PARTHIA - THE FORGOTTEN EMPIRE

Parthian Archer		Parthian Armored Rider and Archer

Parthia – Site Map

Parthia is a Much Forgotten Ancient Superpower!
Parthia – An Israelite Empire Rises in Asia
Who Then Were the Parthians?
Royal Line of King Dawid
Intentionally Hidden?
Parthian Tolerance
Who are the “Nazarenes” and what is the “Church of the “East”?
Why were the Ten Tribes of the House of Yisr’el Exiled to Assyria and Media?
Why include the history of Parthia in the Israelite/Yisr’elite Time-line?

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The Parthian Empire – A Hidden and Forgotten Ancient “Superpower” in Asia

Believers in Yehowah, The Savior-Yahushua, should become aware of the expansive ancient history of Hebrew and Aramaic traditions that existed in the Imperial nation Parthia during its 476 years of existence. The Nazarene faith in Yahushua, was introduced to Parthia, grew and expanded in the empire, and extensive evangelization went forth from Parthia. Hebrews from both of the houses of the nation Israel/Yisr’el, the northern house of ‘Ephraim and the southern house of Yahudah, had been exiled to a geographical area which later became the Parthian Empire. The Parthian Empire existed in and around Aram from where Abram, the righteous father of the Hebrew faith, came.

The books of the Greek New Testament in several places have Aramaic words preserved in Greek characters with no translation, thereby indicating its initial Aramaic and Semitic linguistic background.

Therefore, the attention of the Christian world is now directed more and more to research in the Aramaic and Semitic linguistic background of the New Testament. New Testament textual criticism has generated much interest in the Aramaic language, especially over the last one hundred years. The question concerning the original language of the New Testament is hotly debated, but the fact that the Christian message was first preached in the Aramaic language is something that is now universally accepted. Taken from the paper presented Sept.1, 2001 to the 68th Assyrian National Convention at San Jose, CA. by Paul D. Younan.

Parthians were at the Shavuot feast of Acts 2:1 mentioned as having occurred in Yehrushalayim. The Parthians and Medes in Acts 2:9 are identified as persons from a geographical area where the northern ten tribes of ’Ephraim were exiled and scattered, according to 2 Kings 17:5-8 and 1 Chronicles 5:26.

During the 476 years that the Parthian Empire existed, all nations and empires of the world became part of the extensive Roman Empire except the following four: Caledonia-Scotland, China Dynasties, Kushan Empire and the Parthian Empire. Parthia was the largest of the four empire nations that did not come under the power of, or become part of the extensive Roman Empire. Imperial Parthia became a great power and became one of Rome’s greatest enemies. Parthia never lost territory to the Romans, nor did they lose any wars waged against them by Rome.

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Parthia is a much forgotten ancient superpower!

Parthia’s rise to power coincides with the wane of Carthage in the second (218 –201 B.C.E.) and third (149-146 B.C.E.) Punic Wars. It is noteworthy that while Rome was gradually defeating Carthage (an Israelite power in the Mediterranean), Parthia (another Israelite power in Asia) was gradually rising to empire status. By the time Carthage fell, Parthia had already become a great power and was destined to become one of Rome’s greatest enemies. Taken from page 227 - Steven M. Collins Book – ‘The “Lost” – Ten Tribes of Israel – Found!’ – CPA Books – PO Box 596 – Boring Oregon 97009.

Steven Collins has written a marvelous classical book entitled ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Israel…Found!’ In this book you can discover the little known, yet fascinating, truths of the grandeur and scope of King Solomon’s Israelite Empire, including new and exciting historical and archeological proofs of the house of Ephraim’s presence in the “New World”, even in King Solomon’s day. Steven Collins documents historical migration patterns of the ten tribes of Israel. His sources are from all fields of research and his facts are impeccable.

Written here below is what Steve Collins has to say in his introduction to and in the seventh chapter of the book ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Israel Found!’ Taken from pages 205 thru 223 – Steven M. Collins Book – ‘The “Lost” – Ten Tribes of Israel – Found!’ – CPA Books – PO Box 596 – Boring Oregon 97009. This excerpt copy is used with the gracious permission of the author.

Chapter 7

PARTHIA – AN ISRAELITE EMPIRE RISES IN ASIA

Many readers may wonder, upon seeing the title of this chapter, “Who or what was Parthia?” It is a testimony to the woeful lack of historical knowledge in the modern world that such a question could be asked. Parthia was a vast ancient empire, which ruled over Asian territory at the same time that the Roman Empire ruled over the Mediterranean region. Although Rome launched many wars of aggression against Parthia, none succeeded in their aims of subjugating the Parthians. In fact, Parthia administered many crushing defeats to Roman armies as these two ancient “superpowers” opposed each other for centuries. In spite of the fact that much is known about Parthia’s history, it is almost totally ignored in history texts. How accurate a picture of ancient history would we have if textbooks neglected to mention the Roman Empire? It would yield a very distorted view of ancient history, wouldn’t it? Yet we now have an equally distorted view of world history as a result of Parthia’s omission from texts on ancient history. A famous nineteenth century historian, George Rawlinson, wrote two books extensively documenting the history of the Parthian Empire. They were entitled Parthia and The Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy. The Greco-Roman classical writers recorded a voluminous amount of information about Parthia, and Rawlinson extensively cites the classical writers in his histories of the Parthians. He introduces The Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy with these words:

“…the picture of the world during the Roman period…put before students in ‘Histories of Rome,’ was defective, not to say false, in its omission to recognize the real position of  Parthia…as a counterpoise to the power of Rome, a second figure in the picture not much inferior to the first, a rival state dividing with Rome the attention of mankind and the sovereignty of the known earth. Writers of Roman history have been too much in the habit of representing [Rome] as…a Universal Monarchy, a Power unchecked…having no other limits than those of the civilized world…the truth seems to be that…from the first to the last…there was always in the world a Second Power, civilized or semi-civilized, which in a true sense balanced Rome, acted as a counterpoise and a check…This power for nearly three centuries (B.C. 64 – A.D. 225) was Parthia.”1

The concept that Rome had equal rivals in the ancient world will come as a surprise to most readers. This chapter (and chapter eight) will attempt to restore a balanced perspective to our view of ancient history by a thorough discussion of the origins and history of Parthia. Chapter nine will include previously unknown information on the considerable role played by Parthian-Roman geopolitics in the life and ministry of Messiah Yahushua.

The lack of information on Parthia likely results from the fact that history has been taught almost exclusively from a Greco-Roman perspective. This preoccupation with Greco-Roman history has led to major misunderstandings about the reality of the ancient world. In earlier chapters we learned that ignorance of Phoenician and Carthaginian history has led to modern man’s unawareness of the role of North America in ancient history. This was due to the Phoenician/Carthaginian monopoly of Gibraltar which, for centuries, denied the Greco-Romans any maritime access to lands beyond the Mediterranean Sea. As a result, Greece and Rome were far less advanced than the Phoenicians and Carthaginians in understanding world geography. Also, we learned in chapter six that Scythia (the Sacae Scythians) were civilized people, and that their power was so great that they devastated the Assyrian Empire and twice defeated the Persian Empire. Yet we read or hear almost nothing about them.

This chapter’s title indicates that the Parthians were Israelites who descended from the ten tribes of Israel after their relocation to Asia. This chapter will present evidence supporting this assertion, and chapter eight will discuss the fascinating (and ignored) history of the Parthian Empire.

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Who then were the Parthians?

