Gathering of Israel
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The Gathering of Israel יִשְׂרָאֵל, also known as the Ingathering of the Exiles, as foretold by numerous Old Testament prophets, refers to the recovery or the return of Israel's Lost Tribes to the lands of their inheritance.
[edit] Abrahamic Covenant
The Lord made a covenant with Abraham אַבְרָהָם as follows:
- Abraham would have a great posterity.
- He would have many descendents (Genesis 15:5 and 17:2).
- Abraham would be a father of many nations (Genesis 17:4).
- Kings would come from Abraham's seed or posterity (Genesis 17:6). King David דָּוִו and, according to the New Testament, Jesus Christ himself were descendents of Abraham.
- Abraham and his posterity received the land of Canaan (Genesis 17:8).
- The Lord promised Abraham that through his seed all the families of the Earth would be blessed. (Genesis 22:17-18 & Acts 3:25).
In addition, Abraham paid a tithe to Melchizedek who was the King of Salem (Genesis 14:18-20). Melchizedek blessed Abraham and conferred the priesthood upon him (Hebrews 7:1-4). Also refer to (Doctrine & Covenants 84:6-18). Note that Jesus Christ, who lived two thousand years after Abraham, was called by God to be a high priest after the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 5:10).
[edit] Abraham's Posterity
Abraham gave the blessings of the birthright and the priesthood to his son Isaac יִצְחָק. The covenant that God made with Abraham continued through Isaac (Genesis 17:15-19 & 21). Isaac had two sons, Esau and Jacob יַעֲקֹב. These sons were twins, but Esau was born first. So Esau should have received the birthright. But Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of pottage (Genesis 25:29-24). Isaac instead gave the blessings of the birthright, the priesthood, and the covenant of Abraham to Jacob (Genesis 27 & Genesis 28:3-4).
Jacob had twelve sons: (Genesis Chapters 29 through 35).
God changed Jacob's name to Israel (Genesis 32:28). Jacob's sons thus became the heads of the Twelve tribes of Israel. Furthermore, Joseph had two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. Jacob adopted these sons, so Ephraim and Manasseh also became heads of tribes. (Genesis 48:1-5). The inclusion of Ephraim and Manasseh brought the total number of tribes to thirteen, but the Levites were dispersed among the other tribes to perform priestly duties.
[edit] The Blessing of Jacob
Jacob, or Israel, gave each of these sons a special blessing.
The birthright should have gone to Reuben because he was the oldest son. Reuben did not receive the birthright, however, because he had sinned (Genesis 35:22). Jacob instead gave the birthright to Joseph (1 Chronicles 5:1-2). Nevertheless, each son received the blessings of the covenant of Abraham.
[edit] Egyptian Captivity and the Exodus
Jacob and his sons moved from Canaan to Egypt because there was a famine (Genesis 46). The descendents of Jacob, or children of Israel, became slaves in Egypt (Exodus 1). Moses was from the tribe of Levi (Exodus 2:1-10). Moses received the priesthood authority from his father-in-law Jethro (Doctrine & Covenants 84:6-18). Jethro was the priest of Midian (Exodus 3:1). Jethro is also referred to as Reuel. Midian was also the name of one of Abraham's sons. Jethro was a descendant of Abraham through Midian. Midian's mother was Keturah, who became Abraham's wife after Sarah died (Genesis 25:1-1).
God commanded Moses to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses was not allowed to cross into the Promised Land, however, because he disobeyed the Lord. The Lord had commanded Moses to speak unto a rock at Meribah before the children of Israel so that the rock would bring forth water. Instead, Moses became angry at the people, and he smote the rock twice with his rod. The rock nevertheless sent forth water, but Moses had shown unbelief and had failed to sanctify the Lord before the people (Numbers 20:8-12).
Some Christian authors claim that the rock symbolized Jesus Christ who is the "Rock of our Salvation" (Psalms 89:26 and 1 Corinthians 10:4). This belief is not held by the people of the Torah, the Jews.
Moses sent twelve spies to observe the land of Canaan. Two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, brought a positive report; but 10 of the spies brought an "evil report" about the land that caused the Children of Israel to cry, panic and despair of ever entering the Promised land. For this, they were punished by God that they would not enter, and that for all generations the day would become one of crying and misfortune for the descendants of the Children of Israel, the Jewish people. (See Numbers ch 13–14). The entry into the Land of Israel was delayed for 40 years until the old generation died out.
