The Israel of Ezekiel 38 and Gog Army

[DavidT]

Did you know that the Gog-Magog army of nations listed in Ezekiel 38 that will come upon Israel on the last day is pointing to 2 different concepts of God's Israel? Did you even know per Bible history that God split old Israel into two separate kingdoms and nations back in Solomon's day? (1 Kings 11)

Ezekiel 38 is describing some features about Israel that do not apply to the nation state of Israel in the holy land.

Ezek 38:8-16
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.

Wait a minute. What Israel is that, which dwells safely all of them? Is today's nation state of Israel in the holy land dwelling safely from radical Muslims raining rockets and mortar attacks upon Israel, is that dwelling safely?

9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,

Wait another minute. Doesn't the nation state of Israel in the middle east have gates and walls around Jerusalem? Yeah, it does. The Israelis also closely guard the West Bank barrier wall on their western border. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_West_Bank_barrier#/media/File:Barrier_route_July_2011.png)

12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.

13 Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, "Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?"

14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, "Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when My people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?

15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:

16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against My land, that the heathen may know Me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes."
KJV

God covers all bases in His Word. In Ezekiel 38:16 above He is actually pointing to 2 separate areas and groups of His people Israel. He is pointing to the Israel in the middle east ("My land"), and also the Israel in the Christian West ("may people of Israel"). How's that, you might say?

There are TWO branches of Israel taught in God's Word, not just one.

This is why the prior Ezekiel 37 chapter showed the joining of the two sticks representing "two nations". And we were supposed to understand that Ezekiel 37 prophecy of the two sticks before... we got here to Ezekiel 38.

Ezek 37:19-22
19 Say unto them, "Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in Mine hand.

20 And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes.

21 And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land:

22 And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all:
KJV

That above joining of the two sticks won't happen until Jesus returns, as Jesus is that "one king" that shall be "king to them all". So right now still today, God's Israel is actually divided into TWO NATIONS.

Where is that other... nation of God's Israel today then, the one that dwells safely 'without gates and walls'?

(Continued...)

 

[DavidT]

(Continued... from post #1)

God divided the old kingdom of Israel into two separate kingdoms in the days of Solomon (see starting at 1 Kings 11). God did that because Solomon allowed his many wives and concubines to bring their pagan idol worship in among the children of Israel. And God warned Solomon twice about it! So God rent the kingdom in two, in the days of Solomon's son Rehoboam, and gave ten tribes to Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim, and made Jeroboam king over Israel (northern ten tribe kingdom). But God said He would always leave one tribe at Jerusalem for His servant David's and Jerusalem's sake. God also said He would not afflict the seed of David in this forever.

Thus the two separate kingdoms per 1 Kings 11 thru 2 Kings 17:

1. "house of Judah" or "kingdom of Judah" = 3 tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Levi. Solomon's son Rehoboam was king, and of the tribe of Judah and house of David. Jerusalem was the capital city in the southern holy lands. (see 1 Kings 12 for the actual split, and 2 Chronicles 11 for when the Levites in the north left the northern tribes and went south and joined with Judah, as a small remnant out of the northern tribes did also). According to the Jewish historian Josephus (100 A.D.), these of the southern kingdom would become known as Jews, that title originating from the tribe of Judah.

2. "house of Israel" or "kingdom of Israel"= only the ten northern tribes of Israel, under king Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim. This made up the actual majority of the children of Israel, ten tribes. Samaria in the northern holy land was its capital city. What God did with giving Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim to rule over these ten tribes was unique, in that He had originally assigned only one born of the tribe of Judah, of the house of David, to be king over Israel. He broke that rule when Solomon fell away from Him. Thus in Ezekiel 37, the stick of Joseph is put for this ten tribe "house of Israel" or "kingdom of Israel" after God did the split.

At that time, under the old covenant, all Israelites were required to go to Jerusalem to worship God. So king Jeroboam in the north, afraid the ten tribes if allowed to trek south to Jerusalem that they would stay, and augment Judah's kingdom, Jeroboam setup two gold calf idols in the north, and told the ten tribes there was their gods. A remnant of the ten northern tribes refused the idols, and left and joined with the "house of Judah". Jeroboam also made common priests of the people, so the Levites left the north also, and joined with Judah.

King Rehoboam of Judah at Jerusalem gathered up the tribes of Judah and Benjamin and got ready to head north to the ten tribes to bring the whole kingdom back under his reign, but God told Rehoboam to not go, because this split was of Him. Then both kingdoms had war against earth other.

After a while, God got tired of the northern ten tribe "kingdom of Israel" with their gold calf idols, and He brought the kings of Assyria upon the northern ten tribe kingdom in stages, and removed them all out of His sight, captive to Assyria and the lands of the Medes (see 2 Kings 17). Only the "kingdom of Judah" remained in the holy land at the south. Then the king of Assyria brought 5 foreign peoples from provinces in Babylon, and placed them in the northern holy lands where the ten tribes had been removed. These foreigners were the Gentile Samaritans of the New Testament.