There is no record of their presence in Asia at all until the Persians refer to them in the sixth century B.C., and “there is no mention of them in the Old Testament, or in the Assyrian inscriptions, or in the Zendavesta.”2 This indicates they were not present in Asia until somewhat prior to the middle of the first millennium B.C. The Persians called them the “Parthva,” and named them as a subject people involved in a revolt.3 While they are acknowledged as not being Aryan in origin,4 they are clearly identified as having a common origin with the Scythians. Rawlinson states, “there was a strong conviction on the part of those who came in contact with the Parthians, that they were Scyths,”5 and adds “that the Scythic character of the Parthians is asserted in the strongest terms by the ancient writers.”6 Rawlinson cites the classical historians Strabo, Justin and Arrian in stating:

“The manners of the Parthians had, they tell us, much that was Scythic in them. Their language was half-Scythic, half-Median. They armed themselves in the Scythic fashion. They were, in fact, Scyths in descent, in habits, in character.”7

This Scythian origin of the Parthians is further confirmed by the fact that many times in their history, ousted Parthian kings sought refuge among the Sacae tribes of the Scythians or replenished their armies with soldiers from Scythian tribes. This recurrent Parthian reliance on the Sacae tribes of Scythia in times of trouble indicates that the Parthians and Scythians were natural allies.

There is a record from Diodorus, a Greek historian of the first century B.C., that the Parthians had “passed from the dominion of the Assyrians to that of the Medes…to a similar position under the Persians.”8 Rawlinson also notes that early historians regarded the Parthians to be “exiles.”9 These statements are very significant. We know from previous chapters that two waves of Israelite captives were exiled into Asia by the Assyrians, and that some of them were located in the cities of the Medes. After the fall of Assyria’s empire, it is logical that the Asian Israelites would come under the dominion of the Medes and Persians. Since the Parthians were related to the Sacae Scythians (who bore the name of Isaac), and since there is no record of any Parthians being in Asia until after the Israelites were brought there, it seems evident that the Parthians were exiled members of the ten tribes of Israel. Supporting this view is the fact that the Parthians were regarded as “exiles,” an apt description for the displaced Israelites.

Apparently, the Parthians were not happy to be other nations’ subjects. Rawlinson cites an account of Diodorus that they “revolted from the Medes and placed themselves under Scythian protection.”10 While Rawlinson offers this information, he states that Diodorus based it on a source which Rawlinson does not trust. Nevertheless, it is cited because it indicates that the Parthians looked to the Scythians as their protectors and liberators. This further supports the assertion that the Parthians and Scythians were fellow tribesmen.

The Encyclopedia Britannica records that:

The alphabets in use in Persia, at least from the time of the Arsacid dynasty onwards, are based upon the Aramaic…The earliest records of Aramaic go back to about 800 B.C. and were found…in northern Syria… Other developments of Aramaic are modern square Aramaic- Hebrew…”11 (Emphasis added.)

The “Arsacid dynasty” was, as we shall see, the dynasty of the Parthians. That the Parthians utilized an Aramaic alphabet (and imposed it within their empire) powerfully indicates that the Parthians originated in the region of Syria and Palestine where the Aramaic language originated. The fact that the Parthians used a Semitic alphabet clearly indicates that their native language and racial origin were Semitic! Also, since early historians strongly maintain that the Parthians were a Scythic people, the Semitic nature of Parthia’s language further argues for a Semitic origin for the Scythians. That the Parthian language was related to the Hebrew language also indicates that the Parthians were among the descendants of the ten tribes of Israel, a large mass of Semites who were transplanted into Media and other Asian regions.

What little is preserved of the Parthian language also indicates a Semitic origin for the Parthians. Rawlinson states the Parthian word for “city” was “karta” or “kerta.”12 In chapter five, the Semitic/Israelite origin of Carthage was examined, and it was noted that the original Semitic name of Carthage was “Kirjath Hadeschath.” The original Semitic name of Carthage is also rendered as “Kart Hadasht,”13 meaning “new city.” The Semitic origin of Carthage is well-established, and they used the word “kirjath” or “kart (a shortened version of kirjath)” for “city.” The Parthians used the same word (“karta”) for “city,” indicating that the Carthaginians and the Parthians had a common Semitic origin. We shall also later examine the role of the Parthian “Magi,” an influential portion of Parthia’s ruling classes. An early Carthaginian ruler was named “Mago,”14 again indicating a common linguistic heritage with the Parthians.

A prominent family of Parthians was called the “Suren” family,15 and one of their hereditary rights was to crown each newly-elected king.16 The word “Suren” (it also appears as “surena” or “surenas”) is a Hebrew composite word. The Hebrew word “sur” includes the meaning “reign” or “make princes.”17 The Hebrew word “en” (or “ayin”) includes the meaning “face,” “eye,” “sight” or “presence.”18 The Parthian name “suren” is Hebrew for a person whose “presence makes princes” or “reign in his (eye) sight.” The Parthian Suren did exactly what the Hebrew words signify, showing a parallel between the Hebrew and the Parthian languages. What little is preserved about the Parthian language indicates that it originated in the Semitic/Hebrew family of languages. We shall also see that many of the personal and place names of the Parthians were not just Semitic, but were specifically, Israelite in nature.

After the Persian Empire’s fall, Parthian territory fell into the hands of the Greeks under Alexander the Great. In the division of Alexander’s kingdom at his death, Parthia was ruled by the Seleucid Greek Empire. In approximately 256 B.C., the provinces of Parthia and Bactria revolted against Seleucid Greek rule, and declared their independence. There is some difference of opinion whether they revolted in the same year or in proximate years,19 but there is a consensus that the development and independence of Parthia and Bactria were intertwined.20 Some historians record that Arsaces, the first king of the Parthians, was a Bactrian, but most accounts agree that he was the chieftain of a Scythian tribe (the Dahanites) who slew the Greek satrap and liberated his Parthian kinsmen.21 It should also be noted that “Arsaces,” the Scythian founder of Parthia’s dynasty, included the name of “Isaac” and the “Sacae” Scythians in his personal name (“Ar-sac-es”).

Hosea 1:6-10 recorded a promise from Yehowah that he would make the Israelites too numerous to count after he sent them into captivity. The Jewish historian Josephus confirmed that this had happened by the first century A.D. Given their huge population, it is logical that the Israelites would also have become known by the names of their sub-tribes in addition to the names of their principal tribes. Many are aware that some parts of the Bible record genealogies of the tribes of Israel, and many people regard them as the most boring parts of the Bible. However, for historical research, these sections can be invaluable. Among other things, they indicate the names of the individual clans of the tribes of Israel, and some of these names can be located in geographic and proper names in the post-exilic period.

For example, Numbers 26:35-36 records that sub-tribes (or clans) of the Israelite tribe of Ephraim were named the Bachrites, the Eranites, and the Tahanites. The old Seleucid province of Bactria, which grew up in conjunction with Parthia, bears the name of one of the subtribes of Ephraim in a Hellenized form. An Israelite origin for Bactria is supported by the indication that the Bactrian language “…was related to Saka, or at least underwent strong influences from Saka tongues.”22 The record that the Bactrians welcomed a Scythian ruler who freed them from a Greek sattrap, and the further indication that the Bactrians shared a linguistic heritage with the Parthians argues that the Bactrians were also Sacae (or Saka) who had descended from the ten tribes of Israel. Henry Rawlinson, in his book Bactria, states: “there seems to be very little doubt that the population of Bactria was largely Scythian”… (and cites Justin, a classical author, who wrote)…” The Bactrian Empire was founded by the Scythians.”23

Numbers 26:36 also notes that another clan of the tribe of Ephraim descended from Eran and was known as the “Eranites.” A group of people known as the Eranians were present in the region of ancient Persia and Parthia.24 It is significant that Assyria transplanted the defenders of Samaria (an ‘Ephraimite city) into “the cities of the Medes.” Therefore, we would expect thereafter to notice some ‘Ephraimite names in the Medo-Persian region. The “Eranians” bore the exact Hebrew name of one of the clans of Ephraim in the area of Persia/Parthia. This name survives today in the modern name for the territory of ancient Persia: Iran. Indeed, the Encyclopaedia Britannica, in referencing “Eran” in its Index section, simply states “Eran: see Iran.”25 The modern capital of Iran is named Teheran, also preserving the name of this ‘Ephraimite clan. This book in no way maintains or implies that the modern Iranians are Israelites as it is very clear from subsequent history that the modern Iranians are principally Medo-Persian in racial origins. However, the name “Iran” apparently does come from the name of one of the clans of Ephraim, which was placed in Medo-Persian territory by the Assyrians and lived there for many centuries.

