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1. Israel Colonial Nation until Exile Part II

3. House of Israel The divorce of the 10 tribes from the land (Hosea 1: 2-10 and 2 Kings 17:3-6,18) would be completed at the hands of the Assyrians. It was never God�s intention to remove his people from the land, but he knew the Northern Kingdom would become corrupt and prostitute herself to other nations � Ephraim would be laid waste! (Hosea 5) She would be punished! From Samaria, the House of Joseph had built a great nation. It had been 200 years in building this empire, but their fall would happen in less than 20 years. The Bull-Calf (Aegel or Aengel)of Samaria would be broken into pieces. (Bull-Calf was the symbol and name of Ephraim - Deuteronomy 33:17, Hosea 8:6) Their return to glory, to nationhood would have to take place outside of the Promise Land.

4. Samaria

5. House of Israel Manasseh and Ephraim would lose their spiritual birthright in two phases � As you know the rights of the firstborn belonged to Joseph (1 Chronicles 5:2). Around 980 BC the Philistine city states attacked the Armies of Saul and took the Ark of the Covenant from Shiloh. Once the Ark was recovered, it never returned to Ephraimite country. From then on Judah became the custodian of the Ark. In Psalms 78: 9- 70 David tells us that Joseph rejected the covenant and as a result they lost the most important portion of their birthright � The presence of God Tabernacled with them. The last spiritual portion of their birthright was also tied to the Mosaic covenant and that was an exile from the land and the loss of their identity. (Deuteronomy 28: 25, 41, 52, and 64). At the hands of Assyria, their deportation lasted between 737 BC and 720 BC when finally their capital of Samaria was stormed and destroyed. After exile they would lose their identity and be confused with the sons of Gomer (Hosea 1).

6. House of Israel The House of Israel consisted of Manasseh, Ephraim, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Reuben, Isaachar, Simeon, Zebulon and elements of Benjamin. House of Judah, included the tribe of Judah, much of Levi and Benjamin. These three tribes formed the Southern Jewish kingdom. At the hands of Jeroboam from Ephraim, the Kingdoms were split into two. Jeroboams desire was for the tribes under his leadership to make a clean break from Judah, (2 Chronicles 10:16, 2 Chronicles 11:1,13,14,). There had always been a natural division between Judah and Joseph. This division began in their early days in Egypt. During the times of the Judges it became more pronounced. It took the tribe of Benjamin to bridge these differences. (King Saul of Benjamin was selected early on as King to cement the groups (brothers) together) Both Houses, Judah and Israel had specific purposes in God�s overall plan. The House of Israel could not fulfill their role unless they were outside of the promise land � with a lost or hidden identity. They would help the gentile nations in many aspects: bringing social justice through rule and influence, and help them discover who their true Creator was.

7. House of Israel In the years just before the fall of Samaria, the tribe of Simeon and elements of the clan of Bela from Benjamin occupied areas east of the Jordan River(1 Chronicles 4: 42 and 43), and drove the remaining Amalekites completely out of the eastern Jordan. Maps by Ptolemy show these clans extending to the Babylonian border along the Euphrates. Simeon and portions of Benjamin now fell under the sphere of influence of Ephraim. The Northern Kingdom or the House of Israel built an enormous empire. Jeroboam the II (786 �746 BC), extended the nations borders to what is now modern day Israel, Jordan, most of Lebanon, and half of Syria. They had colonies along the coast in Spain, northern Africa in Carthage, colonies in Greece such as Argos, and Corinth, operational control over most of Cilicia in modern day Turkey and other minor colonies worldwide. The secular historians don�t associate Israel with these areas because they never understood how the nation would break down into clan names when they were colonizing. It is through these clans mentioned in the book of Chronicles that we are able to recognize the migrating Israelites to their modern day nations.

8. House of Israel Was it God�s intention to separate the nation? (2 Chronicles 11:4) I believe the answer is Yes. God knew that all of Israel would backslide, (Deut. 28:36) and they would eventually be exiled. However God�s design was to move his people to the corners of the planet. So from 1250 BC � 740 BC as Israel colonized, God�s hand was allowing and guiding his people to their eventual homelands. Where as the House of Israel would establish nations in these desolate areas, the House of Judah and the Davidic dynasty would be placed in leadership positions of these nations and many other gentile nations as well. God would fulfill his purpose for his people one way or another.