After centuries of the northern ten tribes of Israel being scattered, taking new foreign names, and new foreign customs and Baal worship which God scattered them for, they have become LOST to the world, and to the Jews. But God knows where they are today, which is why there is quite a bit of Old Testament prophecy about the "house of Israel" ten tribes, and their future gathering back to the holy land along with the rest of scattered Judah. If you read the Ezekiel 37 chapter, that is what the joining of the two sticks is about, to happen at Jesus' future return.

To this day, the northern ten tribes of Israel have not returned as a people back to the holy land. The majority of Israelites in today's nation state of Israel represent the Jews of the "house of Judah". And even they only represent a small remnant of all Jews in the world.

But per God's prophecy through His prophet Hosea, He showed what He would do with the northern ten tribe "house of Israel" when He ended their northern kingdom, and scattered them. Apostle Paul in Romans 9 quoted from the Book of Hosea about God's Promise to bring the lost ten tribes back, with believing Gentiles along with them. That gives evidence that God scattered the lost ten tribes of Israel to where The Gospel would be preached, in the lands of Asia Minor and Europe. Do you think that had something to do with Apostle Paul being kept prisoner in Rome for two years and allowed to preach The Gospel?

After the Jews in Jerusalem-Judea rejected Jesus of Nazareth as The Christ, the Gospel then was to go to the lost sheep of the "house of Israel", meaning the lost ten tribes of Israel (Matthew 15:24). And thus per prophecy, the Western Christian Nations under the head tribe of Ephraim was fulfilled (see Genesis 48 about the "multitude of nations" prophecy that Ephraim was to become).

If you made it this far, the above means that today, the Western Christian Nations represents the 'other' Israel that the Ezekiel 38 chapter is pointing to, the Israel in The Gospel that dwells safely without... gates or walls, a people gathered out of the nations they migrated to the West from. Thing is, most scattered Israelites to the Christian West are not aware of who they are today. They lost their heritage as part of Israel when God scattered the ten northern tribes through the countries. But the Jews of the "house of Judah", they did not lose their heritage as part of Israel. And the thing is with them, they like to claim that they only represent God's Israel today, which according to God's Word is not true.

(Continued...)

 

[DavidT]

(Continued...)

The modern nations of the Ezekiel 38 alignment supported by Gog-Magog are:

Russia is the main nation from the Hebrew for the word ro'sh', which is where Rus comes from, an early name for Russia. Persia is put for the areas of Iran-Iraq. Libya is still named Libya as a nation in northern Africa. Gomer is put for old Soviet statellite nations like Georgia and Ukraine which Russia still controls today. And Togarmah is put for the modern nation of Turkey, an Islamic nation, but at present is joined to NATO (probably going to change in our near future). These nations represent the alignment of the great army out of the 'northern quarters' that will come upon Israel on the last day, and God reveals He will step in and destroy that army, leaving only a sixth of them.

Did you know that Russia is still jealous of the United States of America over the 1867 Seward's Folly? (sell of Alaska to the U.S. for 7.2 million dollars). It was called "Seward's Folly" because even U.S. businessmen thought buying Alaska was a waste of money. It wasn't. There's no telling how many times Alaska has garnered trillions of dollars in natural resources since that sale.

Today, Russia is casting stones at the U.S. with threats to take back Alaska:
(https://www.newsweek.com/putin-ally-vyacheslav-volodin-warns-us-russia-reclaim-alaska-1722342)

Russia continuously tests our Alaskan air space defense with sending Russian bombers towards Alaska. Russian military eastern bases are just a hop and skip across the strait from Alaska.

Again, where did God say that great army would come from upon Israel?

Ezek 38:15
15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:
KJV

I believe that will include us, the United States of American, Canada, and Europe; basically the Western Christian Nations, and not just the nation state of Israel in the middle east.

 

[hawkman]

Russia continuously tests our Alaskan air space defense with sending Russian bombers towards Alaska.

They have tested us since the cold war started . Do you think we test Russia ?

 

[DavidT]

They have tested us since the cold war started . Do you think we test Russia ?

Yes, in some ways. But not actually flying our jets in their airspace like they do us. I think if our aircraft did that Russia would make that headline news on CNN.

The Cuban missile crisis for example, the Soviets put nuclear missiles in Cuba because we had missiles in Turkey, which Turkey is on the border with Russia. That's actually what the crisis was about, and why the Soviets sent missiles to Cuba. We removed our missiles in Turkey, and the Soviets then agreed to remove their missiles in Cuba. And of course our missiles in Turkey was downplayed involving the matter.

