Many people entertain the idea that ten tribes of Israel migrated to the Americas and like to believe that the Indian tribes are descendants of these Israelites. We've heard of artifacts inscribed with Hebrew letters found in different places and maybe some are from days gone by but lets not forget Joseph Smith (a Freemason) and his man-made religion, Mormonism, believed that they were descendants of Lehi an Israelite and were to build the New Jerusalem here on earth. Today in Salt Lake City many members of the Latter Day Saints call themselves 'Jews'. Is it not possible that some of these artifacts were made by early Mormons?
Everybody wants to be chosen
but no one really wants to discover the truth.
Joseph Smith claims that when was 14 he experienced a vision in which God the Father instructed him that all churches were wrong. Three years later, an angel named Moroni visited Smith several times. This would lead to Smith recovering engraved golden plates in the woods near his home, written in a language he called “Reformed Egyptian”. He allegedly translated these golden plates into English which is now known as the Book of Mormon. This wasn’t printed until 1830. Smith claims that in 1829, John the Baptist gave to him the Aaronic Priesthood, establishing Joseph Smith as the leader of the new movement.
I have read that Mormons have been looking for archaeological evidence to support their Book of Mormon for years. Occasionally they will promote some type of archaeological artifact that is similar to something built or written by Hebrew people to try to validate their claim that the Book of Mormon people were indeed from the land of Israel.
Several archaeological digs made in the area surrounding the Hill Cumorah in upstate New York (Joseph Smith's home area) have yet to yielded even one artifact to back up the Book of Mormon claims concerning the numerous people and wars that allegedly transpired in that area. One can try to refute every “so called” evidence that Mormons present to try to substantiate the Book of Mormon, but both internal and external evidence shows that the book is an 18th century invention. Some of the Archaeological Evidence that goes against the Book of Mormon claims include:
DNA EVIDENCE: The Book of Mormon claims that Jewish ancestry formed the majority of pre-Columbian inhabitants of America. Yet, 99.4% of the DNA research done on thousands of Native American Indians from over 150 tribes shows a direct link to Asia and 0.6% points to Europe or Africa, not Israel. Thus, there is NO evidence whatsoever to suggest a Jewish or Middle-Eastern migration to America. To excuse away the DNA evidence against this Book of Mormon claim, Mormon apologists have resorted to the idea that the Jewish Book of Mormon immigrants to America (the Nephites and the Lamanites) comprised only a relative small group of ancient inhabitants of America. Rather than finding supportive evidence for these Book of Mormon historical claims and artifacts, Mormon scholars have been forced to retreat from traditional interpretations of the words and phrases in the Book of Mormon and have developed unconventional explanations to reconcile these conflicted Book of Mormon texts with ancient Native American artifacts.
Passages from the Book of Mormon assert that no other people existed in America prior to Mormon migrations. These passages claim that these Book of Mormon Jewish pilgrims grew “exceedingly numerous” to “cover the face” of the “whole” land.
I didn't mean to go off on a Mormon tangent, although I did need to present my grounds for supposing some "ancient" artifacts found in the US that have Hebrew writings on them most likely were crafted by Mormons and not 'first peoples'. Also we know that Spain expelled Jews from their country in 1492, some of which signed on with Colombus.
Quote: “After the Spanish monarchs had expelled all the Jews from all their kingdoms and lands,” Columbus recorded,” they commissioned me to undertake the voyage to India with a equipped fleet.” The scheduled date of sailing, August 2, was also the deadline for Jewish departure. Scores of vessels, with thousands of Jews packed into their holds, congested Palos de la Frontera, the maritime inlet of the Gulf of Cadiz. Here, too, Columbus gathered his fleet of three little caravels. (1492)
Quote: When Hernan Cortés first conquered Mexico for Spain in
1521, he did so with a number of secret Jews amongst his men. Judaism was banned at the time in Spain, and soon many secret Spanish Jews departed for “Nueve Espana” in the New World to try and live a more Jewish life. In fact, Spain’s first Viceroy in Mexico, Antonio de Mendoza, possessed a Jewish surname, and historians suggest he was possibly one of the secret Jews who moved to the new territory.
