The twelve tribes of Israel

The geographical location of the twelve Israelite tribes was as follows:

• Judah : obtained the territory of the western part of the Dead Sea, including the deserts of Idumea.
• Simeon or Simon : received the territory located to the west of that of Judah, the south of the desert and the western part of the Mediterranean Sea and the Philistines.
• Benjamin : its territory was north of Judah’s and bordered on the east by the Jordan River and the Dead Sea.
• Dan : his land was north of Simeon’s.
• Ephraim : its territory was to the north of those of Dan and Benjamin, bordering on the east with the Jordan River.
• Manasseh : one part of his territory was to the east of the Jordan and the other in the northern part of that of Ephraim.
• Issachar : their land had the Jordan River to the east, the second half of Manasseh to the south, and the west to the Mediterranean.
• Zebulun : his land was situated to the north of Issachar’s.
• Asher had the lands of Zabulon and Naphtali to the east, Lebanon to the north, and Phoenicia to the west and the Mediterranean Sea.
• Naphtali : his territory was between that of Asher and the first half of Manasseh and had Lebanon to the north and the land of Zebulun to the south.
• Reuben and Gad : their lands were in the eastern part of the Dead Sea and Jordan.

Eventually, the twelve tribes were grouped into two kingdoms: Judah, essentially the tribe of Judah, Benjamin, and part of Levi, which had no land, and Israel, which included all the others.

the ten lost tribes

After the captivity in Nineveh, which affected only the kingdom of Israel, the ten tribes that made it up disappeared. However, it is possible that not all the people of the kingdom of Israel disappeared, but representative groups of people and their families.

Even today there are groups of Jews who claim descent from one of the tribes of Israel, such as the Jewish communities of Africa and Asia. Among these are the Bene Israel, Jews from India, who believe they have arrived there after the destruction of the first temple. There are also the Jews of Assam, belonging to the lost tribe of Manasseh, and the Falashas of Ethiopia, who have been recognized as the lost tribe of Dan.

Bibliography

• Pagan, S. History of Biblical Israel . (2019). Spain. clie.
• Captivating History. Ancient Civilizations: A Fascinating Guide to the Ancient Canaanites, Hittites, and Ancient Israel and Their Role in Biblical History . (2020). Spain. Captivating History.