Today, I'm sure Russia sees their satellite states like Georgia and Ukraine trying to join NATO as American strategy against Russia. What many in the west don't realize, is that an agreement between the 'big three' about dividing up Europe after WWII was to create certain 'buffer states' along Russia's border. This was revealed in the secret history that Georgetown history professor Carrol Quigley mentioned in his book, Tragedy and Hope. So anyone toying with those buffer states, even after Russia's easing off the Cold War with Perestroika doctrine, they still see as a threat to their national security, and that old WWII conference agreement with the West.

 

[Ezekiel]

Did you know that the Gog-Magog army of nations listed in Ezekiel 38 that will come upon Israel on the last day is pointing to 2 different concepts of God's Israel? Did you even know per Bible history that God split old Israel into two separate kingdoms and nations back in Solomon's day? (1 Kings 11)

Ezekiel 38 is describing some features about Israel that do not apply to the nation state of Israel in the holy land.

Ezek 38:8-16
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.

Wait a minute. What Israel is that, which dwells safely all of them? Is today's nation state of Israel in the holy land dwelling safely from radical Muslims raining rockets and mortar attacks upon Israel, is that dwelling safely?

9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,

Wait another minute. Doesn't the nation state of Israel in the middle east have gates and walls around Jerusalem? Yeah, it does. The Israelis also closely guard the West Bank barrier wall on their western border. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_West_Bank_barrier#/media/File:Barrier_route_July_2011.png)

12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.

13 Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, "Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?"

14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, "Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when My people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?

15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:

16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against My land, that the heathen may know Me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes."
KJV

God covers all bases in His Word. In Ezekiel 38:16 above He is actually pointing to 2 separate areas and groups of His people Israel. He is pointing to the Israel in the middle east ("My land"), and also the Israel in the Christian West ("may people of Israel"). How's that, you might say?

There are TWO branches of Israel taught in God's Word, not just one.

This is why the prior Ezekiel 37 chapter showed the joining of the two sticks representing "two nations". And we were supposed to understand that Ezekiel 37 prophecy of the two sticks before... we got here to Ezekiel 38.

Ezek 37:19-22
19 Say unto them, "Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in Mine hand.

20 And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes.

21 And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land:

22 And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all:
KJV

That above joining of the two sticks won't happen until Jesus returns, as Jesus is that "one king" that shall be "king to them all". So right now still today, God's Israel is actually divided into TWO NATIONS.

Where is that other... nation of God's Israel today then, the one that dwells safely 'without gates and walls'?

(Continued...)

It starts at chapter 35 of Ezekiel, and in Revelations sixth vial and that is two part beginning of the war and the end of the war.

 

[hawkman]

Yes, in some ways. But not actually flying our jets in their airspace like they do us. I think if our aircraft did that Russia would make that headline news on CNN.

You do understand this has been going on a long time and is a normal thing of getting close to our air space , I am sure we do exactly the same thing to Russia , they would expect us to after all .

American F-16 jets intercept 4 Russian warplanes near Alaska

Of course the headline says fear , got to get the clicks .
Clip from link .


U.S.

American F-16 jets intercept 4 Russian warplanes near Alaska​

February 15, 2023 / 6:14 AM EST / CBS/AFP



Two American F-16 warplanes intercepted four Russian aircraft near Alaska, the joint US-Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said Tuesday. The "routine" intercept of the Russian planes -- which included Tu-95 bomber and Su-35 fighter aircraft -- occurred Monday, NORAD said in a statement.

"Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace," it said, adding that such Russian activity "occurs regularly and is not seen as a threat, nor is the activity seen as provocative."

The Air Defense Identification Zone, or ADIZ, is a perimeter in which air traffic is monitored beyond the border of national airspace to provide additional reaction time in case of hostile actions.

The Cuban missile crisis for example, the Soviets put nuclear missiles in Cuba because we had missiles in Turkey, which Turkey is on the border with Russia. That's actually what the crisis was about, and why the Soviets sent missiles to Cuba. We removed our missiles in Turkey, and the Soviets then agreed to remove their missiles in Cuba. And of course our missiles in Turkey was downplayed involving the matter.

Today, I'm sure Russia sees their satellite states like Georgia and Ukraine trying to join NATO as American strategy against Russia. What many in the west don't realize, is that an agreement between the 'big three' about dividing up Europe after WWII was to create certain 'buffer states' along Russia's border. This was revealed in the secret history that Georgetown history professor Carrol Quigley mentioned in his book, Tragedy and Hope. So anyone toying with those buffer states, even after Russia's easing off the Cold War with Perestroika doctrine, they still see as a threat to their national security, and that old WWII conference agreement with the West.

 

[Ezekiel]

Getting close and you soon will understand, Manasseh and Ephraim. With USA being Ephraim and the other tribes, Great Britain, Manasseh and their tribes. With Ephraim being the younger nation. THE TWO WITNESSES. Everyone looking Israel in the middle east but when they lose the power from these nations, The power of their arm.

 

[DavidT]

It starts at chapter 35 of Ezekiel, and in Revelations sixth vial and that is two part beginning of the war and the end of the war.

