Were the Ancient Tribes of Israel Black? Was Jesus Black?

We received emails from another who asserted:

EPHRAIM & MANASSEH ARE NOT THE U.S. & BRITAIN!

THE BIBLE’S EXPLAINATION OF EPHRAIM & MANASSEH’S GENETIC LINE DOES NOT SUPPORT YOUR BELIEF BUT INVALIDATES IT!!

The Bible tells us that the mother of Ephraim & Manasseh (ASENATH), was an Egyptian (Because Her father was the Egyptian Priest “POTIPHERAH”: Genesis 41:45,50 & 46:20), and that The Egyptians were descended from Noah’s son Ham; HAM FATHERED THE FOLLOWING NATIONS (AFTER THE FLOOD), “ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE”:(Genesis 10:6): CUSH(Ethiopians),MIZRAIM(Egyptians), PUTH(Libyans), and CANAAN(Canaanites)! See also PSALMS:(78:51),(106:22),(105:23),(105:27), which tells us that the Egyptians were the children of HAM!

Genesis 10:6 Is telling us that the (BLACK Ethiopians), Egyptians, Libyans & Canaanites were “BROTHERS” and ALL had the same (Black Father),“HAM”! … Which means ASENATH(the Egyptian mother of Ephraim & Manasseh), Was BLACK, In case you haven’t figured it out yet Asenath’s BLACK Genetic traits would make it IMPOSSIBLE FOR HER TO GIVE BIRTH TO TWO WHITE SONS EPHRAIM & MANASSEH (U.S. & BRITAIN), NO MATTER WHAT COLOR HER HUSBAND (JOSEPH) WAS!

That view is not a fact, but an assertion based on some inaccurate assumptions.

Now, yes, the Cushites were black.

Remember Noah had three sons (Ham, Japtheth, and Shem), and their descendants became the three primary races (Caucasoid, Mongoloid, and Negroid). Based on dominant and recessive genes from his parents, Ham himself likely was not black (Negroid), as it is much more likely his wife was. Similarly, it would be most likely that Japheth’s wife was Mongoloid and Shem’s wife likely Caucasoid.

Furthermore, the bulk of the ancient Canaanite records we have shows most of them were not what we would consider black.

Notice also the following:

Ephraim and Manasseh – were they part black Egyptian?

“And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and
without a word from you, no man shall lift up his
hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.
And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphnathpaaneah.
And he gave him Asenath, the daughter of
Potipherah, priest of On, for his wife. And Joseph
went out over the land of Egypt.” (Gen 41:44-45. Cf
also 46:20, 34)

The Bible does not state that she was an Egyptian at all. Given that On was in the Goshen
area where the Hyksos or similar White tribes settled and their aristocracy settled, it is
reasonable to assume that he married into that stock for the Egyptians proper were driven
southwards.

Although her name is Egyptian, … a name itself is not proof for her being a Black Egyptian. and this sort
of thing happens all over the world. (White C. Chart: Was Israel mixed? V. 2.2. Received via email 07/25/19)

Again, most Egyptians were not black, so it is not logical to state that Joseph’s wife must be black.

As far as having one parent black and one white notice the following:

This chart shows how that works with two parents with three white-skin alleles (gene traits), and three black-skin alleles. The use of six gene traits is just an example to show how the mixing can produce many different combinations.

So, with Ham’s sons, presuming he was actually 100% white and his wife 100% black, there was only a 1 of 8 chance for any of the sons to be 100% black, and basically a 50% chance that one would be–and his son Cush probably was. But the odds are that none of his brothers were black. So the assertion that all of Cush’s brothers would have to be black is not correct.

Notice also the following from the old Ambassador College and Radio Church of God:

The black race is composed of some of the descendants of Noah’s son Ham. Part of the black race stems from Cush (Gen. 10:6). Cush means black in Hebrew (Young’s Concordance). The word “Cush” is often translated into English by the word “Ethiopia,” but not all Cushites live in Ethiopia (an independent nation in East Africa). The Greeks called the children of Cush “Ethiopians.” That’s why we use the word in English. …

Ham had another son, Phut or Put-it is spelled both ways in the Bible. Here is what Josephus writes about the people of Phut.