Moses gave blessings to each of the tribes of Israel, Deuteronomy 33.
[edit] The Children of Israel enter Cannan
After many years, Joshua led the children of Israel into Canaan, which is the land of Israel. Each tribe received a portion of land. Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim (Numbers 13:8 & 16).
[edit] The Kingdom of Israel
A series of judges ruled over Israel for a period of about four hundred and fifty years, after the children of Israel arrived in the land. (Acts 13:20).
Saul, who was from the tribe of Benjamin, became the first king.
David, who was from the tribe of Judah, became the next King of Israel, followed by Solomon, and then by Rehoboam. After the death of King Solomon, the nation of Israel divided in to the northern and southern kingdoms. Rehoboam raised taxes, which caused the northern tribes to rebel against him.
Ephraim was the head tribe of the northern kingdom, which consisted of ten tribes. The northern kingdom's capital city was Samaria. Judah was the main tribe of the southern kingdom. The tribe of Benjamin also settled in the southern kingdom
[edit] Idolatry
The people of Israel were wicked. They worshipped the idols Baal and Ashtaroth (Judges 2:13, Hosea 2:8). They even sacrificed their children as burnt offerings to Baal (Jeremiah 19:4-5).
Both the northern tribes of Israel and the southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin had to face the consequences of their sins. The sins included pride, idolatry, and whoredoms. The Lord withdrew himself from them (Hosea 5:5-7).
[edit] The Scattering of the Northern Tribes
The nation of Assyria began carrying away the northern tribes of Israel in 722 to 721 B.C. (2 Kings 17).
[edit] Babylonian Captivity
King Nebuchadrezzar II invaded Judea, captured Jerusalem, and destroyed its temple. He carried the tribe of Judah away to Babylon sometime between 588 and 586 B.C. (2 Kings 24 ). The Jews returned to Jerusalem after a 70 year captivity.
[edit] Roman Legions
The Jews remained in Jerusalem until they were driven out of the city by the Roman legions from 68 to 73 A.D. Many of the Jews were killed. The survivors were sent to work as slaves throughout the Roman Empire.
Christianity holds that Jesus Christ had foretold these events (Luke 19:43-44 & 21:24).
The Jews attempted to regain control of Jerusalem several times over the next several hundred years. See: Great Revolt, Kitos War, Bar Kokhba's Revolt, War against Gallus, Revolt against Heraclius.
[edit] Additional Scriptures
The following are additional references regarding the gathering (King James Version of the Bible):
- Deuteronomy 30:3 "That then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee."
- Psalms 107:3 "And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south."
- Isaiah 54:7 "For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee."
- Ezekiel 28:25 "Thus saith the Lord God; When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the people among whom they are scattered, ..."
In addition, there are also many New Testament references including John 11:52, "And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad."
[edit] Aliyah
Aliyah, (pl. aliyot) "ascension" or "going up" is the arrival of Jews as individuals or groups, from exile or Diaspora to live in Eretz Yisrael - the Land of Israel. Those who "go up" for this purpose are known as olim - a term used in the Bible when the Children of Israel went up from Egypt (Genesis 50:14 and Numbers 32:11) and - at a later period - for the exiles who returned from captivity in Babylon (Ezra 2:1,59 and Nehemiah 5-6). The call of Cyrus, King of Persia, in 538 B.C.E., - "Whosoever there is among you of all His people, his God be with him, - let him go up." (Ezra 1:3, II Chronicles 36:23) - has been used as a watchword for aliyah.
[edit] First Chassidic Aliyah
Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk, Rabbi Avraham of Kalisk and Rabbi Yisrael of Polotsk were leaders of Chassidism in Russia. The three men rallied 300 of their students to make the perilous journey to the Land of Israel in 1777.
They established a Jewish community in Tzfat, but were harassed and attacked by the Ottoman Turks and Arabs, and were forced to resettle in Tiberias (T'veria).
[edit] Zionism
The year 1881 was a milestone in the Zionist movement, as ideas supporting Jewish statehood became more widespread. The Chovevei Tzion (Lovers of Zion) movement, stressing a return to Zion, became increasingly popular. Jewish refugees fled persecution in Russia and immigrated to the Holy Land from 1882 to 1903. Theodore Herzl (1860-1904) published his book Der Judenstaat (German, The Jewish State) in 1896.