There is evidence of considerable Semitic influence in ancient Persia. In commenting on the ancient Pehlevi (Pahlavi) Persian language, Zenaide Ragozin states:

“Pehlevi…does not seem to be Persian at all, but rather Semitic. That is, an enormous proportion of the words – nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions – are Semitic, while the grammar and construction…are Eranian…[and questions how this could have happened]..if not by constant contact with old Semitic nations.”26

The obvious reason why Pehlevi, an ancient Persian tongue, had such a strong Semitic character is that a large portion of the ten tribes of Israel (a Semitic nation) was forcibly resettled in Medo-Persian areas by the Assyrians. Additionally, large numbers of Jews were settled in Mesopotamia when Judah fell to the Babylonians. The descendants of all those captive Israelites were later absorbed into the Persian Empire. Indeed, many Jews (Daniel, Esther, Mordechai, Nehemiah, Ezra, etc. had very high governmental positions in the Persian Empire). Since the Jews were Semites, they also influenced the language of Persia in a Semitic direction. Later, when the Parthians (descendants of the ten tribes of Israel) ruled the whole region for centuries, their Semitic language would have greatly impacted the language of Persia. The Encyclopaedia Britannica also notes the Semitic nature of the Persian Pahlavi language:

“The name [Pahlavi or Pehlevi], which means Parthian, can be traced back for many centuries…The great peculiarity of the language is that though it is Iranian, it is full of Semitic (Aramaic) words…”27

Given the information contained in this book, it is not at all peculiar that this Persian language should have such a strong Semitic background. Various officials of the Achaemenid Persian Empire were from the Israelite tribe of Judah, and the Parthians were themselves descendants of the ten tribes of Israel. The term “Iran” comes from the ‘Ephraimite clan named after “Eran,” and even the term “Pahlavi” or “Pehlevi” contains the name of the Israelite tribe of Levi!

As mentioned above, the Scythian clan of the Dahanites had a major role in the origins of Parthia’s independence. It is possible that they were from a third major branch of the ‘Ephraimites mentioned in Numbers 26:35…the “Tahanites.” If the Dahanites were the Tahanites of Ephraim (“d” and “t” are linguistically-similar consonants), it would mean that Parthian independence began as a result of three separate clans of the tribe of Ephraim acting in concert. The Bactrians, Eranians and Dahanites were most likely the ‘Ephraimite clans of the Bachrites, the Eranites, and the Tahanites, and their mutual cooperation would have been the backbone of Parthia’s strength. The subsequent stability of Parthia argues that its component clans were closely related and had much in common. This stability is understandable if the above clans were all part of the tribe of Ephraim. While the name “Dahanites” also seems similar to the tribe of Dan, it is doubtful they were Danites. The tribe of Dan traditionally did not act in concert with (or consult) the other tribes about its actions. Joshua 19:47 records the Danites undertook a war without advise or cooperation from the other tribes, and Ezekiel 27:17-19 shows the Danites had developed an identity completely apart from the other tribes. Since the Danites were historically “loners” among the tribes of Israel, it is likely the Scythian “Dahanites” were the “Tahanites” of Ephraim.

Since ‘Ephraimite names predominate in Parthia’s origin, and since the Massagetae were one of the foremost tribes of their Scythian kinsmen, it indicates that Ephraim and Manasseh (the major tribes of the ten-tribed kingdom of Israel, and inheritors of the “birthright” promise of Genesis 48 that included national greatness) were the dominant tribes of the Parthians and Scythians, respectively. No wonder that history records a very close relationship between the Scythians and the Parthians. However, even though the Parthians were kinsmen to (and frequently allied to) the Scythians, they were not always peaceable with one another (as we shall see in the next chapter).

As further evidence of the Israelite origins of the Parthians, some Parthian cities were given Hebrew names. An early capital of the Parthians was named Dara,28 which is the exact name of one of the early forebears of the tribe of Judah (I Chronicles 2:3-6).

Yehowah had promised that the tribe of Judah would produce kings and rulers (the “sceptre” promise of Genesis 49:10), and King Dawid was promised that he would always have descendants ruling over the House of Israel (Jeremiah 33:17). Jeremiah’s prophecy was made after the relocation of the House of Israel (the northern ten tribes) into Asia. Therefore, because of the timing of Jeremiah’s prophecy, we should expect to find descendants of King Dawid ruling over the ten tribes of Israel after they moved to Asia.

However, the Jewish forebear named “Dara” was of the subtribe of Zerah, not the Phares branch of the Jews which produced both King Dawid and Yahushua Messiah. This reference to the Zerah branch of Judah is rare in Parthian annals, but there are many Parthian kings with names containing the root word “Phares” (indicating Dawid’s royal bloodline). From the eastern edge of Parthian rule and influence to the western edge, Parthian kings regularly included the “Phares” name. A Parthian king who ruled in the area of West India was named Gondophares,29 and several kings ruling over the Caucasus mountain kingdom of Iberia were named Pharasmanes.30

Chapter four noted that the term “Iberia” is a name derived from the root word “Eber,” the father of the Hebrews. Strabo records that the Iberians were the kinsmen of the Scythians,31 whose Israelite origin has already been demonstrated. The above examples alone show that Dawid’s descendants of the House of Phares were ruling over separate groups of the ten tribes of Israel from the Caucasus Mountains to the territory of modern India. Also, many kings of Parthia itself had names indicating that they were also royal members of the Dawidic line of Judah. Such names include the key consonants of PH-R-S in Hellenized forms of their Parthian names (such Parthian royal names as Phraates, Phraortes, and Phraataces are examples). Over the centuries Yehowah kept his promise to Dawid by causing Dawid’s descendants to rule over many Israelite nations in Asia.

How did Dawid’s descendants (from the defunct kingdom of Judah) ever come to rule over the descendants of the ten tribes in Asia? While Yehowah can easily intervene in world affairs to keep his promises, the Bible suggests how this might have happened. In II Kings 24:8-15, we read that one of the last kings of Judah, Jehoiachin, was carried captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar. Was this the end of him? Hardly! II Kings 25:27-30 shows that after 37 years of captivity, he was a later king of Babylon:

“…did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison; and he spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the thrones of the kings that were with him in Babylon…” (KJV)