Phut also was the founder of Libya (by which he means Africa), and called the inhabitants Phutites, from himself: there is also a river in the country of the Moors which bears that name; whence it is that… the Grecian historiographers mention [Africa] by the “appellation of Phut” (See Antiquities, VI, 2).

Put, or Phut, then, is the father of the central Africans. The Egyptians called the region of the Sudan (which was south of Egypt) by the name of Pet. The Babylonians and Persians called a similar region “Putu” (from Smith’s Bible Dictionary and Inter. Stand. Bible Ency.).

Numerous sons of Put settled early into the western region of Mesopotamia, a few hundred miles from ancient Babylon. This is the original center of Hindi, the language of northern and central India (Ency. of World History, by Langer, p. 28).

The people who were settled in this region were uprooted by the Assyrians and driven east into India. …

Of the four sons of Ham, only Cush bears a name which means “black.” Just as some of the sons of Cush are brown so some of the children of Phut are black. (The Development of The Races. Ambassador College, 1968)

Through Ham many of the light people of North Africa arose. The black peoples throughout Africa and south east Asia also descended from Ham. Only two of Ham’s four sons were black. (Hoeh H. The Race Question. Plain Truth, April 1957).

While some of the mixed multitude of Israel were black, and there were some blacks in Egypt, the bulk of the Egyptians were not black.

One can see that by looking at many ancient hieroglyphics (which I have done). Notice some:

Blond ancient Egyptian woman (Pixabay)

Depiction of white Egyptian woman with wings (Pixabay)

Depiction of white Egyptian man (Pixabay)

Also, when black men are shown, they are shown as essentially the color black on hieroglyphs I have seen, with other Egyptians more of a tan color.

Now, in the 21st century, there is another way to show that relatively few Egyptians were black. Notice the following:

Egyptologists, writers, scholars, and others, have argued the race of the ancient Egyptians since at least the 1970’s. Some today believe they were Sub-Saharan Africans. …

The problem, it was thought, is that mummy DNA couldn’t be sequenced. But a group of international researchers, using unique methods, have overcome the barriers to do just that. They found that the ancient Egyptians were most closely related to the peoples of the Near East, particularly from the Levant. This is the Eastern Mediterranean which today includes the countries of Turkey, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. The mummies used were from the New Kingdom and a later period, (a period later than the Middle Kingdom) when Egypt was under Roman rule.

Modern Egyptians share 8% of their genome with central Africans, far more than ancient ones, according to the study, published in the journal Nature Communications. The influx of Sub-Saharan genes only occurred within the last 1,500 years. This could be attributed to the trans-Saharan slave trade or just from regular, long distance trade between the two regions. Improved mobility on the Nile during this period increased trade with the interior, researchers claim. (Perry P. Were the ancient Egyptians black or white? Scientists now know. June 11, 2017 https://bigthink.com/philip-perry/were-the-ancient-egyptians-black-or-white-scientists-now-know)

So, no, the bulk of the ancient Egyptians were not black.

Nor were the bulk of the Israelites.

Ephraim and Manasseh – were they part black Egyptian?

“And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and
without a word from you, no man shall lift up his
hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.
And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphnathpaaneah.
And he gave him Asenath, the daughter of
Potipherah, priest of On, for his wife. And Joseph
went out over the land of Egypt.” (Gen 41:44-45. Cf
also 46:20, 34)

The Bible does not state that she was an Egyptian at all. Given that On was in the Goshen area where the Hyksos or similar White tribes settled and their aristocracy settled, it is reasonable to assume that he married into that stock for the Egyptians proper were driven southwards.

Although her name is Egyptian, … a name itself is not proof for her being a Black Egyptian. and this sort of thing happens all over the world. (White C. Chart: Was Israel mixed? V. 2.2. Received via email 07/25/19)

Now look at the following:

Mereneptah Stele (Wikipedia)

The Mereneptah Stele is dated to the 1200s BC. This actually mentions the children of Israel and also shows that the Egyptians at that time were not mainly black.