Herzl was motivated by the Dreyfus Affair, a notorious anti-Semitic incident in France in which a French Jewish army captain was falsely convicted of spying for Germany.
Herzl convened the First Zionist Congress and proclaimed the right of the Jewish people to national rebirth in its own country. This Congress was held in Basel, Switzerland in 1897.
[edit] Balfour Declaration
British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour (1848-1930) wrote the following letter in 1917. Note that Balfour had previously served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. Baron Rothschild (1868-1937) was a British banker and zoologist from the international Rothschild financial dynasty.
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- Foreign Office
November 2nd, 1917.
Dear Lord Rothschild, I have much pleasure in conveying to you, on behalf of His Majesty's Government, the following declaration of sympathy with Jewish Zionist aspirations which has been submitted to, and approved by, the Cabinet: "His Majesty's Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country". I should be grateful if you would bring this declaration to the knowledge of the Zionist Federation. Yours sincerely Arthur James Balfour
[edit] Rebirth of the Modern State of Israel
The Provisional Government of Israel proclaimed a new State of Israel at midnight on May 14, 1948. On that same date, the United States, in the person of President Harry S. Truman (1884-1972), recognized the provisional Jewish government as the de facto authority of the Jewish state. Haim Weizmann (1874-1952) served as the first president of Israel. David Ben-Gurion (1886-1973) served as the prime minister.
[edit] Six-Day War, 1967
Israel fought against the armies of Egypt, Jordan and Syria. Algeria, Iraq, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia also contributed troops and arms to fight against Israel. Egypt's president Gamal Abdel Nasser led the Pan-Arab army.
The Jews reunited or compacted Jerusalem on June 7, 1967, by capturing East Jerusalem. Rabbi Shlomo Goren (1917-1994) sounded a shofar at the Western Wall to commemorate the reunification of Jerusalem.
[edit] The Jewish Community of Ethiopia
Ethiopian Jews refer to themselves as Beta Israel, the house of Israel. For centuries, they lived in the northern province of Gondar. Their neighbors, however, called them Falashas—the alien ones, the invaders. There are four theories regarding the origin of the Ethiopian Jews:
- 1) The Beta Israel may be the lost Israelite tribe of Dan.
- 2) They may be the descendants of Menelik I, son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
- 3) They may be the descendants of Ethiopian Christians and pagans who converted to Judaism centuries ago.
- 4) They may be the descendants of Jews who fled Israel for Egypt after the destruction of the First Temple in 586 BCE and eventually settled in Ethiopia.
Operation Moses began on November 19, 1984 and ended six weeks later on January 5, 1985. As a result, 8000 Ethiopian Jews arrived in Israel via Sudan. Operation Joshua was conducted in 1985, bringing 800 more Ethiopian Jews to Israel.
More Ethiopian Jews fled to Israel in Operation Solomon in 1990-91. A total of 14,324 Ethiopian Jews were rescued and resettled in Israel, a modern exodus.
The Likud government of Yitzhak Shamir authorized a special permit for the Israeli airline, El Al, to fly on the Jewish Sabbath. On Friday, May 24, and continuing non-stop for 36 hours, a total of 34 El Al jumbo jets and Hercules C-130s—with their seats removed to accommodate the maximum number of Ethiopians—began a new chapter in the struggle for the freedom of Ethiopian Jewry.
The Ethiopian Jews boarded the aircraft at Addis Ababa International Airport The operation set a world record for single-flight passenger loads on May 24, 1991 when an El Al 747 carried 1,087 passengers to Israel.
An estimated 127,000 Ethiopian Jews now live in Israel.
[edit] The Lemba People
The Lemba are a black, southern African tribe of Jewish ancestry. There are several oral traditions regarding their origin. According to one version, a group of Jews left Jerusalem about 2500 years ago. They settled in Yemen and built a city called Sena or Senna. The group then traveled to Africa and split into two sections. One group settled in Ethiopia. The other group went further south along the East Coast of Africa.
