Exile of the 10 Tribes of Israel in Assyrian History
The exile of the ten northern tribes of Israel was a series of forced deportations by the Assyrian Empire in the 8th century BCE. This event is distinct from the later Babylonian exile of the southern kingdom of Judah [1]. The kingdom of Israel was invaded by several Assyrian kings, leading to the removal of its inhabitants from their native land [1].
The process of exile began with Pul (also known as Tiglath-pileser III or Tilgath-pilneser), king of Assyria, who imposed tribute on Menahem, king of Israel, around 771 or 712 BCE [1]. Tiglath-pileser later carried away the trans-Jordanic tribes (Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh) and inhabitants of Galilee around 740 BCE [1, 5, 6]. These exiles were settled in places like Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan [5, 6].
The final and most significant deportation occurred after the destruction of Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom, in 722 or 721 BCE [4, 11]. Shalmaneser V and his successor Sargon II were responsible for this general deportation of Israelites into Mesopotamia and Media [4, 11]. The biblical account states that the king of Assyria "carried Israel away into exile to Assyria, and put them in Halah and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes" [2, 7]. This event marked the end of the northern kingdom of Israel [11].
The prophet Hosea foretold this exile, indicating that the Israelites would be sent to Assyria, where they would eat ceremonially unclean food, further separating them from their covenant with God [13]. While some Israelites might have sought refuge in Egypt, the primary destination for the ten tribes was Assyria, a captivity considered more severe than their earlier bondage in Egypt [14]. The Babylonian Talmud records differing opinions on the exact locations of their exile, with some suggesting Afrikei or the Selug Mountains, while also noting that the exiles sometimes spoke disparagingly of their homeland and praised their new locations [9].
The term "ten tribes" refers to the tribes that formed the northern kingdom after the division of Israel, with only Judah and Benjamin (and some Levites) remaining with the southern kingdom of Judah [8, 12]. Despite the exile, prophetic texts like Zechariah speak of a future gathering of these scattered people from places like Assyria and Egypt back to their land [3]. Abraham Ibn Ezra interpreted Isaiah's prophecies about return from Assyria and Egypt as referring to the return of the ten tribes, who would be eager to rejoin their brethren in Jerusalem [10].
Sources
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Captivities Of The Jews — The present article is confined to the forcible deportation of the Jew; from their native land, and their forcible detention, under the Assyrian or Babylonian kings. Captives of Israel.--The kingdom of Israel was invaded by three or four successive kings of Assyria. Pul or Surdanapalus, according to Rawlinson, imposed a tribute (B.C. 771 or 712), Rawl.) upon Menahem. (2 Kings 15:19) and 1Chr 5:26 Tiglath-pileser carried away (B.C. 740) the trans-Jordanic tribes, (1 Chronicles 5:26) and the inhabitants of Galilee, (2 Kings 15:29) comp. Isai 9:”
- 2 Kings “2 Kings 18:11 (NASB) — Then the king of Assyria carried Israel away into exile to Assyria, and put them in Halah and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes,”
- Zechariah “I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and there won’t be room enough for them. -- Zechariah 10:10”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Exile — (1.) Of the kingdom of Israel. In the time of Pekah, Tiglath-pileser II. carried away captive into Assyria (2 Kings 15:29; comp. Isa. 10:5, 6) a part of the inhabitants of Galilee and of Gilead (B.C. 741). After the destruction of Samaria (B.C. 720) by Shalmaneser and Sargon (q.v.), there was a general deportation of the Israelites into Mesopotamia and Media (2 Kings 17:6; 18:9; 1 Chr. 5:26). (See ISRAEL, KINGDOM [198]OF.) (2.) Of the kingdom of the two tribes, the kingdom of Judah. Nebuchadnezzar, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim (Jer. 25:1), invaded Judah, a”
- I Chronicles “I Chronicles 5:26 (BSB) — So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria (that is, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria) to take the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh into exile. And he brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan, where they remain to this day.”
- 1 Chronicles “1 Chronicles 5:26 (NASB) — So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul, king of Assyria, even the spirit of Tilgath-pilneser king of Assyria, and he carried them away into exile, namely the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara and to the river of Gozan, to this day.”
- II Kings “II Kings 18:11 (BSB) — The king of Assyria exiled the Israelites to Assyria and settled them in Halah, in Gozan by the Habor River, and in the cities of the Medes.”
- 2 Kings (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on 2 Kings 17:18: Removed them out of his sight - Banished them from the promised land, from the temple, and from every ordinance of righteousness, as wholly unworthy of any kind of good. None left but the tribe of Judah only - Under this name all those of Benjamin and Levi, and the Israelites, who abandoned their idolatries and joined with Judah, are comprised. It was the ten tribes that were carried away by the Assyrians.”
- Babylonian Talmud (Jewish (Rabbinic)) “Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 94a.15: The Gemara asks: To where did Sennacherib exile the ten tribes? Mar Zutra says: He exiled them to Afrikei, and Rabbi Ḥanina says: To the Selug Mountains. The Gemara adds: But those exiled from the kingdom of Israel spoke in disparagement of Eretz Yisrael and extolled the land of their exile. When they arrived at one place, they called it Shosh, as they said: It is equal [ shaveh ] to our land. When they arrived at another place, they called it Almin, as they said: It is like our world [ almin ], as Eretz Yisrael is also called beit olamim . When they arrive”
- Sefaria (Jewish (Rationalist)) “Abraham Ibn Ezra on Isaiah 27:13: And it shall come to pass in that day , etc. Then all the children of Ephraim 34 Since Assyria and Egypt are named in this verse, and not Babylon, this prophecy is referred to the exile of the ten tribes, who will be glad to have an opportunity of returning to Jerusalem, and of joining their brethren in the worship of God. that are in exile will hasten to return to Jerusalem, seeing that their own kingdom has ceased to exist.”
- 2 Kings (Lutheran) “Keil & Delitzsch on 2 Kings 17:6: The ninth year of Hoshea corresponds to the sixth year of Hezekiah and the year 722 or 721 b.c., in which the kingdom of the ten tribes was destroyed. 6b. The Israelites carried into exile. - After the taking of Samaria, Salmanasar led Israel into captivity to Assyria, and assigned to those who were led away dwelling-places in Chalach and on the Chabor, or the river Gozan, and in cities of Media. According to these clear words of the text, the places to which the ten tribes were banished are not to be sought for in Mesopotamia, but in provinces of Assyria and ”
- 1 Kings (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on 1 Kings 12:16: So Israel departed unto their tents - That is, the ten tribes withdrew their allegiance from Rehoboam; only Judah and Benjamin, frequently reckoned one tribe, remaining with him.”
- Hosea (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Hosea 9:3: 9:3 God would exile the Israelites to Assyria in 722 BC. There, in an unclean land, they would eat ceremonially unclean food, further separating themselves from their covenant with the Lord.”
- Hosea (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Hosea 11:5: He shall not return into the land of Egypt,.... Ephraim or Israel, the ten tribes: and the Septuagint and Arabic versions express them by name, though they give a wrong sense of the words, rendering them, "and Ephraim dwelt in Egypt"; he did so indeed with the other tribes formerly; but here it is said he shall not go thither again to be a captive there, but shall go into bondage more severe than that in Egypt, even into captivity in Assyria: rather the sense is, they should not go thither for shelter, at least not as a body, though some few of them might, as in Hos 9:”