British Israelism

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Ezra 1:5

"Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites . . . to go up to build the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem."

Ezra 2:1

"Now these are the children of the province that went up . . . whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away unto Babylon, and came again unto Jerusalem and Judah, every one unto his city;"

Problem:

On the basis of these passages Armstrong argues as follows: "Those who returned to Palestine to rebuild the temple and restore worship 70 years after Judah's captivity were all of the House of Judah - all Jews - All of those whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away. They returned again 'unto Jerusalem and Judah, every one unto his city.' (Ezra 2:1). Only those of the tribes of Judah, Benjamin and Levi, who constituted the house of Judah returned at that time. (Ezra 1:5). Consequently those in Jerusalem in the time of Christ were these tribes, not of the House of Israel."¹

Solution:

1. If the 10 tribes were "lost" at the time of Zerubbabel, why was a sin offering offered for "all Israel" - "twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel"? (Ezra 6:16,17). Under Ezra the "children of those that had been carried away, which were come out of the captivity, offered burnt offerings unto the God of Israel, twelve bullocks for all Israel . . . " (Ezra 8:35).
   
2. Armstrong asserts that, "only those of the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Levi, who constituted the house of Judah returned at that time". But this argument neglects to take into account that members of the 10 tribes were also constituents of the Kingdom of Judah in the south. When the captivities took place it was a mixture of the tribes which was carried off. Consider the evidence:
   1. The Kingdom of Judah in the south consisted from the start of some of 4 tribes and not just 2 tribes - Levi (2 Chron. 11:13,16) and Simeon (Josh. 19:9) which had its territory in Judah, dwelt with Judah and Benjamin.
   2. There were migrations from the northern to the southern kingdom, as the following passage indicate:
      1. "And he [Asa, King of Judah] gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon: for they fell to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the LORD his God was with him." (2 Chronicles 15:9).
      2. "But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam [King of Judah] reigned over them." (1 Kings 12:17; see also 2 Chron. 11:3).
   3. Even after the rebellion which resulted in the setting up of the kingdom of Israel in the north, loyal Israelites to the throne of David migrated south - " . . . out of all the tribes of Israel such as set their hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel came to Jerusalem [and] . . . they strengthened the kingdom of Judah . . . " (2 Chron. 11:16,17)
      
3. Armstrong reasons that "Consequently those in Jerusalem in the time of Christ were of these tribes (i.e., Judah, Benjamin and Levi), not of the House of Israel." He assumes that the 10 tribes were in Great Britain or migrating across Europe in the direction of Great Britain. But such reasoning is incompatible with the following New Testament evidence:

   1. The disciples were sent to the "lost sheep of the house of Israel." (Matt. 10:6). Since the teaching of the disciples was confined to Palestine, the tribes of Israel must have been in Palestine, not Europe or Great Britain.²
   2. Paul informed his hearers that the "12 tribes" were "instantly serving God day and night." (Acts 26:7). This is a thorough refutation of Armstrong's claim that at this time the 10 tribes had lost "their language, their religion, their land."³
   3. Jesus stated that he was sent "unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." (Matt. 15:24). But in carrying out his mission there is no Scriptural record of him journeying to Europe or Great Britain to find the lost 10 tribes. If his teaching was only to the three tribes (Judah, Benjamin, and Levi), then he failed in the greater part of his commission. The fact that the teaching of Jesus was confined to Palestine is in itself proof that the 10 tribes were neither geographically lost nor Anglo-Saxon.

1. Herbert W. Armstrong, The United States and the British Commonwealth in Prophecy, (Pasadena: Ambassador College, 1954), p. 9. Return

2. Anna who "departed not from the temple" was from the tribe of Asher (Lk. 2:36,37), indicating that Jews from tribes other than Judah, Levi and Benjamin lived in Palestine at the time of Christ. Return

3. Herbert W. Armstrong, The United States and the British Commonwealth in Prophecy, (Pasadena: Ambassador College, 1954), p. 9. Return