9. The Northern Kingdom As we have mentioned earlier, an alliance between Egypt and Israel was cemented shortly after Jeroboam established the northern kingdom and refused to aid Judah in their war with Egypt. However the alliance with Sidon and Tyre was done through intermarriage. It is my belief that the descendents of Eber established Sidon, and intermarried with a remnant of the Canaanite population (Numbers 24:24). During the period of the Judges, the tribe of Isaachar gained control over this city and became the ruling class of Sidon. When the Danites and other Israelites settled in and around Sidon and Tyre, many of them would be marrying Israelites that for generations had lost their identity. The marriage of Ahab to the Phoenician princess Jezebel, was a natural way to cement an alliance with people that had for hundreds of years been intermarrying with Israel. Unfortunately, this marriage influenced many in the northern kingdom to completely abandon the ways of God.

10. The Northern Kingdom When an altar to Baal was built in the capital city of Samaria, as well as other parts of the country, they began adopting practices that were completely foreign as well as vile in the eyes of the Lord. As a by- product of their sin, Many Israelites migrated south into Judah. Many of these Israelites resettled into the fortified cities north of Jerusalem. Others began to move west into into the Mediterranean. To prove how vastly bankrupt the northern kingdom was, morally as well as emotionally, Ahab could barely muster 7,000 soldiers for war, while his counterpart Jehoshaphat of Judah had an army of over 1 million. What I find interesting is that during this period of King Ahab as King of Israel, they and Judah had very cordial relations. It is quite possible that Ahab realized that a sizable portion of his population had migrated south and were serving in the Judean Army.

11. The Northern Kingdom This loss of population did not stop the pioneering and colonizing spirit of Israel. According to Dr. Barry Fell in his book America B.C., a large stele was found in Iowa depicting a cultic religious ceremony. On the Stele there was a tri-lingual inscription written in Egyptian, Libyan and Punic-Iberian. Libyans were known to captain many of the Egyptian ships, for they had a great knowledge of the oceans, while the Punic-Iberian inscription was in essence the language of the northern kingdom and the Phoenician city-states. The northern kingdom had long abandoned the original Hebrew language spoken in Judea and adopted a Semitic dialect used by Sidon. This Stele was dated around 800 � 700 BC, the era of King Ahab. Dr. Fell stated that the Stele depicted a religious ceremony honoring the Egyptian deities of Osiris and Ra, which involved human sacrifice.

12. The Northern Kingdom Another Stele was found in Oklahoma dated around the same time written in Iberian-Punic which mentioned the god Baal and the Egyptian god Ra. These finds continue to confirm the close relationship between the three nations. In New England further examples of Israelite/Phoenician �mother-goddess� worship was found with many phallic symbols, relics and other inscriptions. You can plainly see that Israel had drifted far away from true worship and had adopted a hybrid religion which included the bull-calf worship of Egypt and the baal/sun worship of Phoenicia. Economically, Politically and linguistically the 10 tribes were more like their northern neighbor than their brothers in Judah. This important fact is necessary when one attempts to locate the descendents of these 10 tribes today.

13. The Great Famine God had enough of the pagan ways of Israel. Many of its citizens had replanted themselves in Judah. Some had migrated to the Iberian Peninsula (Tharshish), while many languished under a severe famine that struck the Northern Kingdom. As many know the Jezreel Valley was an important part in the culture of Israel. They were a food exporter to many nations. In Ezekiel 27 it outlines this amazing economic powerhouse that was based out of Sidon and Tyre. In verse 17, Israel was the prime exporter to the city-states. They depended on the northern kingdom for their food. In 1 Kings 17: 8-12 the drought had become so severe that it had reached every level of both Israel and Phoenicia. These verses describe how a widow had reached a point where she was going to eat her last meal and then die of starvation. The poor had very little recourse while the rich would migrate elsewhere. Ahab realized the effects of this drought would eventually wipe his kingdom completely away. Out of desperation he sought out Elijah to bring an end to the famine.

