The Lost Ten Tribes

by Joseph Wild

Originally published in 1879 and reissued in 1919 by A.A. Beauchamp, Boston. This edition edited by Trumpet Press, Lawton, OK. Description from Author's Preface, First Edition 1879:
When I first entered the ministry, I made up my mind that I would try and thoroughly understand the Scriptures. I soon found that a large portion was of a prophetic nature. I set to work according to the usual method, but to my sorrow I soon discovered that the method and rules in gneral use for Scripture exegesis were very defective and unsatisfactory. The fact was forced upon me that the true method, or key of interpretation, was not in use. I was always persuaded that the Bible was a unit, and that the principles contained in such a unit were beautifully related; and because of such a faith, I wondered more and more as I grew older why we had not a better key of interpretation. Men spiritualized at random, without any kind of a rule, except their own fancy. In this manner they expounded the material history of the Old Testament. The whole arrangement was a Babel.
I had faintly discerned that the Scriptures made a distinction between the House of Israel and the House of Judah, and that the prophecies belonging to one could not, in fairness, be applied to the other; and that some prophecies applied to both. It always seemed strange to me, that the people which God said He had chosen for Himself, should not be known. The Jews were always known, but where was 'Israel, His inheritance'? Just at this point of my experience I came across a book entitled 'Our Israelitish Origin,' by the late John Wilson, the reading of which confirmed me in my convictions, and aided me to a better knowledge of the good Book of Providence. ..................
The main idea I wish to convey in this book is that God is conducting His Providence through His ancient chosen people, Isrel, whom I belive are found in the Saxon race. And His throne on earth, through which flow the purposes of Providence, is David's throne, which I believe to be at present the English throne. The United States fulfills the role of the Tribe of Manasseh. Therefore, to understand the prophecies, Providence, and the present movements of nations, as well as the future lot and destiny of each, we must read the Scriptures in this light."

131 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1879

About the author

Joseph Wild, M.A., D.D. (1834-1908)

Reviews

[Connor Longaphie]

Anglo-israelism at least in it's classical or hard form makes the same mistake of dispensationalism

[Charlene Mathe]

I love Joseph Wild's straightforward explanation, from Scripture and history, for linking the Western democratic nations with the "Lost Tribes of Israel." He reminds the reader that the promises to Abraham and to David were irrevocable; therefore the Seed of Abraham and the Throne of David must exist unrecognized among us. He reminds us from the prophecies of Moses (Leviticus 26) and Daniel (chapter 9) that the obscurity of Exile would come to an end; at which time the Tribes of Israel would emerge as leading nations on the world stage. Seven cycles of seven prophetic weeks (Jubilee cycles) or 2520 years from the Assyrian captivity (722 BCE) brings us to the late 18th century, the period of American independence and British colonial expansion. The blessings that identify the Tribes given by the Patriarch Jacob in Genesis 49 are by then evident-- possessing the coastlands and strategic gates of the world.
Joseph Wild compiled undated lectures from his ministry and published them in 1879. Based on his understanding of Israel's prophetic destiny, he wrote that Britain would certainly come into possession of Palestine, and would have the duty to restore Israel to the Land. He saw the restoration of Israel as a task of the Tribes. He quoted Isaiah 52: "Awake, awake, put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city ... loose yourself from the bands of your neck, O captive daughter of Zion."
Preaching shortly after the Civil War, Joseph Wild identified Mohammed as the Little Horn of Daniel 8; a force of destruction against the people of Israel. He believed that the Ottomon empire would dry up, and an empowered Britain would collaborate with a resourceful Jewish leadership to restore Israel to the Land by 1957. And he could have been right! Imagine if, fifty years after his preaching, the British had fulfilled their Mandate to secure a Jewish state in the Levant. Instead, in 1947 the British abandoned the Mandate and left the Jewish population to be devoured (as they expected) by the surrounding peoples. And again, in 1967 Israel conquered Judea, Samaria, the Golan Heights, the Gaza strip and the Sinai--but failed to claim them as sovereign territories. ...failed to "loose herself from the bands of her neck." Had Britain fulfilled her mandate, and had the State of Israel claimed her heritage, the visions of Joseph Wild may have been fulfilled fifty years ago.
When we don't recognize our destiny, we fail to live up to it. That is why it is important to recognize the identity and the mission of all the Tribes of Israel. "The world indeed is dark, and all confusion. But His Word shows unto us order in all this confusion. Blessed be His name." (p.83)