Secular history records that the 10 tribes of Israel, having been conquered and enslaved by Assyria, remained in the lands beyond the Euphrates River for many years where they settled in an area called Parthia which, according one expert, means “exile.” The name would surely fit the 10 tribes of Israel who had been exiled there during the eighth century B.C. These Israelites remained in the area until they were forced to flee before the invading Persians who drove them northwest into what is called Europe today.

Josephus, the most famous of Jewish secular historians of old, lived and wrote in the generation following the earthly tenure of Jesus of Nazareth. This historian wrote extensively about Israel’s settlement in the land of Parthia. In his historical writing concerning the building of the second temple during the days of Ezra, he declared: “But then the entire body of the people of Israel remained in that country (Parthia) …. the 10 tribes (of Israel) are beyond the Euphrates till now, and are an immense multitude, not to be estimated by numbers.” The Persian invasion caused the 10 tribes to scatter, sending them into areas where the nations of Europe are located today. As was noted in the previous posting, two of the tribes migrated to the British Isles and later to the New World. It can be noted that in more recent times many have immigrated from a number of European countries to what became the United States. Many, some say most, of these were Israelites of the “10 lost tribes” whose ancestors had settled in those countries following the Persian invasion of Parthia.

It was to these widely scattered Israelites that God sent His apostles who were, under the direction of His Holy Spirit, commanded to find His lost sheep and tell them about the gospel of His coming kingdom on earth. As noted earlier in the series concerning the children of Jacob (Israel), it was the descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh who settled in the British Isles and later established the 13 colonies on the eastern shores of what would become the United States of America. These two nations would later serve as God’s gathering place for the descendants of the “Lost 10 Tribes of Israel.” Believing themselves to be Gentiles, these immigrants are to this day “lost” from public view. Their ancestorial identity is known only to those whom the Lord has revealed their identity in these last days. Both the churched and the unchurched remain ignorant of who they are and where they are from. My people immigrated to the New World from England. I have been informed by two different genealogical research organizations that 1) my family name–Jaques–comes from the word Jacob, and that 2) my dna reveals that I am of Israelite ancestry. I believe that hundreds of millions of American and European people share my genetic make-up but do not realize it. Their ancestors having lived among Gentiles and having totally assimilated with them, these people do not realize that they are the Biblically identified children of Abraham. Hopefully some will become aware of their incredible heritage, embrace it and return to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Israel). L.J.