See now the following:

Berlin Pedestal (Biblical Archaeology Society)

The Berlin Pedestal may be the oldest archeological discovery that mentions “Israel.” This was from the 1400s B.C. and shows three Israeli captives. The children of Israel were captives of the Egyptians for the first half of that century. Anyway, the three enslaved males are NOT black but have more of a Caucasian Middle Eastern appearance.

Consider also the following:

Some scholars have decided to test the validity of the claim that there exists Jews of African descent. Parfitt came to the conclusion that the Lemba people of Zimbabwe may have some connection to ancient Jewish populations based on historical and anthropological research.56 Moreover, a geneticist named Trefor Jenkins found that the Lembas had 50 percent Y chromosomes that were Semitic in origin and 40 percent Negroid.57 This test seems to verify the existence of Jews of African descent. Though this may seem to confirm the Hebrew Israelites’ claim, it implies only that those who can trace their heritage to the Lemba are likely ethnically Jewish. Contrarily, the Falashas of Ethiopia, whom the Black Hebrew Israelites use to prove their validity, were proven to have no biological connection to the ancient biblical Israelites through genetic testing.58 Therefore, the myth that the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba became the first king of Ethiopia conflicts with the available scientific evidence.

Thus, the reader should conclude that unless one can show that all African Americans originate from the Lemba tribe, Hebrew Israelites have no basis for the claim that all African Americans are descendants of the ancient Hebrews. It is false to reason that the existence of some African Hebrew descendants proves the claim that all African Americans are Israelites. (Butts J. The Origin and Insufficiency of the Black Hebrew Israelite Movement. CRI, June 21, 2017 accessed 07/24/19)

Now let’s look at some scriptures:

2 The precious sons of Zion … 7 Her Nazirites were brighter than snow And whiter than milk; They were more ruddy in body than rubies, Like sapphire in their appearance. 8 Now their appearance is blacker than soot; They go unrecognized in the streets; Their skin clings to their bones, It has become as dry as wood. (Lamentations 4:2, 7-8)

The above is saying that they were very white, but after disaster they would be unrecognizable.

It brings to mind something about Job:

7 So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord, and struck Job with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. 8 And he took for himself a potsherd with which to scrape himself while he sat in the midst of the ashes. (Job 2:7-8)

Notice what Job later said:

30 My skin grows black and falls from me; My bones burn with fever. (Job 30:30)

Job was not black or would not have said that. But with his affliction and the ashes, he said he skin was growing black.

Job lived in Uz (Job 1:1) which is in the an area near Ur of the Chaldeans (Matthew Henry’s Commentary), which is where Abram was from (Genesis 11:28-31).

Now, various ones, like the late Raymond McNair believe that Job was the builder of the great pyramid and that historical evidence shows that she was blond and white (Key to Northwest European Origins. AuthorHouse, 2012, pp. 64-65). Notice something about that:

The pigmenation of the Egyptians was usually a brunette white … the daughter of Cheops, the builder of the great pyramid is shown in the coloured bas reliefs of her tomb to have been a definite blonde. Her hair is painted bright yellow stippled with fine red horizontal lines. This is the earliest known evidence of blondism in the world. (Coon, The Races, p. 98) (as cited in McNair R, p. 65)

Even if this is not referring to Job’s daughter, but instead an Egyptian, again we see evidence of people who were white.

Isaac’s brother-in-law and Jacob’s father-law was named Laban. The 19th century, Hitchcock’s New and Complete Analysis of the Holy Bible defines Laban to mean ” white; shining; gentle; brittle.” Laban’s sister was Isaac’s wife Rebekah and his daughters were Jacob’s wives Leah and Rachel. The name Laben would not seem to be describing a black man. The word Lebonan is related to Laban and means:

(the) white mountain (from its snow) (Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Thus, it would make sense that the name Laban would have something to do with whiteness.

