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Judah and Israel
The Old Testament prophets always carefully delineate between the House of Judah, the tribes of Judah and Benjamin and the House of Israel, the ten Northern tribes*.
They separated into these two nations, soon after Solomon’s reign ended. God said that this separation was part of His plan. 1 Kings 12:24
Although some from the Northern tribes did escape the Assyrian exile by coming down and joining with Judah, the main body of Israel were taken away to the Caucasus region. When the Assyrian Kingdom declined and fell, they decided to migrate and find better lands to live in. There is plenty of archaeological evidence of their travels; Jeremiah 31:21 speaks of the cairns or dolmens that they built to mark their way.
Their descendants remain scattered among the nations, now an uncountable number of peoples that have received the blessings promised to them by Jacob, Genesis 49 and by Moses; Deuteronomy 33. In particular, Ephraim, who became the leading tribe of the House of Israel, received the blessing of Jacob, Genesis 48:17-19, of his descendants becoming a group of nations, powerful and prosperous. Only the British Commonwealth fits this description.
That Israel and Judah have not rejoined as yet, is proven by the great chapter of Ezekiel 37:
Firstly, the dry bones are the whole Israelite people; verse 11 The Lord will put His Spirit into them and they will come alive spiritually, then they will be settled into all of the holy Land. Ezekiel 37:12-14
Then the two sticks, that clearly show how the two Houses are both Israelites, are rejoined as one in God’s hand, to become one nation in the Land; the mountains of Israel. verse 22 This will be the nation of Beulah, as Isaiah 62:1-5 prophesies.
God promises to make a Covenant with them; of peace and prosperity and His Sanctuary [Temple] will be in the midst of them. He says: then they will know that I am their God. This statement is in many of Ezekiel’s prophesies and is proof that they will all happen before Jesus visibly Returns for His Millennial reign.
This Covenant is the one prophesied by Jeremiah 31:31-34 and reiterated in Hebrews 8:10-11 and we await, with great anticipation the time of its implementation.
* Unfortunately, Paul in the New Testament is not so careful with ‘Israel’ and it requires discernment to be sure of when he is meaning Judah, the Jews or all Israel, by descent or by grafting in.
Bruce McKerras
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