Well, on the 6th Vial, Jesus is warning His Church that He comes "as a thief". That means He does not yet come on the 6th Vial, but on the 7th Vial. And the battle of Armageddon must occur on the day of His coming. So it's the 7th Vial when He comes, and when Armageddon will be.

 

[Ezekiel]

Armageddon happens at the first trumpet in that God finishes it, I have no doubt. The war will start here shortly. The beginning of the end. six seal, six trumpet, six vial are the beginning and same events with all them things begin.

 

[Dave Watchman]

You do understand this has been going on a long time and is a normal thing of getting close to our air space , I am sure we do exactly the same thing to Russia , they would expect us to after all .

Video showing how close NATO planes get to the Russians while intercepting them over the Baltic Sea on March 1st 2024.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1763597327988564379

And sometimes the Russians even intercept themselves:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1773377347342786672

And here again on May 2023:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1657718380512657409

And also Mariupol:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1710289623203672464

Crimea river.

 

[DavidT]

Armageddon happens at the first trumpet in that God finishes it, I have no doubt. The war will start here shortly. The beginning of the end. six seal, six trumpet, six vial are the beginning and same events with all them things begin.

The battle of Armageddon happens on the "last trump", the 7th Trumpet of Rev.11 when all kingdoms of this world become those of Christ's. That is the same timing as the 7th Vial. Jesus returns on 777, the 7th Seal, 7th Trumpet, and 7th Vial.

The "sudden destruction" of 1 Thess.5 that Apostle Paul showed will happen on the "day of the Lord" that will come "as a thief in the night" is the same event of God's consuming fire burning man's works off the earth that Peter said in 2 Peter 3:10, and the same time that Jesus meant when He warned that He comes "as a thief" just prior to the 7th Vial event.

 

[DavidT]

You do understand this has been going on a long time and is a normal thing of getting close to our air space , I am sure we do exactly the same thing to Russia , they would expect us to after all .

American F-16 jets intercept 4 Russian warplanes near Alaska

Of course the headline says fear , got to get the clicks .
Clip from link .

....

That still does not change the fact that Russia wants Alaska back, and Putin has even said so.

 

[DavidT]

(Continued...)

Who really do the Western Christian Nations represent per God's Word?

I covered God's Word about the separation of the ten northern tribes of Israel from the 3-tribe "kingdom of Judah" at Jerusalem representing the Jews. The "house of Israel" label is applied only... to the ten northern tribes after God caused the split of 1 Kings 11 forward.

God gave a prophecy to Jacob that his seed would become "a nation, and a company of nations" (Genesis 35:10-12). OK, we well know who that one "nation" represents. That's about the nation of Israel in the middle east. But who are those "company of nations" that God promised Jacob's seed would also be? The nation of Israel in the middle east has only ever been but one nation, and is again today. But that "company of nations"?

That "company of nations" prophecy actually trekked down to Jacob's later seed, through his grandson Ephraim...

Gen 48:17-19
17 And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head.

18 And Joseph said unto his father, "Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head."

19 And his father refused, and said, "I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations."
KJV

So Ephraim's seed, the younger son of Joseph would become "a multitude of nations"? Where are... those "multitude of nations"? And in that Genesis 48 chapter in verse 16 Jacob said for his name (Israel) to be named upon the two lads, Ephraim and his brother Manasseh, the two sons of Joseph born to him while in Egypt.

And in 1 Chronicles 5, we are told the following...

1 Chron 5:1-2
5 Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, (for he was the firstborn; but, forasmuch as he defiled his father's bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel: and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright.
2 For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph's
KJV

Again, the sons of Joseph were Ephraim the younger, and Manasseh the elder. And the blessing from Jacob went to the younger Ephraim, Jacob saying that Ephraim's seed would become "a multitude of nations".

Are you starting to get the bigger picture here that God is showing us in His Word? I know this appears to go against the doctrine convictions that many think about the Jews, but this is God's Word, not my word.

That 1 Chronicles 5 Scripture is the final declaration in God's Word where His Birthright Blessing first given through Abraham would finally rest, i.e., upon the head of the two sons of Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh. Also, per Apostle Paul in Romans 4, and Galatians 3, Paul showed that God first gave to Abraham the Promise by Faith, which is about The Gospel of Jesus Christ. That is part of God's Birthright that wound upon Ephraim and Manasseh. (From Abraham to Isaac, to Jacob, to Joseph, then finally to Ephraim and Manasseh, where it still is to this day.)

(Continued...)

 

[DavidT]

(Continued ...)

When God split the kingdom of Israel from Solomon, in the days of Solomon's son Rehoboam, God then sent His prophet to Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim, to tell Jeroboam that He would given him 'ten tribes' and make him "king of Israel".

1 Kings 11:26-39
26 And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon's servant, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king.
27 And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breaches of the city of David his father.
28 And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph.