David seems to have been white based on the following description:

12 Now he was ruddy, with bright eyes (1 Samuel 16:12)

Ruddy means red or rosy. Many believe this points to David having red hair.

Dr. James Tabor reported that he found hair of an ancient Israelite man in something called the Shroud of the Tomb:

One of the more fascinating finds in this tomb, one that has not received much attention, was the preservation of a sample of Jewish male hair. The hair was lice-free, and was trimmed or cut evenly, probably indicating that the family buried in this tomb practiced good hygiene and grooming. The length of the hair was medium to short, averaging 3-4 inches. The color was reddish. (Tabor J. The Only Ancient Jewish Male Hair Ever Found. Biblical Archaeology.org, September 27, 2012. https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/the-only-ancient-jewish-hair-ever-found/ accessed 07/24/19)

That is supportive of the view that the ancient Israelites were not black Africans. There also was earlier found braided hair of a woman at Masada:

The length of the hair indicates that it was ftom a woman. The color is now quite dark, but since hair darkens as it ages its original shade cannot be determined. (Gorski A, Zias J. Capturing a Beautiful Woman at Masada. c. 2007. https://www.academia.edu/25836648/Capturing_a_Beautiful_Woman_at_Masada accessed 07/24/19)

Quite dark would indicate that it was not originally black–hence it would have been blond, brown, or red. A picture of it in the above paper indicates that the indivual hair strands were round like Caucasoids have. It was not flat/kinked as Negroids have. This also would indicate she was not a black African.

Now some claim she was not an Israelite, but most scholarly sources I checked with believe that she was.

Getting back to the Tomb of the Shroud, it is about 2,000 years old. There were about 20 Jews buried there. Note some information about the DNA result:

Mitochondrial DNA analysis confirmed the locks of hair were contextually associated with the skeletal remains found in loculus SC1. … The haplotype designations for mtDNA analyses are population categorizations that have been used extensively in the past to infer population movements. The haplotypes for the Tomb of the Shroud individuals are commonly distributed throughout the North of Africa and the Middle East through to Eastern Europe. The tomb occupants exhibit a number of different maternal influences. The maternal relatedness of these individuals supports inferences that this Akeldama site was a family tomb which was in use in the first-century C.E. (Matheson CD, et al. Molecular Exploration of the First-Century Tomb of the Shroud in Akeldama, Jerusalem. PLOS One. December 16, 2009 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0008319)

Hence, 2,000 years ago, those Jews of the family that were buried there were not black Africans. The DNA 2,000 years ago is consistent with recent research on the Jews:

A series of analyses was performed to address whether modern Jewish Y-chromosome diversity derives mainly from a common Middle Eastern source population or from admixture with neighboring non-Jewish populations during and after the Diaspora. Despite their long-term residence in different countries and isolation from one another, most Jewish populations were not significantly different from one another at the genetic level. Admixture estimates suggested low levels of European Y-chromosome gene flow into Ashkenazi and Roman Jewish communities. A multidimensional scaling plot placed six of the seven Jewish populations in a relatively tight cluster that was interspersed with Middle Eastern non-Jewish populations, including Palestinians and Syrians. Pairwise differentiation tests further indicated that these Jewish and Middle Eastern non-Jewish populations were not statistically different. The results support the hypothesis that the paternal gene pools of Jewish communities from Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East descended from a common Middle Eastern ancestral population, and suggest that most Jewish communities have remained relatively isolated from neighboring non-Jewish communities during and after the Diaspora. (Hammer MF, et al. Jewish and Middle Eastern non-Jewish populations share a common pool of Y-chromosome biallelic haplotypes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2000 Jun 6; 97(12): 6769–6774)

Jews were not originally black and displaced by white people like some have erroneously claimed.

Notice also something from the Song of Solomon:

10 My beloved is white and ruddy, (Song of Solomon 5:10, NKJV)

10 My beloved is white and ruddy, (Song of Solomon 5:10, Jewish Publication Society Tanakh 1917)

The beloved is said to have been white. Now the Hebrew word צַח tsach does not necessarily mean the color white, though it can. It means bright or dazzling.