15. The Great Famine In 1 Kings 18:10 states: �10 As surely as the LORD your God lives, there is not a nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to look for you. And whenever a nation or kingdom claimed you were not there, he made them swear they could not find you. Most readers gloss over this thinking in terms of only Mesopotamia, however this writer believes just what it says, Ahab had his diplomats searching every corner of the planet for the one man who could lift this horrible burden that had been brought on him and his people. I believe Ahab had his messengers sent to Africa, his European colonies, and in North America. The irony of it all, is Elijah was literally right under his nose in Sidon. The most important aspect of this drought would actually benefit many future Israelites. During the ninth century, the Israelites with their Phoenician counterparts established their largest colony ever, Carthage.

16. The Great Famine The city was called Kirjath-Hadeschath, which means new city in Hebrew. Even though many have given complete credit to Tyre as the founding of Carthage the truth can be found squarely on King Ahab and the Northern Kingdom. It has been documented that the Carthaginians had Hebrew names, Hebrew customs and their political system was based a system of Judges. In Steve Collins book the �Lost Ten Tribes of Israel ..Found�, he documents extensively the Hebrew character of Carthage. The Ahab period ended violently for Him, Jezebel, and his 70 sons. The Omri Dynasty came to an end. However the nations continued to refer to the Northern Kingdom as the House of (Kh)Omri. In almost every inscription by the Assyrians of the Northern Kingdom, they call Israel the House of Khomri. This name would stick with a large portion of the migrating Israelites after they were exiled.

17. The Assyrian Threat As Kings came and went, the Northern Kingdom continued in their idolatrous ways. Many kings from several different dynasties came and would wage border wars with the Aramaens and at times with Judah. This only served to weaken the nation. At times they would establish treaties of convenience with the Aramaen city-states and other times would use war as the solution. The problem as stated before was that Israel had no defensible borders in the Gilead area. So each king would attempt to push the border out to the Euphrates River in the East or the Orontes in the North. This is where their conflict with Aram came, because they needed these same rivers to protect them against a growing Assyrian nation. The two nations of Judah and Israel weren�t blind to their external threats, they just chose to rely on treaties or alliances with godless nations to give them protection. This is why God continue to refer to them as a harlot or prostitute, because they refused to seek out the Lord for their protection.

18. The Assyrian Threat The Assyrian people throughout their history were a warlike nation. God calls them his war-club. (Is. 10:5) In 854 BC, the Assyrians crossed over the Euphrates River and set its sites on establishing a naval base and moved its Army to Karkar. In Wikipedia it states that, that Shalmaneser III encountered an allied army of 12 kings or 12 nations. The Assyrians later erected a monument describing this battle. Among the kings mentioned were Hadadezer of Aram and Ahab of Israel. Ironically the Bible is completely silent about this event. Ahab put together a force of 2000 chariots and 10,000 men with the other kings to stop the coming storm. Clearly in the minds of the Aramaens, Israel and the other kings, Assyria was becoming very dangerous. According to the Assyrian inscription, the allied force took a severe beating. No one knows for sure, but its clear that all of them were able to put aside their differences in order to fight the growing Assyrian threat.

19. The Assyrian Threat As mentioned earlier, the tribe of Dan was in the path of the Assyrian army. Not only did Assyria want to control their mining operations in Cilicia, they wanted to control their commercial shipping. Much of the tribe was beginning their migration north. Dan�s colony on the island of Cyprus was a primary target for the Assyrians. If you establish your navy here, you can easily control most of trade traveling from Spain to the east. The other key asset of Dan was the area of Samal and Cilicia. A great amount of mining activity was going on around the cities of Adana and Tarsus. Assyria needed this to build their war machine. In an Aramaen or Syrian inscription at Samal, the King Kilamuwa pays the Assyrians to attack their neighbors the �Danunites of Cilicia. This royal inscription was dated around 800 BC. Other nations were feeling the Assyrian threat, and jealous of Israel�s power. They would do anything to have their hands on these territories or at least share in the wealth gained from these activities.