The king of Babylon was supreme over the Babylonian Empire, but he was served by many subordinate rulers, who were vassal kings over assigned areas. That a Babylonian king gave Jehoiachin a throne indicates that Jehoiachin was made a vassal ruler over part of the Babylonian Empire. Indeed, the account states that he was set “above” the other vassal kings! Since there were many descendants of the ten tribes of Israel who were subordinate to the Babylonian Empire (which inherited them when it conquered Assyria), it is most likely that Jehoiachin was made a ruler over the Israelites in Babylon’s Empire. Since Jehoiachin was a descendant of King Dawid (of the Phares line), his descendants apparently established a dynasty which continued to rule over descendants of the ten tribes when they regained their independence. I Chronicles 3:16-24 records that the royal family of Judah did not die out, but produced many descendants during the generations after the fall of Jerusalem. There was no shortage of royal princes of Dawid’s House to place on thrones over the descendants of the ten tribes. Since the Babylonian king made Jehoiachin a favored vassal king, he may have set some of Jehoiachin’s relatives in positions of power as well. Perhaps the Babylonians felt that the captive nations of the Assyrians (whom they inherited as subjects) would exhibit less rebelliousness if they were given their own hereditary rulers as vassal kings. A search would have found Jehoiachin, a hereditary Israelite ruler, alive in a dungeon. The years in prison likely made Jehoiachin a very grateful vassal king, indeed! However, this is not the only source of Dawidic rulers over the ten tribes of Israel. The kings of Iberia (named Pharasmanes) in the Caucasus region near the Black Sea were not captives of Assyria or Babylon. How did Dawid’s descendants come to rule in that region? In chapter four an account was cited that a large portion of the ten tribes who escaped Assyrian captivity by migrating northward into the Caucasus were led by a “chief or prince whom they appointed.”32 This indicates that they made a clean break with whatever dynasty was ruling Israel in its last days, and that a new leader was “appointed” by the escaping Israelites. The subsequent evidence that their rulers included the name of “Phares” argues that this group of the ten tribes picked a “prince” of Dawid’s royal line as their new leader. They migrated in approximately 724-721 B.C., and by 653 B.C. a leader of a Scythian-Cimmerian-Median alliance against Assyria was led by a person named “Phraortes.”33 The name “Phraortes” includes the root word PH-R-S (Phraortes), indicating a likely link to the Dawidic royal line of Phares. Phraortes is often regarded as a “Mede,” but his name is similar to the names of later Parthian kings (“Phraates” or “Phraataces.)” This indicates that Phraortes was a Scythian bearing a “Parthian” royal name even though “Parthia” would not exist for another 400 years! It is apparent that Dawidic rulers of the line of Phares were ruling in Scythic Iberia a century before Jehoiachin was made a vassal king of the Babylonians in approximately 563 B.C.

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Royal Line of King Dawid

Israel/Judah: Judah---------- Phares--------------Dawid

Iberia/Scythia: King Pharesmenes

Parthian/Saka: King Gondophares (India)

Parthia/Sacae: King Phraates, Phraortes, Phraataces

Messiah’s Lineage: Phares--------- Dawid--------------Yahushua

While Dawid’s descendants were ruling, literally, all over Asia among the scattered descendants of the ten tribes of Israel, the reader should not assume that their reigns were all enlightened or cooperative. Dawid was given the blessing that his seed would always be rulers over the ten tribes of Israel; however, Dawid’s descendants were also under a curse. After Dawid committed adultery with Bathsheba and also arranged the death of her husband, Uriah, Nathan the prophet was sent by Yehowah to deliver a curse (II Samuel 12:10) that “the sword shall never depart from thine house.” The “sword” symbolizes that death by violence and murder would be common among Dawid’s descendants. This happened in Dawid’s lifetime as Amnon, Dawid’s eldest son, was killed by Absalom, Dawid’s favorite son; Absalom was then killed during a rebellion against Dawid, and another of Dawid’s sons (Adonijah) was killed by King Solomon (Dawid’s son via Bathsheba). This curse also clung to the ruling house of Parthia. As we shall see in chapter eight, Parthia’s Arsacids regularly fought among themselves over the throne of Parthia, and the more brutal rulers killed many of their own relatives in order to eliminate rivals to the throne. Yet, no matter how brutal or vicious the Arsacids were among themselves, the Parthians always insisted that their rulers had to be blood members of the Arsacid family.

Another prominent city of Parthia was named Asaak,34 where Arsaces was crowned king, which clearly represents a form of the name “Isaac.” The name of Isaac had also been attached to geographical areas in Asia long before Parthia ever became independent. Strabo records that Alexander the Great noted a region named Asaacanus which was traversed in Alexander’s expedition to India.35

The Parthian province of Media Atropatene was located southwest of the Caspian Sea. The noted historian, George Rawlinson, records that (in Parthian times) “Its chief city was Gaza.”36 This city was apparently named after the famous old Palestinian city of the same name, arguing its inhabitants had come from Palestine. Given the fact that II Kings 17:6 records that the Assyrian conquerors of old Israel had transported Israelite captives to the “cities of the Medes,” it is not surprising that we later find a city of the Medes bearing a Palestinian name.

In the Parthian province of Hyrcania (located on the southeast shores of the Caspian Sea), we find that two of its chief cities were named “Samariane” and “Carta.”37 These names are clear evidence of the presence of Israelites from the former ten-tribed kingdom of Israel. Israel’s capital city was named Samaria, and II Kings 17:6-7 records that its inhabitants, after a three-year siege, were transplanted by the Assyrians into Asia after the city fell. Centuries later, we find a Parthian city, Samariane, bearing the name of the capital city of the old Kingdom of Israel. It is logical that Israelite captives would later move to a place of their choosing (after the Assyrian Empire disintegrated), and name one of their new cities in honor of their ancestral capital. The city named “Carta” bears the same Semitic root word which is present in the name “Carthage” (as was discussed earlier in this chapter).

There is additional evidence to support the Israelite origins of the Parthians. While initial Parthian coins were inscribed in Greek, later Parthian coins bear Semitic inscriptions.38 The Parthian monarchs, whose faces are shown on their coins, clearly exhibit facial features of the white race, supporting a Semitic origin for the Parthian nation.39 Whether we look at their language, their names or their faces, all hard evidence indicates a Semitic origin for the Parthians, debunking speculation that the Parthians were a Mongoloid (Oriental) race from the interior of Asia.

During Yahushua Messiah’s ministry, Matthew 10:6 states that he sent his twelve apostles “to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.” Biblical references to the House of Israel identify the ten tribes of Israel, not the Jews (who were called the House of Judah). Since Yahushua Messiah commissioned his apostles to go to the descendants of the ten tribes of Israel, it is clear that Yahushua knew that the Israelites could be found in specific homelands at that time. Also, the apostles expressed no surprise at this commission as not one of them said: “No one knows where the ten tribes are!” or “They were all ‘lost’ long ago!”

Josephus and Yahushua The Messiah did not consider the ten tribes to be “lost” at all, but rather living in known geographical locations. It is significant that the Apostle Peter wrote the book of I Peter from the city of Babylon (I Peter 5:13). Since Babylon was a city of the Parthian Empire at that time, it indicates that Peter had heeded Yahushua Messiah’s instructions by traveling to territory ruled by the ten tribes. Historical accounts also assert that the Apostle Thomas traveled within Parthia. Indeed, the early church historian Eusebius identified Thomas as the apostle sent to the Parthians.40 There are historical records which link the Apostle Thomas to the Parthian king Gondophares (mentioned earlier), who reigned in ancient India.41 The presence of the apostles of Yahushua Messiah in Parthian territory shows their recognition that the Parthians were Israelites.

It is also significant that there were Parthian believers in the Yehowah of Israel who made pilgrimages to Jerusalem for the annual Holy Days of Yehowah. Acts 2:1-10 states that Parthians were present at the Pentecost Day when the Holy Spirit was poured out to the Apostles. The Medes, Elamites and “dwellers in Mesopotamia” mentioned in Acts 2:9 had all come from Parthian provinces. Since part of the ten tribes had been settled in Media (II Kings 17:6), it is likely that the “Medes” who made a religious pilgrimage to Jerusalem were Israelites from the ten tribes. Some of these pilgrims were certainly Jews living in Parthia, but many were not Jews. Verse 10 indicates that these pilgrims were “Jews and proselytes (non-Jews).” Since Israelites from the ten tribes were non-Jews, the term “proselytes” could apply to them as well as gentiles. The Holy Day which the apostles and devout pilgrims were keeping (later called Pentecost) was the Feast of Weeks (Leviticus 23:15-21).

