The ten 'lost' tribes

Are they really lost?  Are there prophetic implications?

There is no end of speculation as to what happened to the so-called "ten lost tribes" of Israel. Cults have gone so far as to speculate that they are represented by the white race, first with Great Britain in a doctrine called "British Israelism," but when the British Empire began to decline they changed it to the U.S., and it is now called, "Anglo-Israelism." This view has been strongly refuted, such as by the late Dr. Walter Martin in his classic book, Kingdom of the Cults.

Personally, I have always believed they were just assimilated among all the races. There is probably truth to that, and only God would know who really is in the blood line. Of course, regarding salvation, it doesn't matter. "A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise is not from men, but from God" (Romans 228-29, NIV).

Also, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Galatians 328-29).

However, there are prophetic implications regarding the ten tribes, and they may have, indeed, retained some original tribal identity.

Sid Roth, in his latest Messianic Vision letter, provides some interesting insight on this subject:

"The traditional rabbis believe three things must happen before the Messiah comes. First, Israel must be a Jewish state. Second, the Temple in Jerusalem must be rebuilt. And third, the ten lost tribes must be restored to Israel.

"Israel became a nation in 1948. The Temple could be rebuilt very quickly. But after thousands of years of dispersion, anti-Semitism, and inter-marriage, it has appeared impossible that the ten lost tribes could ever return to Israel.

"Until now. I have just reviewed a documentary called, 'Quest for the Ten Lost Tribes,' that aired on the Discovery Channel and A&E. Simcha Jacobovici, a Jewish film maker, was directed by God to visit the lands of Israel's dispersion mentioned in Isaiah 11:11. Not even the adventure film, 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' can hold a candle to what he found.

"His video proves that the ten 'lost' tribes are not lost. Some of the tribes are following their own form of Judaism, but they are obviously the descendents of the original tribes.

"One example is the tribe of Manasseh. There are 1.5 million people from Manesseh living in northeast India. They observe Shabbat (Sabbath), the festivals, and the biblical Jewish laws.

"With the discovery of the 'lost' tribes, God's prophetic time clock has accelerated..."

(Sid Roth's ministry is at 912-265-2500, and His Web site is at http://www.sidroth.org.)