20. The Assyrian Threat Since the days of Ahab, Israel had formed three major colonies, Tharshish or the Iberians peninsula, Carthage, the New City, and now Cilicia with the tribe of Dan. History shows us time and time again, that most nations fall apart from within before they are destroyed from without. What is also interesting, is most great empires are destroyed usually right after a period of great affluence or sometimes called the �golden age� - Israel would be no different. King Jeroboam II took over as king in 786 BC. The Bible mentions very little about him, but he was the greatest king of the Northern Kingdom. His rule lasted between 786 BC � 746 BC, roughly a 40-year period. In 1910 G. A. Reisner discovered over 63 inscribed potshards, which contained material about his reign as well as religious, administrative and important aspects of the language and script of the Northern Kingdom. The population of Israel had rebounded dramatically and many of the exiles that migrated to Judah returned to their previous ancestral homes. It is not known for sure how many people were living in the northern Kingdom, but it is safe to say that it was well over a million, perhaps as high as 6 million.

21. The Assyrian Threat Jeroboam II had restored the borders of Israel and stretched them to their greatest extent. We know for sure his southern border was the Red Sea port of Elath, which, was being maintained by the tribe of Simeon. His northern border was Hamath, and as we stated previously, Gilead and the tribes of Reuben and Gad stretched their borders to the Euphrates. There was great affluence in his kingdom, gold, silver, and ivory became their new gods.. As you saw with Ahab, the Israelite alliance had grown from not only Egypt, Tyre and Sidon, to now many nations. Aram had placed their markets in Samaria, and Israel had done the same in Damascus. Both were major players in the game of economics. (Free Trade Alliances) To the Israelite citizen, this is what they dreamed about. This was their God given birthright. However something was a foul.

22. The Prophets and the Assyrian threat The Prophets Hosea, Joel and Amos were contemporaries during the final days of the Northern Kingdom. Amos � (Chap 4: 1-13) These are the reasons for their downfall according to Amos. They would oppress or cheat the poor. Their worship was tainted with idolatry. They would just go through the motions on the Sabbath. They would brag about their offerings and their religiosity. Amos continues saying that God held back rain and took away their farming industry. He would send plagues, viruses and other curses on them and they still wouldn�t change. He would send armies and capture their people, putting them into slavery. He brought to a standstill their horse trading industry and still they wouldn�t change. He destroyed some households where not one survived to carry the family name. The bottom line to his message was seek him, change and you will survive.

23. The Prophets and the Assyrian threat Hosea - Hosea was one of the few prophets who came from Ephraim. His imagery and characterization of the Northern Kingdom was like no other. Hosea had a real understanding of the character of the House of Joseph, it was very personal what he had to preach. Unlike the other prophets who came up out of Judah, they weren�t going to lose their home or have their family destroyed as a result of the coming storm. Hosea tells us that the Northern Kingdom had become incredible merchants. Tyre and Sidon get a lot of credit, but the real power was in Samaria. However, despite their abilities to trade and negotiate, they were cheats and liars. They took advantages of people in their markets as well as their treaties they made.

24. The Prophets and the Assyrian threat In chapter 9, Hosea in so many words tells us just how rich they had become. As a result they had become increasingly hostile to religion, to priests, to prophets, the elite had basically a complete disdain for all that was pure and holy. Much of this could be tolerated, but this had crept down into the middle class and the poor were turning to idols for help. The one thing that seems to stand out most is the shrill they had toward religion. Very similar to the way the left in this country makes fun of the religious right. However, it had become more vile than just words. They began to kill anything that was good and holy. Laws were being passed to restrict True Worship, and replace it with a hybrid religion that included prostitutes and idols. Quite frankly the people themselves had really lost sight of what they were supposed to do on their Sabbaths, and Feasts. Most if not all were no longer allowed to travel to Jerusalem for the feasts.