Solomon had made Jeroboam (of Ephraim) governor over the ten northern tribes in the northern holy lands. That's who that "house of Joseph" represented, the ten northern tribe of Ephraim that represented the 'head' tribe over all ten tribes.

Judah with its ally the tribe of Benjamin, dwelt in the southern holy lands, at Jerusalem-Judea. And that is where the kings of Judah, like Solomon and his son Rehoboam dwelt and reigned over all Israel. But when God split Israel into two separate kingdoms, these in the south became the "kingdom of Judah" per God's Word. The northern ten tribes under Ephraim (Jeroboam) became the "kingdom of Israel".

29 And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field:

30 And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces:

God speaking below via His prophet Ahijah to Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim...

31 And he said to Jeroboam, "Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:

32 (But he shall have one tribe for My servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel

33 Because that they have forsaken Me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways, to do that which is right in Mine eyes, and to keep My statutes and My judgments, as did David his father.

34 Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his life for David My servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept My commandments and My statutes:

35 But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes.

36 And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David My servant may have a light alway before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen Me to put My name there.

37 And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel.

38 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in My ways, and do that is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as David My servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.

39 And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever.' "
KJV

The one tribe which God promised would always remain before Him at Jerusalem is about the tribe of Judah. Per 1 Kings 12, the tribe of Benjamin would be included with the tribe of Judah at Jerusalem-Judea. And then when Jeroboam of Ephraim setup false idols in the north, and common priests of the people, the Levites in the north left the ten tribes and went down and joined with Judah and Benjamin. Also a small remnant out of the ten tribes that also refused Jeroboam's idol worship also went south and joined with Judah. The "kingdom of Judah" (Jews) then became only the 3 main tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Levi. The larger group of ten tribes made up the northern "kingdom of Israel".

(Continued...)

 

[DavidT]

(Continued...)

Now the ten northern tribes of Israel were under Jeroboam whom God made "king of Israel". Solomon's son Rehoboam of the house of David would be "king of Judah" at Jerusalem over the other 3 tribes. The old nation of Israel then became "two nations". (See Ezekiel 37 when in the future at Christ's return, they will no more be "two nations".)

Thus to this day, God's Israel is still divided into "two nations". And Ephraim's seed was to become "a multitude of nations". So where are those "multitude of nations" of Ephraim? and also, where is Ephraim's elder brother Manasseh that Jacob said was to become "great" per Genesis 48, where is he at?

Now per Genesis 49:10 and 1 Chronicles 5, the royal sceptre chief ruler was to go to the tribe of Judah. And God chose the house of David eventually to be the king line of Israel, and even promised David there would never fail a man of his seed to sit upon the throne of Israel (2 Samuel 7; Jeremiah 33:17). Solomon said the same thing (2 Chronicles 6:16).

Yet here in 1 Kings 11, God had split the old kingdom of Israel from Solomon's hand, and gave ten tribes to Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim, and made Jeroboam "king of Israel"! What's going on here? Did God remove His Promise to David that his family would never fail to have one of his seed upon the throne of Israel, forever?

Now some brethren will falter with understanding the above, thinking, "Well, Lord Jesus Christ is that One promised to sit upon David's throne forever." David's throne is indeed promised to Lord Jesus Christ when... Jesus returns. Has Lord Jesus returned yet today? Nope! But God said David would never want for one of his seed to sit upon his throne unto ALL... GENERATIONS!

And if you really pay attention to what Jacob told his son Judah for the 'last days' in Genesis 49:10, that the royal scepter (king rule) would NOT depart from Judah until Jesus (Shiloh) comes and gathers the people, that means even to this day, there MUST be one of David's seed sitting upon the throne of Israel on earth!

At the 1 Kings 11 & 12 split of old Israel, one of the house of David, Solomon's son Rehoboam, was still upon David's throne at Jerusalem. And a line of kings of Judah would continue at Jerusalem, while a line of kings over Israel in the north would also continue. The two kingdoms would even have war against each other during the times of Rehoboam and Jeroboam (1 Kings 14:30).

Because of how Jeroboam of Ephraim over the ten northern tribe "kingdom of Israel", or "house of Israel", had allowed idol worship in the north, and the lineage of kings of Israel in the north allowed it to continue, God eventually brought the kings of Assyria upon the northern ten tribes and took them all captive to Assyria and the lands of the Medes. Only the 3-tribe "kingdom of Judah" in the south at Jerusalem-Judea was left in the holy land. (See 2 Kings 17 & 18).

The ten northern tribe's captivity by the Assyrians was the first captivity of the children of Israel out of the promised lands. The king of Assyrian, as they would do after conquering a people, took five foreign peoples from five provinces in Babylon, each with its own false god, and put those foreigners in the northern holy land where the ten tribes had dwelt. These pagan foreigners became known as Samaritans.