In the preceding chapter, it was shown that the old Phoenician/Hebrew trait of wearing a pointed hat (or miter) was continued in the Scythian tribes. Parthian coins show that the wearing of a pointed hat or miter was also a custom of the Parthian kings.42

One more item of evidence concerning the Israelite nature of the Parthian Empire will be presented, and then chapter eight will examine its fascinating, albeit obscure, history. The final piece of evidence concerns the name “Parthia” itself. In chapter three it was pointed out that the Hebrew word for “covenant,” (B-R-T or B-R-TH) was commonly used where ever the empire of Israel was dominant. This Hebrew word formed the basis for regions colonized by Israel (“Briton” and “Brittany”) or for migrating groups of Israelites (“Brythonic Celts”). We have seen that the Phoenician/Hebrew Empire and Carthage placed the Hebrew word “B-R-T” on their coins. How does this all pertain to the Parthians?

In the ancient world, the letters “B” and “P” were interchange-able (both are phonetic “labial” sounds). In his book, Phoenician Origin of Britons, Scots and Anglo-Saxons, L.A. Waddell points out that the “Phoenicians” interchanged the B’s and P’s in various forms of the word B-R-T. He lists many ancient forms in which the root word B-R-T was expressed. Words such as “Barat,” “Prat,” “Britannia,” and “Piritum” are just a few samples of words based on the Hebrew word for “covenant.”43 The Ancient British Chronicles record that the first king of Briton was named Brutus, whose name was also formed by the B-R-T consonants of the Hebrew word for “covenant.”44 Waddell notes that the Phoenicians interchanged the B’s and P’s in the Mediterranean world, and adds that the Phoenicians of Cilicia called the city of Tarsus “Parthenia.”45 (Emphasis added.) The Greeks also interchanged P’s and B’s, as the Greek explorer Pytheas referred to the British Isles by the term “Pretanic” (using a P) while Aristotle refers to them by the word “Britannic” (using a B).46

Since the Greeks interchanged P’s and B’s and they wrote of the Parthians, the word “Parthia” could just as easily have been written as “Barthia,” or “Brithia.” In these forms the Hebrew word for covenant: “B-R-T” or “B-R-TH,” is clearly evident. In fact, if the reader will consult a biblical concordance, the Hebrew word for covenant will likely be “Berith” (with the consonants B-R-TH).47 Representing the “B” as a “P,” the consonants become P-R-TH, the exact consonants of the word “Parthia!” The identity of the Parthians is no longer a mystery. They were the “covenant” people of the ten tribes of Israel who were then living in Asia; their very name declared to the world that they were the “covenant” people. Indeed, an early king of their Scythian kinsmen named Partatua (circa 626 B.C.) included the P-R-T root word which foreshadowed the later name: “Parthia.”48

The interchangeability of the P’s and B’s in the ancient world has also been noted by a modern epigrapher, Dr. Barry Fell. He gives the name “P-Celts” to a group of Celts who used “P” and “B” interchangeably. These “P” Celts were the “Brythonic” Celts, and they gave birth to the Breton, Welsh and Cornish languages as well as the ancient “Gaulish languages of central and eastern Europe.”49 The “P-Celts” were Israelites who, retaining the designation as the “covenant people,” migrated westward toward the British Isles and Europe rather than northward and eastward into Asia as did the Israelites who became the Iberians, the Sacae Scythians and the Parthians.

The arrival of the “P-Celts” in Briton represented another infusion of Israelite people into a population which was already largely a product of Israelite colonization. In fact, the dominant Israelite presence in Britain is confirmed in the fact that the British Isles have been known by variants of the Hebrew word for “covenant” (B-R-T) ever since the reigns of Kings Dawid and Solomon.

In conclusion, let us briefly review the overwhelming evidence that the Parthians were Israelites of the ten tribes of Israel who had migrated to Asia. The Parthians were never recorded as being in Asia until after the ten tribes of Israel relocated to Asia. The Bible records that these tribes were placed in the “cities of the Medes,” and Parthia’s homeland adjoined the territory of the Medes. History records the Parthians were first under the dominion of the Assyrians, and that was also the fate of those Israelites taken captive by the Assyrians. We can see the names of sub-tribes of Ephraim in the Parthian homelands, and history is clear that the Parthians were the kinsmen of the Scythian Saka/Sacae (showing that the Parthians were also known as descendants of Isaac).

The Parthians and Scythians are the people written about by Josephus as the extremely numerous descendants of the ten tribes of Israel. Josephus, who lived in the first century A.D., wrote the following about the ten tribes of Israel:

“…the ten tribes are beyond Euphrates till now, and are an immense multitude, and not to be estimated by numbers.”50 (Emphasis added.)

At the time that Josephus wrote, the Euphrates River had long been the recognized border between the Roman and Parthian Empires. For Josephus to write (from his perspective within the Roman Empire) that the ten tribes were “beyond the Euphrates River” was another way of saying the ten tribes were “in Parthia,” even as many Americans would recognize the phrase “beyond the Rio Grande” as a euphemism for “in Mexico.”

The Parthian cities of Asaak, Dara and Samariane were given Hebrew names. Many groups from the Parthian Empire were among the worshippers of the Yehowah of Israel who were in Jerusalem for a Holy Day of Yehowah (the first Pentecost). The Parthians had Hebrew/Semitic words in their language, and placed Semitic inscriptions on their coins. The Parthian Arsacid dynasty included the name of Isaac and many individual kings had names which included the term “Phares,” fulfilling Yehowah’s promise to Dawid that his descendants would continue to have rulers over the House of Israel. The very name “Parthia” preserves the Hebrew word “B-R-TH” (with the “B” shown as a “P”), proclaiming that they were “the covenant people.” The facts are clear. The Parthian Empire was an empire of Israelites who, having thrown off the dominion of their captors, were now ruling over their previous masters.

While Rome dominated the Mediterranean region and much of Europe, the Parthian Empire dominated the territory between the Euphrates and Indus Rivers and between the Persian Gulf to the Russian steppes of the Scythian tribes. The Parthian Empire stretched approximately 1900 miles from east to west and 1000 miles from north to south.51
 

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Parthia and Rome interacted on equal terms, yet few in the modern world have ever heard about Parthia. Rome and Parthia had major wars (the result of Roman aggression), major summit conferences and even a period of détente. Parthia was a monarchy with the beginnings of a bicameral government and its own “Independence Day.” It offered “home rule” to many of its cities, and ruled its subjects in a far more benevolent manner than did Rome.

Source: Wroth, BMC Parthia

Endnotes: Chapter Seven

1.Rawlinson, Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, Preface, pp. .v-vi .
2. Rawlinson, Parthia, p. 27
3. Rawlinson, Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, p. 15
4. Rawlinson, Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, p. 22
5. I bid, p. 19
6. Ibid, p. 20
7. Ibid, p. 19
8. Ibid, p. 26
9. Ibid, p. 19
10. Ibid, see footnote 1, p. 15 .
11. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. I, "Alphabet," pp. 683-684
12. Rawlinson, The Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, p. 23
13. Charles-Picard, Daily Life in Carthage, p. 27
14. Church,Carthage,p.13
15. Frye, The Heritage of Persia, pp. 58, 213, 220, and 238
16. Rawlinson, The Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, p. 159
17. Young's Analytical Concordance to the Bible, Hebrew Lexicon, word "Sur," p. 48 .
18. Ibid, word "Ayin (=En)", third meaning, p. 6
19. Rawlinson, The Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, p. 44
20. Frye, The Heritage of Persia, p. 208; and Rawlinson, Parthia, p. 10
21. Rawlinson, Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, pp. 42-44; and Encyclopaedia
     Britannica, Vol. 17, "Parthia," p. 344
22. Frye, The Heritage of Persia, p. 198-199
23. Rawlinson, Henry, Bactria, p. 12
24. Ragozin, Media pp. 15-21
25. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. 24, Index Section, see "Eran," p. 580
26. Ragozin, Media, p. 20-22
27. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. 17, "Pahlavi or Pehlevi," p. 30
28. Frye, p. 210; and Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. 17, "Parthia,. p. 345
29.Frye, p. 201; and Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. 17, "Persia," p. 577
30. Rawlinson, Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, pp. 231-233, 263, 320-321
31. Strabo, Geography, 11,3,3
32. Gawler, p. 9
33. Culican, The Medes and Persians, p. 50
34. Frye, p. 211; and Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. 17, "Parthia," pp. 344-345
35. Strabo, Geography, 15, 1, 27
36. Rawlinson, Ancient History, p. 474
37. Ibid, p. 475
38. Rawlinson, Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, pp. 297 and 318
39. Ibid, pp. 63, 69, 91, 220, 228, 250, 269, 294, 296 and 320
40. Eusebius, The History of the Church, Ill, 1
41. Frye, p. 201; and Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. 17 "Persia," p. 577
42. Rawlinson, Sixth Great Oriental Monarchy, pp. 68 and 91
43. Waddell, pp. 52-59
44. Ibid, pp. 150-159
45. Ibid, p. 54
46. Ibid, pp. 54 and 146
47. Young's Analytical Concordance to the Bible, Hebrew Lexicon, word "Berith," p. 8
48. Rice, The Scythians, p. 45
49. Fell, America B.C, pp. 41-42
50. Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, XI, V, 2
51. Rawlinson, Ancient History, p.47