Now, the famous Hebrew Rabbi known as Rashi wrote the following about the above:

My beloved is pure white. White, as in, “they were whiter צַחוּ than milk.”

(Rashi on Song of Songs 5:10, https://www.sefaria.org/Rashi_on_Song_of_Songs.5.10.1?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en accessed 07/23/19)

But now notice something else from the Song of Solomon:

5 I am dark, but lovely,
O daughters of Jerusalem,
Like the tents of Kedar,
Like the curtains of Solomon.
6 Do not look upon me, because I am dark,
Because the sun has tanned me. (Song of Solomon 1:5-6)

Notice that the women is black from the sun. She would not have said that if she was black from birth. White people can tan to be quite dark from the sun.

Notice the following related to Moses:

1 Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman. (Numbers 12:1, NKJV)

1 And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married; for he had married a Cushite woman. (Numbers 12:1, Jewish Publication Society Tanakh 1917)

The word translated as “Ethiopian” is word Kuwshiy, which according to Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary means descendants of Cush. Or in other words, people of dark color–and it is commonly translated as Cush or Cushite in many Old Testament passages.

Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because he had married a black woman as Cushites are black (dark-skinned Africans). If Moses was black, then they would not have proceeded with their charge against him.

Notice also the following:

24 By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25 choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, 26 esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. (Hebrews 11:24-27)

Two points related to the above. 1) A Black Hebrew advocate stated that the Pharaohs may have been white, but most of the Egyptians were black. 2) While most Egyptians were not black, if Moses refused to be considered to be called the son a Pharaoh’s daughter, it is logical that he was basically white. Otherwise, it is not possible for him to pass as “Pharaoh’s daughter.”

Notice also something that Jeremiah wrote:

23 Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? (Jeremiah 13:23, NKJV)

23 Can an Ethiopian change the color of his skin? (Jeremiah 13:23, NLT)

Again, this is the Hebrew word Kuwshiy. It would make no sense that Jeremiah would refer to a different people if his own people were black. Furthermore, it should be noted that Jeremiah took the king’s daughters to the British Isles and the current queen is a descendant. And Queen Elizabeth II is white.

Of course, not all with the Israelites were white as “A mixed multitude went up with them also” (Exodus 12:38). Furthermore, I had a professor who looked Chinese but said he was Jewish. So, yes there was some interbreeding. And yes, there are black people who also interbred with Jews and other Israelites.

After Titus conquered Jerusalem in 70 A.D., Emperor Vespasian issued coins–the back side of which shows conquered Jews:

Titus on left, Jewish man on bottom right (CNG coins)

Vespasian on left, captured Jewish soldiers on right, 71 A.D. (CNG coins)

Notice the the Jews were not African (which is clear from the hair of the man on the first coin). The second coin inscription in Latin Ivdea means Judea. This is clear evidence that the Jews of the first century–like Jesus–were not black Africans.

The Bible teaches:

9 Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. 10 Jesus answered…(John 4:9-10).

Also, the geneaology of Jesus as listed in both Matthew’s (1:1-3) and Luke’s accounts (3:23-33) teach that Jesus was a descendant of Judah, hence a Jew.

Notice that Jesus passed through a crowd:

28 So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. 30 Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way. (Luke 4:28-30)

Hence, Jesus was the same race as the rest of the Jews or He would have been able to easily identify  and would not have blended in with the crowd (plus Judas would not have had to be paid to point Him out).

Since the bulk of the Jews were basically white by race, so was Jesus. Jesus would have been essentially a tanned/olive color of a Caucasian person. He likely had dark colored hair.

We have no original pictures of Jesus.

Getting to ancient artifacts, very little from the ancient world is in color.

But some materials beyond hieroglyphs are.

For example, are you familiar with the mosaics from the Huqoq synagogue?