25. The Prophets and the Assyrian threat However, their undoing came not from their cheating and lying or the their fake religion. It came from the way they treated the poor and the indefensible. This is what both Hosea and Amos tell about why they would be destroyed. Chapter 11 tells the whole picture: 1 "When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. �2 But the more I called Israel, the further they went from me.� They sacrificed to the Baals and they burned incense to images. 3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; but they did not realize it was I who healed them. 4 I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love; I lifted the yoke from their neck and bent down to feed them. �5 "Will they not return to Egypt and will not Assyria rule over them because they refuse to repent? 6 Swords will flash in their cities, will destroy the bars of their gates and put an end to their plans. 7 My people are determined to turn from me.�

26. The Prophets and the Assyrian threat Even if they call to the Most High, he will by no means exalt them. 8 "How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I treat you like Admah? How can I make you like Zeboiim? My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused. 9 I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim.� For I am God, and not man � the Holy One among you. I will not come in wrath.�10 They will follow the LORD; he will roar like a lion. When he roars, his children will come trembling from the west. 11 They will come trembling like birds from Egypt, like doves from Assyria. I will settle them in their homes," declares the LORD. In the future, Ephraim and the other tribes associated with him will come back to the land from the WEST. However for now their destiny was to be taken away to the north and eventually migrate west into Europe.

27. The Prophets and the Assyrian threat Joel � Joel is witnessing first hand their destruction. A swarm of locusts had been sent like never before. He relates to us how oblivious they are, in the midst of their depression they are turning to alcohol. Part of their territory has been ripped from them by Assyria, and yet they think it will never happen to them. Joel begins to implore them to get on their knees and cry out to God. He calls on the Elders, the politicians, the Priests, do something quick or your doom is inevitable. Very few listened! Some migrated away and escaped the Assyrian onslaught only to confront other devastations. It would take nearly 100 years for the scattered exiles to regroup and begin their nation building. The entire exile took place over a 40 year period, (740 BC � 701BC), and 4 Assyrian Kings.

30. Assyrian War Machine The Assyrians had developed into a mighty nation, and were determined to conquer all of Mesopotamia. From 743 to 701 BC, systematically the Northern Kingdom was dismantled and the entire House of Israel (10 tribes) were either killed or taken into exile. Over the 40 year period there were 4 Assyrian Kings who conquered and relocated approximately 4- 6 Million Israelites. The four kings were Tiglath-pileser (Pul) 744-727, Shalmaneser V 726-722, Sargon 721-705, and last Senacharib 704-681. Isaiah son of Amos prophesied about the two Kingdoms during this period. In Isaiah 5: 27-28 he describes the Assyrian war machine: �27 Not one of them grows tired or stumbles, not one slumbers or sleeps; not a belt is loosened at the waist,�not a sandal thong is broken. �28 Their arrows are sharp, all their bows are strung; their horses' hoofs seem like flint, their chariot wheels like a whirlwind.�29 Their roar is like that of the lion, they roar like young lions; they growl as they seize their prey and carry it off with no one to rescue.�

31. Rise of the Assyrian Empire In 745 BC Tiglath-Pileser rises to power. Shortly after his coronation two events happen that change the course of history. The Aramaens attack and take two cities � Sippar and Dur Kurigalzu. Babylonia was a vassal state of Assyria and was under their protection. This invasion by the hated Aramaens, forces him to declare war and retake these two cities. He captures the cities and deports 30,000 Aramaens. This was the first known mass deportation of another nation in history. 743 BC Tiglath-Pileser responds to a westerly expansion of the kingdom of Urartu. Urartu attempts to control one of their ancient cities Arpad which was part of the Hittite Empire. Assyria�s army is unrelenting causing 70,000 casualties on the Urartu. After capturing the city of Arpad, they place a permanent presence west of the Euphrates.

32. Assyrian war on Media Media: He then turns his attention to the East and conquers Media. His first attack takes his army to Lake Urmia and up to the Caspian Sea. 65,000 Medes are deported south, clearing out the Median Cities along the Caspian Sea and the Lapis Mountains. Tiglath-Pileser�s continues his campaign further east and attacks a Median population in the Zagros Mountains(Iran). He finalizes his campaign once he reaches Bactria (Afghanistan) and the city of Hara(t). Harat becomes his eastern border. The conquest of Urartu and Media lasted about 5-6 years. Keep in mind these areas that had been depopulated were future areas of relocation for the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

33. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram Once his northern and eastern boundaries were secured he moves his army of 200,000 soldiers, the equivalent of 11 American heavy divisions across the Euphrates River. In 738 BC he begins to set his sights on the city-states of Aram and the divided kingdom of Israel. In order to keep from being invaded the Aramaens and Israel offer tribute to keep his Army from attacking. The scriptures say in 2 Kings 15: 19-20 that Menahem King of Israel gave 1000 Shekels of silver from the national treasure and 50 shekels of silver from 60,000 wealthy citizens. This bought 6 more years for Menahem on the throne, but severely burdened the Northern Kingdom economically. In 732 Pekahiah son of Menahem takes the throne and continues to bleed the treasury and tax the rich. The nation begins to grumble because Samaria had no plan to confront Assyria militarily.

34. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram The Gileadites of Manasseh felt the most vulnerable by this situation. If there was to be a rebellion, Assyria would attack Gilead being the least defensible part of the nation. In 730 BC Pekah from Gilead has a Coup D� Etat and Pekahiah is removed from the throne. Pekah then goes to Rezin King of Damascus, the Edomites, the Philistines and Judah and attempts to put together an alliance against Assyria. If these nations were able to put up a defense they could put an end to paying this heavy tribute. Pekah after hearing how he dismantled the Medes and the devastating loss Urartu took, he knew he had to get other nations involved. Pekah�s attempts to bring King Jotham of Judah into this alliance are rebuffed. This move by King Jotham of Judah made him very unpopular with the Quartet alliance (Israel, Aram, Edom and Philistines). Jotham dies shortly after and his son Ahaz takes the throne in Jerusalem.

35. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram Pekah and Rezin seize the opportunity with a government in transition and attack Judah in a two-prong attack. Aram seizes the port city of Elath on the Red Sea and brings an Army from the south to attack Jerusalem. In the meantime Pekah�s generals have marched down into the Judean hills and massed their army north of Jerusalem. No one knows how long this war lasted, however the Jewish kingdom was placed in a severe pinch. The Bible says that 120,000 were killed and 200,000 captured. In 2 Chronicles 28:17-19, the other two armies in this alliance, Edom and Philistia were raiding and pillaging in the countryside. Unbeknownst to Aram and Israel, Ahaz had sent a message to the Assyrians seeking their protection against both of their enemies. 2 Chronicles 28:20 we read that the King of Assyria was on its way. When word came that the Assyrians were on the move, the four nations lifted their siege and returned to their nations to protect their territories.

36. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram Before Assyria invaded Israel we read that God sent the Prophet Oded to Samaria to rescue the prisoners. (2 Chron. 28:9) The Prophet talked to many, in particular Generals and Elders of Ephraim. This was a wake up call for Samaria. The people began to realize their sins were piling up. (Hosea 13:12) The situation for them was becoming very serious. They decided among themselves to release the 200,000 captives and allow them to go back to Judea. King Pekah was furious. His heart was hardened, his alliances and treaties were going to save him. Most likely many of the 200,000 would be used to fight the Assyrians. The God of Israel, Yahweh was the last thing on this King�s mind. I believe the decision by the elders of Ephraim saved the nation from utter destruction. They still were going to be exiled, but as a people they would not be destroyed. In Hosea 11:8-9 states it best �How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel?�..My heart has changed within me; all my compassion is aroused. I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim.�

37. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram The Assyrian war plan would continue. They divided their Army up in two. Half of the Army would attack Damascus (2 Kings16:9). The Aramaen Army was wiped out, while their King holed himself up in his castle like a �mouse�. Tiglath-Pileser boasts that he destroyed 591 cities of the Aramaens. Much of their nation was destroyed and what was left was carried off into exile. While the siege of Aram was taken place the rest of his Army shot down the coast toward Phoenicia and Philistia. Arka, Byblos and Sidon fell. Tyre was next and all of the Phoenicians were forced to pay tribute and assist the Assyrians in future exiles of Israel. Accho , Dor and Aphek cities of Manasseh and Asher were next. Some of the Israelites escaped and headed toward Tarshish (Spain). Only to be pursued by Tiglath-Pileser and the Phoenicians under his thumb. He used their ships to pursue the Israelites and captured the coastal colonies of Tarshish that belonged to Israel. The city of modern day Cadiz, once called GADes, was a city that transplanted Gadites were taken and used in service to their Assyrian overlord. Assyria continued south into Philistia with their western army until the cities of Ashdod, Ashkelon, and Gaza were under their control and paying tribute.

38. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram The eastern Army now had its sites set on Gilead. King Pekah made little attempt to protect his own homeland, choosing instead to protect the territories of Manasseh and Ephraim and the capital of Samaria. 2 Kings 15:29 reads: 29In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abelbethmaachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria. In the territory of Naphtali the cities of Ijon, Abel-Beth Maachah, Hazor, Kinnereth, Bethsaida, and Kedesh. The entire tribe of Naphtali was taken in unison and replanted in one of the buffer zones. Ephraim only lost one city in Jonoah. Manasseh lost as much as Naphtali, all the clans of Gilead including Yair and Machir were taken into exile, along the coast they lost Dor their port city. Asher had lost Accho, Rehob, Cabul (their capital) and Aphek. Zebulon had lost Yokneam and their settlements around the Galilee. A remant of Gad and Reuben still remained in the land, but much of their tribes were exiled.

39. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram By 733/2 much of the Northern Kingdom lay in ruins. There Army had been depleted fighting Judah, so what was left of it was taken north. Assyria used some of the Armies that surrendered to them as auxiliaries. In future battles these Israelite auxiliaries fought for the Assyrians. The rest of the populations was sent north and processed through immigration sites. Based on their skills, either as Artisans or Masons, they were taken to Ninevah and Asshur or other cities to work on the huge building projects the Assyrians were creating. The Assyrians placed the bulk of the exiles in cities that had been vacated by Hittites and Hurrians (Urartu), and Medes. Within these buffer zones they were given complete autonomy, now as an Assyrian citizen. The process of losing their identity would now begin.

40. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram The Assyrians with a guarantee that they would not destroy and exile the rest of the population, forced Israel to replace their king and pay a heavy tribute. King Hoshea was in essence a puppet king of the Assyrian Empire. (2 Kings 17:1) Israel became a vassal state, and had lost most of their sovereignty. Tiglath-Pileser III left an enormous legacy behind. His Army single handedly had done what no other nation had done. Mesopotamia was in the hands of Assyria. In 727 BC he died and Shalmaneser V took over the empire. King Hoshea seeing a change of guard took the opportunity to quit paying tribute. In Isaiah 9:10 it shows that this arrogance or complacency had arisen among the remnant of the nation, they boasted: �9 All the people will know it� Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria� who say with pride ��� and arrogance of heart, 10 "The bricks have fallen down, but we will rebuild with dressed stone; the fig trees have been felled, but we will replace them with cedars."

41. Assyria�s war on Israel and Aram Assyria clearly saw King Hoshea and Samaria was rebelling against him. He formed up his army and sent it south from the city of Carchemish. King Hoshea responded by sending his messengers to Egypt for help� but no one came. (Hosea 7:11 and 12:1) According to these verses there appears to be a division among the leaders. Some wanted to continue paying the tribute to Assyria while the King who overruled them tried to call for help to another nation (Egypt). It never dawned on them to humble themselves and repent. Choosing another ally to avoid their fate was the only thing that came to mind. In Isaiah 30:7, it says the Egyptian King �sat silent on his throne.� He wanted no part of Assyria, their 200 year alliance with the Northern Kingdom had ended.

42. Assyria conquers Samaria Shalamaneser V swept down and deported the remnant of Gilead and then massed his army in the heart of Manasseh at Samaria. This was the longest battle the Assyrian army had. Samaria took three years to bring down, in the end the remaining population of Ephraim and Manasseh were taken across the Great River. 2 Kings 17: 5-6 5 The king of Assyria invaded the entire land, marched against Samaria and laid siege to it for three years. 6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the Israelites to Assyria. He settled them in Halah, in Gozan on the Habor River and in the towns of the Medes. By 720 BC the entire Northern Kingdom lay in ruins. Their people were living in a strange land. The once mighty empire had fallen. The House of Khumri (Omri) the sons of Isaac are now hundreds of miles away in Assyria.