Then about 120 years later, the "house of Judah", or "kingdom of Judah" in the southern holy land would fall away from God also. Then God would bring Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, upon Judah, and he would destroy the city of Jerusalem and the temple that Solomon built, and take the 3-tribe "house of Judah" captive to Babylon, which God promised Jeremiah would be only for 70 years. This was the second captivity of the children of Israel, specifically only the 3 tribes at Judea.

Zedekiah was king of Judah at that time when Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem-Judea and took the "house of Judah" captive to Babylon. The king of Babylon killed all... of king Zedekiah's son heirs. Zedekiah's eyes were poked out, and he was taken captive to Babylon, where he died. That ended the royal scepter rule of the king line of Judah of the house of David, at Jerusalem.

God's prophet Jeremiah, with his secretary Baruk, and the "king's daughters", were taken captive by bandits to Egypt. The "king's daughters" were under Jeremiah's care, as Jeremiah was kin to the royal family. Then Jeremiah and the "king's daughters" drop out of Bible history.

Yet God had told Jeremiah that He had made him a prophet over the kingdoms "to root up, and pull down, and to waste, and to destroy, and to build, and to plant." (Jer.1:10. Also see Jeremiah 41 thru 43) We know what that 'pull down, and to waste, and to destroy' part of the prophecy was, it was about the king of Babylon destroying Jerusalem and the temple Solomon built. But what about that "and to build, and to plant" part of the prophecy? Where... did that take place with Jeremiah. And Jeremiah wound up in Taphnis, Egypt, with the "king's daughters". There is actual archaeological evidence of Jeremiah being there at the palace of Pharaoh at Taphnis, Egypt.

To this day... there has never again been one born of the house of David to sit upon the throne of Israel in Jerusalem. But remember, God promised David there would never fail one of his seed to sit upon his throne of Israel. So how did God keep His Promise to David? And what was Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim doing sitting on the "throne of Israel" over the majority of the children of Israel, i.e., the ten northern tribes?

(Continued...)

 

[DavidT]

(Continued...)

Did you know God revealed what He would do to the ten northern tribes of Israel, called then as the "house of Israel" after He split old Israel into two kingdoms? He told us what He would do with the ten tribes through His prophet Hosea. Thus the Book of Hosea is written mainly to the northern ten tribe "house of Israel" under king Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim.

Yet Apostle Paul in Romans 9 would quote from this Book of Hosea regarding God's Promise to return the ten tribes, Paul pointing to the Gentiles in Christ are included...

Rom 9:24-26
24 Even us, whom He hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
25 As He saith also in Osee, "I will call them My people, which were not My people; and her beloved, which was not beloved.
26 And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not My people'; there shall they be called the children of the living God."
KJV

That part above in yellow is what God spoke to the ten tribes of the "house of Israel", not to Gentiles. So what was Apostle Paul doing quoting that Hosea passage to believing Roman Gentiles?

I'll say it ahead of time. God scattered the ten northern tribes under Ephraim captive to Assyria and the lands of the Medes. In the Jewish historian Josephus' day (100 A.D.), he said the ten tribes were still "beyond Euphrates", and were a great multitude, too many to be counted.

There exists some artifacts, like the Jehu Steel, and the Behistun Rock in northern Iraq which speaks of the captivity of the ten northern tribes, and also in the translation by linguist Leroy Waterman of the University of Michigan in 1930 of his Royal Correspondence of The Assyrian Empire. In that work Waterman translated names which the Assyrians used for kings of the northern tribes and northern Israel. Those names he determined is where the Khumri name came from (from king Omri of the "house of Israel" northern kingdom). These Assyrian names he linked to the name of the Cimmerians (the 'C' pronounced like a 'K'). This is where the pronunciation of Celt with the 'C' sounding as 'K' originates.

Some will start claiming, "Ah, that's British Israelitism", I realize. But no, it is not. Ephraim was to become "a multitude of nations", remember? The Cimmerian tribes, which the branch called Scythians were another group traced back to the east, migrated all throughout Asia Minor and Europe, not just Britain. And if you look historically, just where did the historical Western Christian Nations spring from? Exactly from those areas of Asia Minor and Europe!! Even at Antioch in Asia Minor was the first place believers were called 'Christian'!

The Gospel was rejected by the majority of Jews at Jerusalem, so The Gospel went to the Gentiles like Paul said, and they would believe. However, the majority of the ten northern tribes under Ephraim was also scattered there to the West among those Gentiles. Likewise, the majority of Judah was later scattered through the countries also after their Babylon captivity, and many of them would wind up in the West along with the ten tribes who lost their heritage as Israel. But those scattered Jews would not lose their heritage as part of old Israel. A portion of those came to believe on Jesus Christ also along with the majority of ten tribes and believing Gentiles.

(Continued...)

 

[DavidT]

(Continued...)

