The Arousal of Gentiles with Israelite Ancestry (3 February, 2014, 3 Adar-1, 5774)
Many Gentiles today feel they are descended from Jews or from Israelites of the Lost Ten Tribes. Others are simply drawn to Biblical and/or Jewish concepts. This is part of a phenomenon leading up to the Messianic Era. Individuals who experience an awakening along these lines often ask the same type of questions.
Duration: 15.47 minutes. To Read Text Please Scroll Down!
Contents:
1. Introduction: Phone Call From Jenny
2. The Awakening Hebrew Roots Jewish and Christian Movement
3. Israelite and Jewish Family Names
4. Genealogical Research and DNA Tests
5. Coming to Israel
6. What to Do?
7. Hebrew Nations
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1. Introduction: Phone Call From Jenny
Recently we received a phone call from someone in the Netherlands.
They had a series of questions that fit a pattern we are now thoroughly used to.
Our studies show that the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel along with many descendants of Judah are to be found amongst Western Peoples.
We have been researching and working at this subject for much of our lives.
For the past few decades we have been answering questions about this.
These queries are usually along the same lines.
[Most of those who turn to us are genuine and feel attraction towards the Jewish People. Here and there however there are some who are not.
This too is problematic.]
Let us call our friend Jenny.
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2. The Hebrew Roots Jewish and Christian Movement
Jenny and members of her family feel a closeness to the Jews and to Biblical concepts.
They try to keep Hebrew commandments and customs. They have been this way to some degree for as long as they remember.
In recent years the tendency has intensified.
Many of those who contact us are parties to this phenomenon which may be termed "Hebrew Roots"..
What is the significance of Hebrew Roots arousal?
A. It is a sign of the approaching Messianic Age.
In the End Times the ten tribes and Lost Jews will be aroused and will return and re-unite with Judah.
 Sensitive souls already sense this and are awakening to it. Those who have these feelings are probably of Israelite ancestry since they are the ones who will return.
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3. Israelite and Jewish Family Names
Often the people in question have grandparents with Israelite or Jewish-sounding names. Sometimes they know or received indications of Jewish ancestry or they were told of traditions indicating Israelite forebears.
Does this mean anything?
A. When the Ten Tribes come back they will bring many of Jewish descent with them. This is hinted at in the Bible and discussed in some detail by the great Biblical Commentator Isaac Abarbanel.Â
The Midrash says:
# These are the 'Ten Tribes.' ... The exiles of Judah and Benyamin [i.e. the present-day 'Jews'] are destined to go unto them and bring them back in order to merit with them the Messianic Era and life in the World-To-Come. This is as it says, 'In those days the house of Judah shall go unto the house of Israel and they shall come together out of the land of the north unto the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers'Â (Jeremiah 3:18).
-Yalkut Shimeoni, Song of Solomon 905.Â
Finding Israelite or Jewish origins are therefore related subjects and overlap with each other.
Names may accrue to a person for all kinds of reasons. Nevertheless we believe in Divine Providence. If someone had a name pointing in a certain direction then it means something and when this name is taken together with other indications it can mean a lot.
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4. Genealogical Research and DNA Tests
Can DNA Tests Help?
A. DNA Tests may be of interest.  They should be followed up on and followed through with genealogical (family-tree) inquiries.
It should also be kept in mind that both sides of the family may have similar converging origins.
DNA tests can show what families you may be related to. Look for recurring family names and places of provenance.
These tests are good for the individual but have limited applicability in other areas.
If the tests show you to be closely related to the Queen of England that will naturally be of interest to yourself. Do not expect however Her Majesty to bestow a Knighthood on you because of it.
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5. Coming to Israel
If the DNA Tests and other Researches show me to have Israelite or Jewish origins will this be sufficient to allow me to come to live in Israel as a full-fledged citizen, or even as a temporary resident on a semi-permanent basis?
A. No. The time is too early. More light needs to be thrown on the subject. More research is needed and the research results that are already available need to be made more widely known.
It should also be remembered that dwelling in the Land of Israel is connected with Being Obligated by the Torah Law and Keeping it. This may be especially pertinent for individuals who feel an overwhelming urge to come here.
Psalms 111:
6 He has shown his people the power of his works,
  in giving them the heritage of the nations.
7 The works of his hands are faithful and just;
  all his precepts are trustworthy.Â
See:
Nachmanides: The Connection Between Law and Land
It should also be pointed out that Scripture indicates that the return of the Ten Tribes shall be in large National Groupings and not in dribs and drabs of individuals attaching themselves to Judah.
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The Promised Land reaches from the Nile to Euphrates. Zechariah (10:10) and Micah (7:14) indicate that at first the returnees will occupy the areas of Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. On the other hand, Jeremiah (31:5) indicates that the returnees will also be found in Samaria to the north of Jerusalem in the present-day West Bank.
Zechariah 10:
7 Then the people of Ephraim shall become like warriors,
   and their hearts shall be glad as with wine. Their children shall see it and rejoice,
   their hearts shall exult in the Lord
8 I will signal for them and gather them in,for I have redeemed them,
   and they shall be as numerous as they were before.
9 Though I scattered them among the nations,
   yet in far countries they shall remember me,
   and they shall rear their children and return.
10 I will bring them home from the land of Egypt,
   and gather them from Assyria; I will bring them to the land of Gilead and to Lebanon,
   until there is no room for them.Â
Micah 7:
14 Shepherd your people with your staff,
  the flock that belongs to you,
which lives alone in a forest
  in the midst of a garden land;
let them feed in Bashan and Gilead
  as in the days of old.Â
Jeremiah 31:
3 the Lord appeared to him from far away.
I have loved you with an everlasting love;
   therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.
4 Again I will build you, and you shall be built,
   O virgin Israel!
Again you shall take your tambourines,
   and go forth in the dance of the merrymakers.
5 Again you shall plant vineyards
   on the mountains of Samaria;
the planters shall plant,
   and shall enjoy the fruit.
6 For there shall be a day when sentinels will call
   in the hill country of Ephraim:
‘Come, let us go up to Zion,
   to the Lord our God.’
7 For thus says the Lord:
Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
   and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say,
   ‘Save, O Lord, your people,
   the remnant of Israel.’
8 See, I am going to bring them from the land of the north,
   and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,
among them the blind and the lame,
   those with child and those in labour, together;
   a great company, they shall return here.
9 With weeping they shall come,
   and with consolations I will lead them back,
I will let them walk by brooks of water,
   in a straight path in which they shall not stumble;
for I have become a father to Israel,
   and Ephraim is my firstborn.Â
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6. What to Do?
What Should we do now?
A. Each one should study the Bible, pray to God, and take an interest in the Ten Tribes and the studies of Hebrew Nations concerning them.
We should concentrate on making others aware others in our own circle and community.
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7. Hebrew Nations
What is the Role of Hebrew Nations/Brit-Am in all this?
A. Our job is to research the subject [Research], spread knowledge of research results [Report], and work towards the Reconciliation of Judah with the Ten Tribes.