Quote: Ashkenazi Jews fleeing pogroms in Russia and Eastern Europe came in the 1880s, establishing Mexico’s first synagogue in Mexico City, in
1885. Sephardi Jews soon followed, fleeing persecution in the crumbling Ottoman Empire.
It appears to be only those who claim to be Jewish or practice the religion of Judaism who have been settling in South and Central America - no mention of the 11 other tribes. If these Jews secretly practiced their religion until they could openly be themselves again, wouldn't it make sense that the 'lost tribes' would have held onto their faith as well, keeping their identity?
At what point in time did these ten tribes of Israel (aka the Northern Kingdom) become lost? We read in Scriptures they shall be scattered and they were scattered, and not really lost but perhaps assimilated into the surroundings to which they were scattered. Who came up with the idea, that they were lost? It is a heavy theme among many who 'stand with Israel' these days. Supposed discoveries of artifacts and Hebrew writing seen in caves and found on boulders in America only feed the story.
In 2 Kings 17 we read about Hoshea becoming king over Israel in Samaria. He held that position for nine years. He became a vassal to the king of Assyria who eventually marched against the whole land, captured Samaria and deported the Israelites from Samaria to Assyria, settling them in Halah, at the River Habor, at the River Gozan and in the towns of Media. This happened because the Israelites sinned against Yahweh. Nor did Judah keep the commandments of Yahweh and they followed the customs that Israel practiced. Yahweh let them fall into the hands of plunderers and finally cast them from His presence. (When you have time, continuing reading on from verse 21)
King Shalmaneser invaded what was left of Israel. He sacked and destroyed the city of Shechem and the old Israelite capital of Tirzah. He also hit Hazor, tearing down the walls of the city before he besieged the capital of Israel, Samaria, for three years. Shalmaneser is recorded to have taken Samaria “On the 27th of Tebet Shalmaneser ascended the throne in Assyria and Babylonia. He shattered Samaria .”
Quote: The mystery of the lost ten tribes of Israel endures in legend today, but evidence does show that those who had a military occupation and served the Assyrian army as auxiliary units seemed to have retained their identity. It appears that the so-called “Lost Ten Tribes of Israel” were never lost. Instead, they served, and over a generation or two, integrated within the local Assyrian populations, eventually losing their identity.
From the Encyclopedia Britannica:
In 930 BC the 10 tribes formed the independent Kingdom of Israel in the north and the two other tribes, Judah and Benjamin, set up the Kingdom of Judah in the south. Following the conquest of the northern kingdom by the Assyrians in 721 BC,
the 10 tribes were gradually assimilated by other peoples and thus disappeared from history.
James 1 ~ James, a servant of Elohim,
and of our Master Y'shua the Anointed One;
to the twelve tribes dispersed among the peoples; greetings.
I conclude that there is no such thing as the lost tribes of Israel. They did not board ships and sail to the future new world and become various Indian tribes. I realize there is 'scientific research' galore speculating on the first people to migrate via a land bridge to Alaska and beyond; and there are even scientist who think the first people came by way of the Pacific coast. None of that matters; what our Creator says is what we should be paying attention to.
What we read in Scriptures :
John 10:11 (Y'shua says) ~ I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the flock. But a hireling who is not the shepherd nor are the sheep his, when he sees a wolf coming he leaves the sheep and flees. And the wolf comes and plunders and scatters the flock.
John 10:14 ~ I am the Good Shepherd and I know those who are mine. And those who are mine know me.
John 10:16 ~ And I also have other sheep, those who were not from this sheepfold. And also them, it is necessary for me to bring them and they will hear my voice and all the flocks will become one. And there will be One Shepherd.
Galatians 3:28 ~ For there is neither Jew nor Aramean, nor slave or free, nor male nor female, but you are all one in Y'shua the Anointed One = and if we are one with Messiah then we are those spiritual seeds of Abraham and inheritors of the promise.
Colossians 3:8 suggests there will be no difference among us, who and where we come from, when that day comes if we are 'one' in Messiah. We are told to put away from us wrath, anger, malice, reviling, filthy talking and telling lies; to put off these old ways and be renewed in knowledge, after the likeness of our Creator in whom there is neither Jew nor Aramean, Greek nor barbarian, slave nor free, but the Messiah is all and in all.