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Was the History of Parthia Intentionally Hidden?

The intentionally hidden historical presence of both houses of Yisr'el within the nation Parthia must be made known to both houses of Yisr'el/Israel, for they both have and are still ignoring Yehowah's history of the Parthian legacy. Exiled in 721 B.C.E., the Northern ten tribes of the house of Yisr’el did not return to their lands in Samaria. Also, it is estimated by scholars that less than 2%, probably closer to 1%, of the Yahudi exiles from the Southern tribes, Yahudah, Benjamin and Levi of the house of Yahudah, who were taken captive in 588 B.C.E. to the Chaldee-Babylon Empire, ever returned to their lands in Yahudah.

Genesis (Bereshith) 49:10; “The sceptre shall not turn aside from Yahudah, nor a Lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to Him is the obedience of peoples.”

Jeremiah (Yirmeyahu) 33:14-27; ‘See the days are coming,’ declares Yehowah, ‘when I shall establish the good word which I have promised to the house of Yisr’el and to the house of Yahudah: In those days and at that time I cause a Branch of Righteousness to spring forth for Dawid. And He shall do right-ruling and righteousness in the earth.’ ‘In those days Yahudah shall be saved and Yerushalayim dwell in safety.’ ‘And this is that which shall be proclaimed to her: ‘Yehowah our Righteousness.’ “For thus said Yehowah, ‘For sovereign Dawid there is not to cease a man to sit on the throne of the house of Yisr’el.’”

Yehowah foretold that the tribe of Judah/Yahudah would produce kings and rulers – the “sceptre” promise of Genesis/Bereshith 49:10 – and King David/Dawid was promised that his descendents would always rule over the house of Israel/Yisr’el. (Jeremiah/Yirmeyahu 33:17) Jeremiah’s prophecy was made after the relocation of the house of Israel, the northern ten tribes, into Asia. Because Jeremiah’s prophecy was made at the time when the ten tribes were living in Asia, we would expect to find descendants of Kind Dawid ruling over the ten tribes of Israel in Asia. Throughout the Parthian-Scythian sphere of influence, kings are found with names based upon the word “Phares,” a marker of Dawid’s royal blood line. Matthew 1:3-6 confirms Kind Dawid was a descendant of a Jewish/Yahudi patriach named Pharez (Phares). A Parthian-Saka king who ruled in the area of West India was named Gondophares, and several kings ruling over the Scythian kingdom of Iberia in the Caucus Mountain region were named Pharesmanes. The term “Iberia” is derived from the word “Eber,”

There is a common misconception that the ten tribes of Israel “disappeared” when they migrated into Asia. Nothing could be further from the truth! For many centuries, ancient historians knew both who the Israelites were, and where they went. They were not lost at all. Consider one such example. Flavius Josephus was a Jewish military commander, a Pharisee, and an historian of the first century A.D. He wrote this about the ten tribes of Israel who were in Asia: This quote is taken from Antiquities of The Jews – Book XI – Chapter V – Verse 2. “Wherefore there are but two tribes (Yahudah and Benjamin plus the Levites) in Asia and Europe subject to the Romans, while the ten tribes are beyond the Euphrates till now, and are in immense multitude, and not to be estimated by numbers.sephus knew that their population had become too numerous to estimate, and that the Euphrates River served as their western border. Taken from page 171 – Steven M. Collins Book – ‘The “Lost” – Ten Tribes of Israel – Found!’ – CPA Books – PO Box 596 – Boring Oregon 97009.

Parthian Tolerance

While in Babylon, Nearda, and Nisibis the Jews enjoyed the free exercise of their comparatively pure and elevated religion. No restrictions seem to have been placed on Proselytism, and Judaism certainly boasted many converts from the heathen at Adiabene, Charax Spasini, and elsewhere. Nazarene Christianity also penetrated the Parthian providences to a considerable extent, and in one Parthian country, at any rate, seems to have become the state religion. The kings of Osrhoene are thought to have been Nazarene Christians from the time of Antonines, if not from that of our Lord; and a flourishing church was certainly established at Edessa before the end of the second century. The Parthian Jews who were witnesses of the miraculous events which signalized the Day of Pentacost Acts 2:9 may have in some cases, taken with them the new religion to the land where they had their residence; or the Apostle, St. Thomas, may (as Eusebius declares) have carried the Gospel into the regions beyond the Euphrates, and have planted the Christian Messianic Church in the countries out of which the Messianic Nazarene Jewish Church started. Besides the flourishing community of Edessa, which was predominately, if not wholly Christian Nazarene from the middle of the second century, many converts, we are told, are to be found among the inhabitants of Persia, Media, Parthia Proper, and even Bactria. The Sixth Monarchy – pages 401-402 – by George Rawlinson, M.A. –published by Dodd, Mead & Co. – NY, NY

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Who are the “Nazarenes” and what is the “Church of the East”?

Andrew Gabriel Roth tells us the following in his book “Ruach Qadim”.

In 1 Peter 5:12, the apostle writes, “She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends her greetings, as does my son Mark.” Contrary to Roman Catholic tradition, this statement by Peter is not some coded allusion to Rome, the city where he would later be murdered. Rather, this is a literal reference to an assembly in Babylon that Peter had helped to establish, and yet its story is almost completely unknown in the West. First, though, we need to look at two other key quotations:

“We have found this man (Paul) to be a trouble maker, stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the Nazarene sect.” – Acts 24:5

“…The disciples were the first called Christians in Antioch.” – Acts 11:28

What we see here are the beginnings of the original assemblies of messianic believers, both Jewish and Gentile alike. Tradition calls these foundational assemblies “Sees”, and they sprang up in large cities throughout the Roman and Persian empires beginning in the opening decades after the ascension of the Messiah. Of these, the most powerful one was the See of Jerusalem and it held sway in legal rulings that affected all of the other assemblies of the time, such as with the circumcision controversy covered in Acts 15. These assemblies were the Nazarenes, also known as “the Way” (Acts 24:12-14), and even though the apostle Paul is mentioned as being a “ringleader” by his accusers. The fact was that Paul was subservient to both Peter and the Messiah’s brother James the Just, who actually headed that contingent. All of the original disciples and other Jewish believers that were native to Israel who followed them are given the title of “Nazarenes”.

By contrast, the quote from Acts 11:28 clearly tells us that these same disciples were called “Christians” in Antioch. While this usage was somewhat of a misnomer given the fact that the people being addressed were again Jews, the term eventually stuck to the Gentiles in that city who later came to faith, and this definition was later extended to all Gentile assemblies everywhere. In any case, the “See of Antioch” would later become known as the present Syrian Orthodox Church.

