“Ten Lost Tribes,” of Israel, untrue! Asher, Dan, Ephraim, Gad, Issachar, Manasseh, Naphtali, Reuben, Simeon, and Zebulun were “Ten Lost Tribes” of legend.
Had any of the twelve tribes of Israel been lost it would likely have been the tribe of Benjamin. In the Book of Judges, the tribe of Benjamin is nearly wiped out in what was a very strange series of events. The tribe of Benjamin survived and great men such as the Apostle Paul and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were/ are from the tribe of Benjamin.
2 Chronicle 11:16, “And after them out of all the tribes of Israel such as set their hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel came to Jerusalem, to sacrifice unto the LORD God of their fathers.” Representatives from the Northern Kingdom tribes relocated to the Southern Kingdom to worship the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and those who preferred to worship pagan gods migrated to the Northern Kingdom.
Again in 2 Chronicles 15:9, “And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon: for they fell to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the Lord his God was with him.” Again, the more spiritual of the Ten Tribes joined forces with Judah.
God sent the Southern Kingdom into exile, however, Ezekiel 39:28, “Then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them anymore there.”
In researching a similar question a few years ago, I came across some very interesting information concerning Anglo-Israelism & British Israelism. Worth repeating again in my opinion.
Anglo-Israelism & British Israelism:
“The principal belief of Anglo/British Israelism is that the British (and by extension Americans, Canadians, Australians, and others) are the spiritual and literal descendants of the ancient Israelites.”
British Israel writers developed the belief that these "ten tribes" of the Northern Kingdom “were able to retain their identity and cohesiveness, became lost to history, and wandered far even to the British Isles.” In my opinion, things get rather convoluted with the stone (Stone of Scone) used in the coronation of King David being transported to the British Isles and being used for the coronation of British queens and kings.
The Anglo-Israelism belief was mostly discounted in the early 20th century, however, John Allen’s book “Judah's Scepter and Joseph's Birthright" spread the concept through the Adventist and other churches adding more fuel to the fire of the heresy of Replacement Theology.
[http://www.religioustolerance.org/anglo_is.htm]
God made unconditional covenants with His people. If God could lose 10 of His 12 Tribes would His unconditional covenants still hold? The theory of Ten Lost Tribes is promoted either due to ignorance or by those practicing a weak Hermeneutics. Of course, God did not lose any of His people but such a claim denigrates Israel and can morph into Replacement theology.
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