Ten Tribes Studies (10 March, 2014, 8 Adar-2, 5774)
Contents:
1. Bruce McKerras: Tarshish in the BibleÂ
2. Answer to Question about National Characteristics and Changing Historical Circumstances
3. Pleased with The Tribes
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1. Bruce McKerras: Tarshish in the Bible Â
From: "McKerras B & J" <bruce.jan.mckerras@gmail.com>
Subject: Tarshish
Reply to:
BARS-57. Brit-Am Research Sources
http://hebrewnations.com/features/bars/bars57.html
#4. The Myth of Tartessos by Michael Royston
An Oracle of Tyre/Tarshish
Isaiah 23:1-7 Wail, you ships of Tarshish, for your harbour is destroyed, your port of entry from Kittim is swept away.
      Be silent you people of the coastlands and you merchants of Sidon, whom the seafarers have enriched. They brought food and every kind of merchandise, you became the marketplace of the nations. Now, be dismayed you great sea-fortress, for you no longer have children to care for. Other peoples will ask: Is this the great city of ancient times, the one that moved to settle in a far off land? Is this the place where merchants were princes, where traders were the most honoured men on earth and who founded colonies in distant places?
Isaiah 23:8-11 Who planned this about Tyre? The Lord Almighty planned it, to bring low their pride and to humble those of high status. Plough and plant your own fields, you people of Tarshish, your strength is lost, for the Lord has stretched out His hand over the sea, He has shaken kingdoms and destroyed your military power.
Isaiah 23:14-18 Lament you ships of Tarshish, for now your strength is laid waste. From that time you will be forgotten for seventy years; the span of one reigning monarchs life. At the end of the seventy years, the Lord will turn again to that city and they will once more become a great trading people. The merchandise and the profits shall be dedicated to the Lord, it will not be stored up, but given to those people who dwell in the holy Land, for their food and clothing. Psalm 72:10, Isaiah 60:5-7
                                                                    Ref: REB, NIV, KJV. Some verses abridged.
Explanations and scripture references:
Tyre: An ancient seaport on the Lebanon coast. Destroyed by Alexander in 332BC
Kittim: The island of Cyprus. So verse 1 refers to ancient Tyre.
Tarshish: It is not the Tarsus of Pau in Turkey. [Cilicia]
              Tarshish was a son of Javan, grandson of Japeth, great grandson of Noah.
              Tarshish is also the Hebrew name of the precious stone of the tribe of Asher.
               Wikipedia: Tarshish - a place, probably a city or country, far away from Israel by sea, whose people are great traders. Considered by some to be Carthage or Tattessos of ancient Spain.
Ezekiel 27:12 & 25 Tarshish was the source of your commerce, from its abundant resources of silver, iron, tin and lead. Ships of Tarshish, deeply laden, brought their cargoes to you. Jeremiah 10:9
Jonah 1:3 Jonah tried to escape the Lord, by going from Joppa, [Tel Aviv] to Tarshish - a place far as possible away from Israel.Â
So the place referred to in the Bible as Tarshish, is a country far distant from Israel, only accessible by sea and was a place of mineral wealth. The British Isles fit this description and secular records confirm how all those minerals were mined there, and then shipped to most parts of the ancient world. When Alexander the Great attacked ancient Tyre, he built a causeway out to the city. The people, who were Israelites - mostly from the tribe of Asher, could see their demise was imminent, so they took to their ships and moved to settle in a far off land. In time, they became great again, their sea-fortress, London, became the marketplace for the nations and they founded colonies in distant places.
Deut. 33:24 may Asher bath his feet in oil. Their North Sea oil?
Now, be dismayed, the Lord has shaken the nations and you have lost your military power and your empire. World War 1 and 2 bled the British Empire dry. But the seventy years as prophesied, may not have commenced in 1945, as the Lord has not yet turned again to them. The span of one reigning monarch is a clue, Queen Elizabeth was crowned on 2nd June 1953, therefore the time of their restoration may be mid 2023. Then they will support the new nation of Beulah. Isaiah 62:1-5                                                                                               Bruce McKerras  Â
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2. Answer to Question about National Characteristics and Changing Historical Circumstances
Israel Hirsch said:
Yair, In your writings, e.g. The Tribes, you try to confirm your Israelite identifications of certain Western Peoples through their national behavior.
You place emphasis on such factors as what nations have most helped the Jews, those who have been the least anti-Jewish, the most humane and positive in general, etc.
The problem with all this is that you refer mostly to recent times after WW2. Taking an historical perspective the standards you apply were not so applicable in the past.
England for instance expelled the Jews in1290. Before that they treated the Jews very badly.
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Brit-Am Reply:
Recent times are those for which we have the most information and with which we can most easily identify.
In the Messianic Age everything shall be made known. The closer we get the more innate characteristics become apparent.
Also today people are more developed, less inhibited, and have access to greater knowledge, etc.
In the past few could read. Those who were literate did not necessarily know much and what they did know was often wrong.
Bigoted rulers and superstitious semi-pagan religious functionaries imposed their own limitations on freedom of thought.
Today there is more knowledge. Knowledge is constantly increasing. More and more people can access this knowledge which becomes more and more easier to access.
We have more free time, the environment encourages intellectual inquiry, and most of us have been educated or have educated ourselves to appreciate the knowledge that is available to us.
We still have freedom of will.
People often believe what they wish to.
Inimical Conspiracy Theories are very popular even though there is little or no real proof for them.
In Latin America, Eastern Europe, and the Muslim World horrible falsehoods are spread and accepted about the Jews.
People from these areas who have accepted the available concepts will not necessarily be anti-Jewish but they will have a higher tendency to be so.
Germany before WW2 was relatively speaking an advanced informed educated regulated nation with a healthy intelligent law-abiding citizenry.
Nevertheless, they chose to believe what they did and act as they acted despite their advantaged background.
Anecdotal Analogy:
There were two neighboring villages. To outsiders no real differences between inhabitant of the two were noticeable.
One village (T) claimed that members of the other (E) had tails even though no-one had actually seen them.
A woman from T married a man from E even though her family protested.
After years of happy marriage they quarrelled.
The woman said her husband was an ingrate since she had married him despite the opposition of her family and the invisible tail her husband had!
The husband then thought back over his years of marriage.
He realized that periods of tension that had been passed over in silence had been caused by the belief of his wife had that he had a tail.
Just for the record, he did not have a tail.
[Or is it that we all really have one?]
In short: Events and Attitudes of Recent Times are valid standards of measurement since:
a. We know more about them and can analyze them in more detail.
b. We are drawing closer to the End Times and in some ways innate Israelite National Characteristics are becoming more apparent.
c. Individuals are psychologically more liberated and prepared to discern the truth if they so wish.
[This was approximately the reply we gave to a verbal question. Our interlocutor was not convinced.]
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3. Pleased with The Tribes
Joe Newberry
Just received your book The Tribes. LOVING IT, so amazing seeing so many things coming to pass so quickly!!