. So too,
although
it will become "dark" for the Ten Tribes,
G-d
will ultimately take them out of their
darkness."
Thus,
we have two opinions regarding the destiny of
the
Ten Tribes. The Talmud cites an additional view
which
is one of the opinions that their destiny is
dependent
on their behavior, "Rabbi Shimon ben
Yehudah
of Kfar Ako says in the name of Rabbi
Shimon:
'If their behavior continues as it is today
("this
day") they will not return [3], if they
repent,
they will indeed return.
Representatives
from Each Tribe.
Let
us begin with an analysis of Rabbi Akivah's
opinion
that the Ten Tribes will forever be lost.
Such
an opinion demands explanation: If Jewry will
consist
entirely of the remaining two tribes
(Yehuda
& Binyomin) How can the verses refer to the
union
of the tree of Yehudah" and the "Tree of
Yosef".
In
addition, doesn't the prophet Yechezkel speak of
dividing
the Land of Israel among 13 tribes?
Abarbanel
explains (Yeshuos Meshicho 1:4):
At
Rabbi Akivah's time the Ten Tribes have been
lost
for over 600 years, and there wasn't the
slightest
hint that they still existed.
Consider:
If the Ten Tribes have still remained
loyal
to Judaism, why haven't they sent at least
one
messenger to Jerusalem during Temple Era - to
verify
the rumors that the Jews have returned to
their
land and rebuilt the Temple?!
This
argument convinced Rabbi Akivah that the Ten
Tribes
must have assimilated into the pagan nations
and
would no longer be considered part of the
Jewry.
And
in regard to the prophecies which imply that
all
the tribes will exist in the Messianic Era,
Rabbi
Akivah might argue that while most the Ten
Tribes
were exiled and will never return, some may
have
escaped and live among us today. Thus we will
have
representatives of all the missing Ten Tribes,
and
the prophecies will be fulfilled through them.
THE
HALACHA: THE TEN TRIBES WILL RETURN
After
discussing Rabbi Akivah's view, let us
discuss
the opposing view of Rabbi Eliezer (that is
accepted
in Halacha) - that the Ten Tribes will
return.
[A
Talmudic sage even used the sharp expression
"Rabbi
Akivah has lost his piousness" - when
referring
to R. Akivah's harsh statement about the
Ten
Tribes. Thus, the Halacha remains as Rabbi
Eliezer
- that the Ten Tribes will ultimately
return.]
The
Talmud explains that this view is based on the
verse
(Yeshayah 27:13) "and it will be on that day,
a
great Shofar will be blown, and the lost will
come
from the land of Ashur" - this verse refers to
the
Ten Tribes who were exiled to the land of
Ashur.
One
point still has to be clarified: Amos (see 5:1)
said
*in reference to the Ten Tribes*: "Hear this
thing,
upon which I am mourning: The Virgin of
Israel
fell, and will never get up". How would R.
Eliezer
explain the words "It will never get up?"
A
possible explanation is that it will not "get up"
as
an independent entity, but it will get up as an
entity
totally incumbent to the kingdom of Judah.
Underground
Tunnels; the Mt. of Olives; and the
Three
Resorts
The
Midrash tells us that the Ten Tribes were
exiled
to three places: Some were exiled to the
land
behind the Sambatyon River. Another group was
exiled
to a *distant* land behind the River (this
land
was twice the distance from Israel than the
first
Land); the 3rd group was "swallowed in
Rabbeslah."
The
Midrash then describes the manner in which some
of
the 3rd Group (who were "swallowed") will
return:
"G-d
will make them underground tunnels and they
will
travel through them, until they reach the
Mount
of Olives in Jerusalem. G-d will stand on the
mount
causing it to split, and the Ten Tribes will
emerge
from within." (Yalkut Shimoni, Yeshayah 469)
Obviously,
this Midrash is not to be taken
literally,
it rather alludes to the severe
spiritual
exile which this group is now enduring
and
the spiritual transformation which they will
undergo
when Moshiach comes:
The
Ten Tribes were taken to exile and "were
swallowed",
i.e. they have totally forgotten their
Jewish
Identity, as if it has been "swallowed" by
some
external force. Their energy remains only in
potential
form. When Moshiach comes, G-d will take
them
through tunnels (symbolizing the process of
refinement)
and will lead them to the Mount of
Olives
(a mountain which was (originally) dedicated
to
the growing of fruit - a symbol of utilization
of
potential energy. Finally the mountain will
split,
and they will emerge - their Jewish identity
will
reemerge from the present state of "potential"
&
will be fully realized.
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