At the ancient site of Huqoq, near the Sea of Galilee in modern Israel, a number of stunning mosaics depicting biblical, astrological, and historical narratives have been uncovered in a Jewish village that flourished during the late Roman empire. The colorful and large number of mosaics found in a synagogue challenge traditional views about Jewish art of the period as symbolic rather than representational of biblical texts, bland, and in decline during the period. 07/20/18 https://hyperallergic.com/451212/discovery-of-jewish-mosaics-in-israel-bring-color-to-biblical-accounts/

One of the reasons I reported about all of this is because of a couple of people who have repeatedly tried to insist to me lately (the last one being on 7/29/19) that the ancient Hebrews and Jews were black.

While there was a ‘mixed multitude’ that went with the Israelites out of the land of Egpyt (Exodus 12:38), it is like some were black. But to try to insist that most Israelites were black is not the case.

Some have tried to claim that the Jews were black, hence Jesus was black. Because of that claim, I also located some photos of 1st century A.D. coins–the century Jesus was executed in.

After Titus conquered Jerusalem in 70 A.D., Emperor Vespasian issued coins–the back side of which shows conquered Jews:

Titus on left, Jewish man on bottom right (CNG coins)

Vespasian on left, captured Jewish soldiers on right, 71 A.D. (CNG coins)

Notice the the Jews were not African. The second coin inscription in Latin Ivdea means Judea. This is clear evidence that the Jews of the first century (like Jesus) were not black Africans.

If most Jews of Jesus’ time were black, the coins would have been expected to portray that–but they do not.

The Apostle Paul wrote:

3 Let no one deceive you by any means (2 Thessalonians 2:3)

11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head — Christ — 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:11-16)

Some make emotional appeals. Some misinterpret scripture. Some twist doctrines to suit their own agendas and desires.

Yet, part of the purpose of having the faithful ministry is to prevent deception.

For clues to the end time identities of the children of Israel, notice what the Bible records:

1 And Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:

2 “Gather together and hear, you sons of Jacob, And listen to Israel your father.

3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn, My might and the beginning of my strength, The excellency of dignity and the excellency of power. 4 Unstable as water, you shall not excel, Because you went up to your father’s bed; Then you defiled it–He went up to my couch.

5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers; Instruments of cruelty are in their dwelling place. 6 Let not my soul enter their council; Let not my honor be united to their assembly; For in their anger they slew a man, And in their self-will they hamstrung an ox. 7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; And their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob And scatter them in Israel.

8 “Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s children shall bow down before you. 9 Judah is a lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him? 10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people. 11 Binding his donkey to the vine, And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes. 12 His eyes are darker than wine, And his teeth whiter than milk.

13 “Zebulun shall dwell by the haven of the sea; He shall become a haven for ships, And his border shall adjoin Sidon.

14 “Issachar is a strong donkey, Lying down between two burdens; 15 He saw that rest was good, And that the land was pleasant; He bowed his shoulder to bear a burden, And became a band of slaves.

16 “Dan shall judge his people As one of the tribes of Israel. 17 Dan shall be a serpent by the way, A viper by the path, That bites the horse’s heels So that its rider shall fall backward. 18 I have waited for your salvation, O LORD!

19 “Gad, a troop shall tramp upon him, But he shall triumph at last.

20 “Bread from Asher shall be rich, And he shall yield royal dainties.

21 “Naphtali is a deer let loose; He uses beautiful words.

22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough, A fruitful bough by a well; His branches run over the wall. 23 The archers have bitterly grieved him, Shot at him and hated him. 24 But his bow remained in strength, And the arms of his hands were made strong By the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob (From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel), 25 By the God of your father who will help you, And by the Almighty who will bless you With blessings of heaven above, Blessings of the deep that lies beneath, Blessings of the breasts and of the womb. 26 The blessings of your father Have excelled the blessings of my ancestors, Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.

27 “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; In the morning he shall devour the prey, And at night he shall divide the spoil.”

28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own blessing (Genesis 49:1-28).