43. The Buffer Zones Before I conclude with the final battle on the 46 fortified cities of Judea by Senacharib, I want to describe the buffer zones where the Israelites were placed in. The scriptures go into great lengths to repeat the areas of exile of the Northern Kingdom. However very little mention of Judah is mentioned when they were exiled by Babylon over a century later. Why is that? � For one, one must understand that one nation was divorced, exiled and dispersed, while the other nation over the centuries would be scattered. (Isaiah 11:12). The first Buffer Zone was on the Khabor (Habor) River. This was a tributary in northern Syria that connects the Tigris with the Euphrates. The cities along this area where Gozan, the ancient city of Haran; this was the land or Ur of the Chaldeans. The Prophet Ezekiel was sent to preach to the House of Israel (10 Tribes) in this buffer zone. We will call this buffer zone: Scythia.

44. The Buffer Zones The second Buffer zone was a fairly large area. This Buffer Zone we will call it Cimmerian or Gimaria. The principal cities stretched from Lake Van and Lake Urmia in central Turkey east to Ecbatana and the Cities of the Medes. According to the Talmud, the original translation for Cities was rendered as �Mountains of the Medes�. These Mountains stretch a considerable ways beginning along those two lakes, running south of the Caspian Sea. The tribe of Naphtali was placed in this area. We get a glimpse of this from the Apocrypha book called Tobit. There was a tribe called the Cadussi along the Caspian Sea in Ptolemy ancient maps. Kedesh was one of the principal cities of Naphtali. Ecbatana became an Israelite center, primarily for the tribe of Manasseh, and at one point the Assyrians referred to this area as Mannae or Mannai.

45. The Buffer Zones The next Buffer Zone stretched from the Zagros Mountains East to the modern day city of Harat. The Talmud also describes this area rendered as Halah, was also known as Holwan or Holman. Holwan was found in the heart of the Zagros Mountains. Later Assyrian writings refer to as Yasubi or Yasubgalli. (The Exiles of Joseph). In this area we find a River called Sabatus River or Sabbath River. Today its called Zab River. The main city along this River was called Sakkiz, which was an Israelite center primarily for the tribe of Ephraim. The remaining exiles mostly coming from Asher were placed in the far eastern border of Hara or Harat. Interesting enough the capital of Afghanistan today is called Kabul, and the ancient capital of the tribe of Asher was Cabul. This third buffer zone will be called Guti. This was anachronistic name from centuries passed, but since a large portion of the tribe of Gad was in this area, the name Gadi or Guti, was applied to exiles living in this area.

46. Conclusion Finally, Shalamaneser V was given partial credit for the fall of Samaria, however either in battle or through treachery he dies and is replaced by Sargon II. Sargon II is given the greatest credit for the complete exile of the northern kingdom. From 722 BC to 705BC Sargon spent the majority of time consolidating the gains of his predecessors and putting down ongoing battles with Urartu in the north. The exile was complete except for elements of Simeon who lived north in the Judean hills and the refugees that came flooding out of Samaria just before it fell. It was said the city of Jerusalem had a huge surge in population at this time.

47. Conclusion The final war came at the hands of Sennacherib. We won�t go over the entire destruction of the Assyrian army by the Death Angel, however I do want to point out that the scriptures tell us before the siege of Jersalem he took all the fortified cities north of Jerusalem. (2 Kings 18:13), This included all the Israelites who sought refuge in Judea and those of Simeon who were living in Northern Judea. According to Sennacherib accounts; he tells us he took 201,000 exiles to Gozan on the Khabor River. There were both Jews and Israelites in this mass deportation. One thing that is for sure, the exile of Israel was complete. No one was left of the Northern Kingdom. 2 Kings 17: �18 So the LORD was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence. Only the tribe of Judah was left,� After four Assyrian rulers and 4 deportations, the Northern Kingdom was no more. There may have been a few that remained but no numbers of any consequences. The House of Israel (10 Tribes) were now in their new homes! Soon to rise again