Notice what God said to the ten tribe "house of Israel" through His prophet Hosea. At this point in history, the ten tribe northern "kingdom of Israel" was still intact in the northern holy lands, and God was getting ready to end that kingdom and scatter them, like He had promised He would do per Deuteronomy 4 and 28 if His people rebelled against Him.

Hosea 1
1 The word of the LORD that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

2 The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said to Hosea, "Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the LORD."
3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son.
4 And the LORD said unto him, "Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel.
5 And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel."

God tells His prophet Hosea to take a prostitute for wife. And to call Hosea's first son "Jezreel" to represent how the ten tribes had fallen away from Him.

Jezreel was one of the places in the holy land where the kings of the northern kingdom often dwelt. It was in connection with king Ahab also, and eventually will be in connection with Armageddon.

6 And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, "Call her name Lo-ruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away.
7 But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen."

Hosea's prostitute wife then has a daughter, and God tells him to call her name, "Lo-ruhamah" which means 'not beloved', not having obtained mercy. God shows He would then not have mercy upon the ten tribed "house of Israel", and "utterly take them away", i.e., remove them captive out of the holy lands.

But to Judah He said, He would save them, and the "house of Judah" remained protected in the southern portion of the holy lands. The ten northern tribes only were taken captive to Assyria by the kings of Assyria (2 Kings 17). Judah's turn would come about 120 years after this.

8 Now when she had weaned Lo-ruhamah, she conceived, and bare a son.
9 Then said God, "Call his name Lo-ammi: for ye are not My people, and I will not be your God.

Thus God gave the ten tribes of Israel a "bill of divorce" (Jeremiah 3:6-8).

But notice what God promises them for later at the end...

10 Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, 'Ye are not My people', there it shall be said unto them, 'Ye are the sons of the living God.'
11 Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel."
KJV

Even through this, the ten northern tribes of Israel when scattered, would still be as many as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered. Then that part, "that in the place where it was said unto them, 'Ye are not My people', there it shall be said unto them, 'Ye are the sons of the living God,'" is what Apostle Paul quoted to Roman GENTILE believers in Romans 9!

If you don't yet understand why Paul quoted that from Hosea to Gentiles, I'll break the news to you. It means Paul knew... the majority of the scattered ten tribes of Israel had migrated to and wound up at, i.e., Asia Minor and EUROPE. Otherwise, why would Paul quote to ROMAN Gentile believers, when God gave that prophecy in Hosea originally only to the children of Israel?? Think brethren!

(Continued...)

 

[DavidT]

(Continued...)

This Hosea 2 chapter is where God revealed what He actually did with the ten tribes of the house of Israel when He scattered them for falling into false worship against Him.

Hosea 2
2 "Say ye unto your brethren, Ammi; and to your sisters, Ru-hamah.
2 Plead with your mother, plead: for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband: let her therefore put away her whoredoms out of her sight, and her adulteries from between her breasts;

God is speaking to His prophet Hosea what to say to 'My people' (Ammi), and to 'Pitied' (Ru-hamah). Remember in the previous Hosea 1 chapter, God told Hosea what to name his children so as to represent how the ten tribe kingdom had rebelled against Him. And He would call them 'not My people' (Lo-ammi) and 'not pitied' (Lo-ruhamah). Thus God is still pointing to the ten tribes here, using their harlotry and adultery as spiritual metaphors in forgetting Him.

3 Lest I strip her naked, and set her as in the day that she was born, and make her as a wilderness, and set her like a dry land, and slay her with thirst.
4 And I will not have mercy upon her children; for they be the children of whoredoms.
5 For their mother hath played the harlot: she that conceived them hath done shamefully: for she said, 'I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my drink.'

If you study the Ezekiel 16 chapter about Jerusalem playing the harlot after God had cleansed Jerusalem and made her His, then this is the same tone He is giving here in Hosea against the northern ten tribe kingdom.

6 Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths.

God is saying He would hedge up the paths wherein He would scatter the ten northern tribes of Israel once they were removed by the kings of Assyria (2 Kings 17). That means the ten tribes would not be able to find their way back to the holy land.

To this day, the ten tribes as a majority have not returned to the holy land. The majority of those that make up the nation state of Israel in the middle east today are Jews of the 3-tribe "house of Judah" that dwelt in Jerusalem-Judea, in the southern part of the holy land. And today, even those in Israel still only make up a small remnant of those Jews, the larger majority being still scattered among the nations.

7 And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she say, 'I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better with me than now.'

God using the idea of a woman harlot to represent the ten tribes of the northern kingdom here. Her lovers are the paganism of Baal that they followed after which caused them to forget our Heavenly Father.

God even says here they would seek their 'lovers' greatly, but still would not find them, which points to her lovers of Baal being false, and thus can't be found spiritually. Then she (ten tribes) will think how good she had it with her first husband (God), and will want to return, but won't be able to, because He said He would hedge up her paths.