However, as 1 Peter 5:13 clearly states, a third ancient body had been established in Babylon by the apostle himself, for just as Paul went west and made converts throughout the Roman Empire, so did Peter do to the east of Jerusalem. Babylon was a logical choice for Peter to go to since after Israel, it boasted the largest Jewish population in the world.

The most amazing facet to this history though is not so much that Peter founded an assembly other than Rome that is almost unknown in the West, but more an issue of when this happened. For while Romans call Peter their first pope, the fact remains that Rome is the city where Peter was murdered. By contrast the various Babylonian groups that were known collectively as khugy (huts) were established by Peter at least twenty years earlier than any Roman assembly. As a result, the first epistle that Peter wrote would have been one of the earliest Aramaic New Testament documents to be sent to this group that would soon be known as knooshta d’netzarim, or the Assembly of Nazarenes.

Other Aramaic New Testament documents followed suit, and when the See of Jerusalem eventually fell, the task of preserving these precious manuscripts fell to this same group in Babylon, who has carried on the responsibility all along the centuries and into our present time. It is this body therefore, known as “the Church of the East”, which endures as a true legacy of the original talmidim (disciples). Taken from ‘Ruach Qadim’ – Andrew Gabriel Roth –pages 30-33 – Tushiyah Press, Box 10, Mosta MST-01, Republic of Malta

This e-mail, quoted following, was written to Your Arms To Israel International Ministries - MIAMI, FL 33169 on March 31, 2003.

I wanted to take this opportunity though to deepen a point you made. You wrote about how 1 Peter 5:13 fit into a two-house understanding. I agree, but I also wanted you to know that the verse has another key purpose that the world does not know about and that directly relates to both of our
research projects on the Nazarenes.

Pagan-catholic Rome has propagated a lie over the last 2000 years that "Babylon" is a coded reference for Rome itself--however in the East they have a different understanding. They view the verse as LITERAL. Furthermore, their tradition documents that Peter founded assemblies in Babylon more than
20 years before he even set foot in Rome, and at that time he was brought there ostensibly to die.

You know well how the Nazarenes were the Jerusalem Rosh Beit Din for Messianics, and how Ya'akov Ha Tzadik presided over that assembly (Acts 15). You also know from Galatians and elsewhere that while Paul went west, Peter went east. At that time, the largest population of Jews outside of Israel was in Babylon. These Jews stayed behind--did NOT return with Ezra and Nehemiah--and they translated the Torah from Hebrew and into the Aramaic language. Today we know this translation as the Peshitta Tanakh. It is these Jews that Peter went to see, and he met with them in synagogues and in KHUGY (huts). It is from this group that Peter wrote his first letter and
sent it to their headquarters that had by then relocated to a city called Abdiabne.

And I will tell you something else, this assembly of Peter's was the second oldest and powerful, with Jerusalem surpassing it. The difference is this assembly, the See of Babylon SURVIVED INTACT.

Take that in for a second. They are still here. Now we back track into history.

The Nazarenes, as you know, suffered greatly under both Jewish Revolts. By the year 135 they are almost destroyed and their learning center in Jerusalem was gone. Here is what you may not know though. They migrated to Babylon in many cases to hook up with their brethren there. Included in
this migration were cousins from BOTH SIDES of Y'shua's earthly family who became patriarchs in Babylon. They even retained the name "Assembly of the Nazarenes" and are recorded as such in 4th century Perisan records. Granted by this time "Nazarenes" would have been the name of many groups under this assembly by then, but their core was made up of the original Jews. These Nazarenes also brought their Scripture with them, the same Aramaic NT I hold sacred, and they are known today as the Church of the East.

So, yes Peter 5:13 speaks to your themes on two-house, but it also does so much more and touches in my area of study as well.

You also mentioned the "Prodigal Son" parable--but here is something you may find surprising. You know the verse in Matthew that says "Do not cast pearls before swine...?" That is the drash to the prodigal son, who lived with pigs and wanted to eat their scraps. And there's two other things you
need to know about it:

1) The verse is badly translated from Aramaic into Greek because of multiple meaning words and the lack of vowels that confuse words. (I have the documentation in my book) In any case, the right translation is: "Do not HANG EARRINGS ON DOGS, nor cast pearl before swine..." This is Semitic
poetry with graphic imagery of dogs and pigs wearing jewelry.

2) What you should wonder though is WHO ARE THE DOGS AND WHO ARE THE PIGS?Perhaps you deal with this later, and if so forgive me, but from what I have read it would have been cool to see the extra point that the DOGS are sinners in Judah and Pharisees who are hypocritical and the PIGS are Ephraim who went whoring with Gentiles! Without Torah what will happen to both
groups? Chaos, as they turn and rend you (who HAS Torah) to pieces--unless of course we turn to Messiah for help (I am the Good Shepherd...my sheep hear my voice).

Shlama w'burkate
Andrew Gabriel Roth
www.xlibris.com/SignsoftheCross.html

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The Church of the East – Not the Universal Cathlicos of Rome greatly influenced by Constantine 1.

Now, then, we must refer to the Church of the East – the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East for review of how the Church presently describes and relates to its past history and current status. The following information is taken directly from a current printed flyer describing the Church and its history, which is written by Archdeacon Nenos Michael.

ESTABLISHMENT

This Aramaic-speaking remnant of Ancient Church of the East came into existence immediately after the resurrection of Our Lord, when the Apostle St. Thomas sent St. Thaddeus (Mar Addai) to the city of Edessa (a city-state) in the north-west of Mesopotamia. There, many believed of the CHRIST. Later, both St. Thomas (Mar Toma) and St. Peter (Mar Petros (Shimun Kepa) ) came also. You will find reference to this Church in St. Peter’s first epistle, i.e. “The chosen Church, which is in Babylon…”
(1 Peter 5:13)

EXPANSIONS

Through the efforts of these Assyrian converts of Edessa, impelled by the power of the Holy Spirit, their missionaries went forth from Edessa and Nisibis to convert the world to CHRIST/MESSIAH. In the sixth century they successfully preached Christianity to the Bactrians, the Huns, the Persians, the Indians, the Medes, and the Elamites. The churches from the Persian Gulf to the Caspian Sea, were almost infinite, and their faith was conspicuous in the number and sanctity of their monks and martyrs. In their progress by sea and land, they were the first to enter China (635 A.D.) and under the reign of the Caliphs, the Church was diffused from China to Jerusalem. Indeed, names such as Bar-Iskhaq, Bakhtishu, Gauriel, and many other Assyrian scholars of the Church of the East, illuminated the intellectual Islamic history of this period.

The Church grew rapidly amongst heavy persecution and spread through out Asia. By the thirteenth century, her great missionary zeal had brought over eighty-four million converts in China, India, and Mongolia to CHRIST/MESSIAH. With twenty-five metropolitan provinces, and an average of eight to ten Episcopal sees for each province, thus totaling 200 to 250 Bishoprics, the Church of the East was larger than both the Greek and Latin Churches combined. Wherever these missionaries installed a new bishopric, a school with library, and a hospital with medical services were included in the project. They combined educational and medical services and religious work with great effect amongst the nations of the East.

The Encyclopedia Britannica says, “Their campaign was one of the deliberate conquest, and one of the greatest ever planned by Christian missionaries. Their activity may well be said to have covered the continent of Asia.” Mr. John Stuart, the author of the “Nestorian Missionary Enterprise” says, “The amazing thing is not where they went, but rather where did they not go.” It is no exaggeration to contend that, in the early middle ages the Church of the East was the most widespread in the whole world.