The second group settled in what today is known as Tanzania and Kenya, where they built a second city which was also called Senna. Here they prospered and increased in numbers. Another version states that the Lemba are the descendants of attendants of the Israelite King Solomon who traveled to Ophir (Zimbabwe) in search of gold. Some of the Lemba moved to southern Africa. Today they live in Malawi, Zimbabwe and the South African region of Venda, where their total population is 70,000. They speak a Bantu language. The Lemba have religious beliefs and practices similar to those in Judaism.
- 1. They are monotheists and call their creator God, “Nwali.”
- 2. They consider one day per week holy and praise “Nwali” on that day. This resembles the Jewish Sabbath.
- 3. They teach their children to honour their parents.
- 4. They refrain from eating Pork or other foods forbidden by the Old Testament. Their form of ritual slaughter resembles Jewish Shechita.
- 5. They practice male circumcision.
- 6. They have strict rules against marrying outside their tribe.
Furthermore, the Lemba males possess the Priestly Cohanim gene in their Y chromosome (from work done by Jenkins and Spurgle -Wits University)
[edit] B'nei Menashe
The Bnei Menashe live in North East India, in the land that lies between Myanmar (formerly Burma) and Bangladesh. The Bnei Menashe claim they are the descendants of the Tribe of Menashe, or Manasseh, according to their oral traditions but no DNA other corroborative evidence exists to support any such a claim which is based on a vision in 1951, of a Pentecostalist called Challianthanga or Mela Chala (the name varies) from Buallawn village dreamt that God instructed him to direct his people to return to their pre-Christian religion, which he determined to be Judaism, and to return to their original homeland, Israel.[1]
In recent years, over 800 members of the Bnei Menashe community have made Aliyah, immigration to Israel. In addition to the Bnei Menashe, there are at least four other native Jewish or Israelite communities in India:
- The Cochin Jews arrived in India 2,500 years ago and settled down in Cochin, Kerala as traders alongside the Kna Jews.
- The Baghdadi Jews arrived in the city of Mumbai from Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Arab countries about 250 years ago.
- The Bene Israel arrived in the state of Maharashtra 2,100 years ago. Most Bene Israel have now emigrated to Israel.
- The Bene Ephraim (also called Telugu Jews) are a small group who speak Telugu; their observance of Judaism dates back to 1981.
[edit] Additional Jewish Communities in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan
Pashtun tribes mainly live in the highlands of Afghanistan and Pakistan, and they are divided into 60 tribes and 400 clans.
The Pashtuns observe Saturday as a day of rest. They also place pebbles on graves. They have a symbol called a "nars" which resembles a five-branch menorah, which they use for celebrations such as births or weddings.
The Afridi Pashtun tribe is identified with Ephraim. The Afridi tribe is one of the largest Pashtun tribes, numbering about three million. For hundreds of years, Afridis have called themselves Bani Israel (Pushto for the Hebrew B'nei Yisrael, meaning "Children of Israel") and believe that they originate from the tribe of Ephraim.
According to some Jewish and European explorers from the Middle Ages to the present day the: Afridi tribe originates from Ephraim, the Yusufzai tribe from Joseph, the Rabbani tribe from Reuben, the Levani tribe from Levi, the Ashuri tribe from Asher, etc.
Zahir Shah, the last king of Afghanistan, claimed that his royal family is descended from the Tribe of Benjamin.
[edit] China
The claim that the Chiang Tribe in China may be the remnant of an Israelite tribe was first put forth by the Scottish missionary Rev. Thomas Torrance in China in the 1920s.[2] The Chiang live in a mountainous area of northwest China, west of the Min River, near the border of Tibet, in Szechuan. Their population is about 250 thousand people. They also have a tradition that their ancestors migrated from the West after a journey of three years and three months. They believe in one God whom they call Abachi meaning the father of heaven, or Mabichu, the spirit of heaven, or also Tian, heaven. Rev. Thomas Torrance was of the opinion that the Chiang performed rituals similar to those performed in ancient Israel.
Those that support the Lost Tribe claim of the Chiang Tribe cite the prophet Isaiah who they claim may have had a vision of these people when he wrote concerning the gathering of Israel:
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- Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim (Isaiah 49:12). This country is unknown, though it is apparent from Isaiah that it was considered one of the most distant lands imaginable.[3]
[edit] References
- This article incorporates text from [4] placed in the public domain