8 For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal.

She, still being the subject of the ten tribe northern kingdom here, spiritually did not consider how God had taken care of them, how He fed her, and made her rich, and what did they do to repay God for it? They went and offered those things God gave them to Baal instead!

9 Therefore will I return, and take away My corn in the time thereof, and My wine in the season thereof, and will recover My wool and My flax given to cover her nakedness.
10 And now will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and none shall deliver her out of Mine hand.
11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast days, her new moons, and her sabbaths, and all her solemn feasts.
12 And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, whereof she hath said, 'These are my rewards that my lovers have given me: and I will make them a forest, and the beasts of the field shall eat them.'
13 And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim, wherein she burned incense to them, and she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels, and she went after her lovers, and forgat Me, saith the LORD."

That is exactly what God did to the northern ten tribe "kingdom of Israel". He scattered them out of His sight using the kings of Assyria, removing them all to Assyria and the lands of the Medes (2 Kings 17). By that, the ten tribes of Israel lost the gifts God had provided them while in the holy land.

They would even lose their own heritage from God as part of His people Israel, losing knowledge of God's feast days, new moons, and God's sabbaths. They instead would pick up ways of Baalism and pagan traditions, living among Gentiles as if they were Gentiles.

14 Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.

Then over time, God would "allure her", meaning lead her with a strong hand into the wilderness. This is about God scattering the ten tribes through the countries, from the east into new lands. 2 Esdras 13:40 mentions these ten tribes migrating further than their captivity in Assyria. (https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/2-Esdras-13-40/)

At this point note the Ezekiel 20:30-39 Scripture about God revealing how He is still going to rule over the ten tribe "house of Israel" in fury, and bring them into the 'wilderness' where He said He would then plead with them, make them pass under the rod, and bring them into the bond of the covenant (i.e., the New Covenant). But in the mean time, God said there in Ezekiel 20:38-40 for them to go ahead, serve their idols if that's what they want, but know that He is not going to allow those who do so, to enter into His future Holy Mountain.
(Continued...)

 

[DavidT]

(Continued...)

15 And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.

In those new lands, God would give the ten tribes her vineyards, and the valley of affliction ("Achor") as a door towards hope. And in those new lands the ten tribes would sing as in her youth when God led her out of Egypt.

At this point in the Hosea prophecy, God is now showing how He would turn the ten tribes around, away from their Baal worship, and instead back to Him.

Historically, the ten scattered tribes would migrate through the Dariel Pass above the Black Sea into the lands of Asia Minor and Europe, and there they would continue their false worship to Baal. The original Baal worship originated in the very first area of idol worship, in ancient Sumer-Babylon (aprox. 3800 B.C.). Baalism is the basis of all future idol worship that happened in ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, ancient Rome, ancient Scandinavia, ancient Breton, etc. That was another way how the ten tribes of Israel would forget their original heritage as part of God's people Israel. (Except not all of the lost ten tribes would forget God and their heritage as part of old Israel, as given in the Scottish Declaration of Arbroath of the 13th century)

But when the time came, God would speak to her softly (meaning the ten tribes), and begin to lead her back to Him.

16 And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call Me Ishi; and shalt call Me no more Baali.

God is simply saying that He would cause the ten tribes to stop seeking Baal in His place. He does not mean He is Baal. The false god Baal is nothing.
"Ishi" is a term of endearment, like "my husband". Recall 2 Corinthians 11 where Apostle Paul said he 'espoused' us to One Husband, i.e., Jesus Christ.

17 For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name.

Well, there's still some hard heads in the Christian West that refuse to let go of the old Baal names that the ten tribes fell into false worship to centuries ago. But the majority in the traditional western Christian nations began to leave those Baal idols not long after Jesus Christ was rejected by the majority of Jews in Jerusalem. Did you even know that the name "Galatians" whom Paul wrote to means the peoples called the 'Gauls', a Celtic people? and that included the areas of old Greece, Rome, and western nations like old France?

18 And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely.

The phrase in yellow represents when God would give the scattered ten tribes in their new lands The Gospel of Jesus Christ, making a new covenant with them. The phrase further below in red represents God's final prophecy for them in His future Kingdom.

19 And I will betroth thee unto Me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto Me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies.
20 I will even betroth thee unto Me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the
LORD.

That began with His sending The Gospel to the ten lost tribes in the "wilderness" of new lands where they would migrate to. Believers of the ten tribes, with the believing Gentiles they were scattered among, together became Christ's Church in those new lands, the Western Christian Nations of history.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth;
22 And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel.
23 And I will sow her unto Me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not My people, 'Thou art My people; and they shall say, Thou art my God.'"
KJV

That has already begun, when the Western Christian Nations with whole nations in Europe accepting The Gospel of Jesus Christ. It will be completed when Christ returns in the near future, and His literal Kingdom to come is established on earth and both the ten tribe "house of Israel" and the 3-tribe "house of Judah", put back together and gathered back to the holy land per Ezekiel 37.