We in the Continuing Church of God believe that the descendants of Israel traveled to many places. While the following list may need some adjustment, it basically reflects where many of us have been taught those descendants went (even though some of each are scattered throughout many lands)–plus there are more details in the links next to many of the tribes:

1. 1. Reuben – France (dignified but troubled, Genesis 49:3-4; see also The ‘Lost Tribe’ of Reuben: France in Prophecy?)
   2. Judah – The nation now called Israel as well as the Jews not in that land but who were from the area near Jerusalem (Ezra 4:12; see also Location of Judah: This tribe is not ‘lost’)
   3. Simeon – Scattered throughout the tribes (Genesis 49:5)
   4. Levi – Scattered throughout the tribes (Genesis 49:5)
   5. Issachar – Finland (sits between Europe and Russia, Genesis 49:14)
   6. Zebulun – Netherlands (haven by the sea, Genesis 49:13) and a few in South Africa (see also Ten clues tying Zebulun with the Dutch)
   7. Gad – Switzerland (will apparently have to temporarily accept EU domination, Genesis 49:19; see also Could the Swiss be descended from Israel’s son Gad? Is Switzerland prepared for the coming collapse? )
   8. Dan – Denmark, Ireland (on the outskirts–Genesis 49:17; the tribe that named places “Dan”, Judges 18:12,29) (those in Northern Ireland mainly are descended from the Ephraim)
   9. Asher – Belgium, Luxembourg (wealthy, Genesis 49:20; see also Ten clues tying Belgium and Luxembourg with the tribe of Asher)
   10. Naphtali – Sweden (attractively described, Genesis 49:21; see also Ten Prophetic Clues Concerning Naphtali – Sweden)
   11. Benjamin – Norway, Iceland (former vikings, cf. Genesis 49:27; see also Bert Otten on descendants of the tribe of Benjamin: Western Vikings)
   12. Ephraim – Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and probably some in South Africa and Zimbabwe (company of nations, Genesis 48:19; watch British are the Covenant People; also see and Bert Otten gives his reasons why the UK and USA descended from the Tribe of Joseph)
   13. Manasseh – United States of America (blessed nation, Genesis 48:19; see also Bert Otten gives his reasons why the UK and USA descended from the Tribe of Joseph)

These are the countries that contain the physical cities of Israel that Jesus apparently was referring to in Matthew 10:22-23. Countries like Sweden, Belgium Luxembourg, Norway, Switzerland, Finland, France, Denmark, Ireland, and Iceland seem to fit some of the positive statements in Genesis 49–but they will ultimately face tests and trials from the coming European Beast power (cf. Ezekiel 5:4; 39:23,28), as Ezekiel 5:4 seems to show that after the USA is eliminated, fire will spread to “all the house of Israel.” Some of the Israelite nations will temporarily support the Beast power (for writings related to Reuben, check out the article The ‘Lost Tribe’ of Reuben: France in Prophecy?).

Perhaps it should to be pointed out that several of the ‘Israelite nations’ are ethnically mixed (per Davidiy Y. The Tribes, 4th edition. Russell-David Publishers, 2011 and other sources) and it may take them some time for the actual Israelites to separate out. (Information on the ‘ten lost tribes’ is also in the YouTube sermon titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter?)

The Continuing Church of God also has a sermon titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter?, which is at its ContinuingCOG channel.

1:23:47

Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter?

Where are the ‘lost tribes’? Why are there considered to be ten lost tribes of Israel? Did the United States descend from Manasseh and Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand descend from Ephraim? Are the American and British descended peoples Israelites? Where is America in Bible prophecy? Where is Britain in Bible prophecy? Who are the 12 Tribes of Israel? Where are the lost ten tribes of Israel? What About Northern Europe? Are critics of ‘British-Israelism’ such as Walter Martin wrong? What does the Bible teach? What do the lessons of history teach? Here is a link to that sermon: Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter?

It has been said that a picture is like 1000 words.

Hopefully the pictures and scriptures here will demonstrate to any open to the truth on this matter that the early Hebrews, including the children of Israel, were not primarily black. Hence their end time descendants are not predominantly black either.

Race is NOT a determinant of salvation (cf. Romans 2:11).

Let me add that most predominantly black people are Gentiles, and God is calling many Gentiles in this age (cf. What About Romans 11:25 and the Full Number of the Gentiles?).