BEGINNING OF DECLINE

But in the fourteenth century, great ruin came upon this most ancient and Holy Church. The Mongols, under Timur Leng, swept through the East, leaving only death and destruction. Of the eighty-four million converts, seventy-eight million had been swept away. The remnant of the Western part gathered around their congregations in Northern Mesopotamia (Iraq) in the mountains of Kurdistan and Azerbaijan. Of the great Eastern part, nothing remained except Malabar in India. The remnant of the Church of the East survived precariously in the mountains of Kurdistan in northern Iraq and Azerbaijan and around the shores of Lake Urmia in Iran.

Since World War I, the Church of the East and the “Assyrian” nation of which it is the religious embodiment have been the victim of Near Eastern power politics.

Individual “Assyrians” began to come to the United States as early as mid-1700s, but immigration in fairly large number did not begin until after World War I and after 1970s.

THE CHURCH AT THE PRESENT

The members of the Church maintain their religion as best they could in spite of all the mentioned hardships. In addition to the congregations in the United States and the congregations on the Malabar Coast of India, there are organized congregations of the Church of the East in Australia, Canada, England, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Sweden and hopefully in the Soviet Union where there are over forty thousand Assyrians.

The Present Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East is His Holiness Mar Khanania Dinkha IV, who is the 120th successor to the Apostolic See of Babylon. Taken from a current flyer describing the Church of the East – written by Archdeacon Nenos Michael

Luqa - Luke 1:68; “Blessed is Yehowah ‘Elohim of Yisr’el who has visited His people and wrought to it salvation.”

Now, we take from a booklet written by John H.L.Young and he writes as follows:

THE EARLY CENTURIES

Assyrian Christianity is coincident with the early ministry of our Lord-Maran. King Abgar, sovereign of the little state of Oshroene, with its capital known as Orhai or Edessa, in the northwest of Mesopotamia, believed in Christ - the Messiah and His mission. The Assyrian people, there fore, speaking the Aramaic (Syriac) the language spoken by Yahushua and His apostles, in which the New Testament and parts of the Old were written, can rightly claim the honour of being immediately next to the small band of Galileans as followers of our Lord-Maran in their conversion to the Nazarene Christian faith.

This common bond, and the exchange of ideas, traditions and customs, between the two peoples, namely the ancient Assyrians and Hebrews enabled the Assyrians to accept the Nazarene Christian faith, in a manner that was not possible to non-Aramaic speaking peoples; hence the unequalled zeal and missionary expansion of this Church of Asia, which to this day has preserved its purity, the Apostolic faith and the traditions of the early Church.

The Church of the East, as a branch of Aramaic speaking Nazarene Christianity came to be known, was officially founded by the Apostles, Mar Patros (St. Peter), Mar Toma (St. Thomas), Mar Addai (St. Thaddeus) and Mar Mari of the seventy disciples. St. Thaddeus, immediately after the resurrection was sent by St. Thomas to the City of Odessa, there by fulfilling the **promise made to Abgar by our Lord-Maran, himself.

**On the letter of Abgarus, king of Edessa to our Lord-Maran, and the reply to it, his cure by St. Thaddeus and the conversion of his subjects, see Eusebus Hist. Ec i. 13, and compare Lardner, Credibility, vol. vi. p. 596, and Burton, Eccles. Hist. of First Three Centuries, vol. i, pp. 328, 329.

The purity of the apostolic faith of this most ancient church can be seen thru its teaching that expressed the theological point of view of the church. Little is known of the fact, that the fathers of the Roman Latin Church of the first and second centuries such as Taitian, Yostinos (Justin Martyr), Organon (Origen), Malito, Ireneaus, and others who followed St. Paul to Rome, were all Assyrians or Syrians, Aramaic speaking people, and missionaries of the Church of the East. Taken from a current booklet “The Church of the East” written by John H.L. Young – By Foot to China, 1984

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Why Were The Ten Tribes Of The House of Yisr’el Exiled To Assyria And Media?

Yarob’am is chosen by Yehowah the ‘Elohim of Yisr’el to be the sovereign of the ten northern tribes constituting the house of Yisr’el within the house of Dawid. Please see 1 Kings 11:29-33.

What incident caused the division of Yisr’el into two kingdoms after the death of sovereign Solomon? Please see 1 Kings 12:1-17.

Please see 2 Kings 17:18-23; So Yehowah was enraged with Yisr’el, and removed them from His presence – none was left but the tribe of Yahudah alone. Yahudah, also, did not guard the commands of Yehowah, ‘Elohaychem, but walked in the man-made laws of Yisr’el, which they made.

And Yehowah rejected all the seed of Yisr’el, and afflicted them, and gave them into the hand of the plunderers, until He had cast them out from His presence.

For He tore Yisr’el from the house of Dawid, and then made Jeroboam son of Nebat sovereign. And Jeroboam drove Yisr’el from following Yehowah, and made them commit a great sin. And the children of Yisr’el walked in all the sins of Jeroboam, which he did. They did not turn away from them, until Yehowah removed Yisr’el from His presence, as He spoke by all His servants the prophets. So Yisr’el was exiled from their land to Assyria, as it is to this day. Please see also 1 Kings 16:25-26.

In the Scripture 2 Kings 17:7-17, we see listed all of the transgressions which were attributed to the house of Yisr’el by Yehowah. Also, in 1 Kings 12:28-33, we see that Jeroboam made two calves of gold for the house of Yisr’el to worship and he placed one in Bat ‘El and the other one in Dan. He appointed the priests of the high places of worship unto Ba’al = Molech. He established a feast in the eighth month, one month after the seventh month feast of Yehowah and slaughtered offerings to Ba’al in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day, a month that he had devised in his own heart.

Photo illustration credits for the ‘Parthian Archer’ and the ‘Parthian Armored Rider’ and ‘Archer’ are to the Iran Chamber Society.

Why Include the History of Imperial Parthia in the Israelite Time-line?

Because Parthia was only one of the several Israelite/Yisr’elite empires that came to be in existence in ancient history.

First, we see the ‘Forgotten World Empire’ that was called the Phoenician Empire and its international power and influence around 1000-700 B.C.E. Historians referring to the Phoenician Empire are actually referring to the Empire of Yisr’el to which Tyre and Sidon were allied. Later, the Phar-oh of Egypt joined the alliance and the tripartite became a powerful navy under the leadership of Yisr’elite Sovereign Solomon, which historically is shown to have sailed around the world. Please see 1 Kings 9:26-27 and also page 40 of ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Israel …Found!,’ Written by Steven M. Collins – Published by CPA Books, Boring , OR 97009

Next, we visit Carthage - The Colony that became an Yisr’elite Empire; a great maritime power. Please refer to the fifth chapter of the Steve Collins book ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Yisr’el …Found!’ On pages 139-140 and 148, we see the following comments regarding the founding of Carthage. In the ninth century B.C.E., the northern kingdom of Yisr’el was devastated by a prolonged drought, which had its people literally starving to death. The drought, a result of Elijah’s prayer, came upon them because of their degeneration into the libertine and brutal practices of Baal worship. The Bible describes this period of Yisr’el’s history in 2 Kings 16:29 to 22:40. Yisr’el needed to build a new and closer colony, suitable for accommodating a large portion of its hungry population. It needed to be distant enough to be unaffected by the drought, yet close enough to avoid the hardships and risks of long voyages. The new colony was planted on the north coast of Africa, and given the Hebrew name Kirjath-Hadeschath, which one historian of Carthage translates as “New Town.” Since the city-states of Tyre, Sidon, etc. were closely allied to Yisr’el and were also affected by the drought (1 Kings 17:8-16), there were undoubtedly non-Yisr’elite refugees among the initial colonizers of Kirjath-Hadeschath (Carthage) as well. In fact Carthage (and Yisr’el/Phoenicia knew more about the geography of the spherical earth than the Greeks and Romans ever knew! Yisr’el/Phoenicia and Carthage discovered, explored, colonized and exploited the New World long before Greek or Roman eyes ever saw territory beyond the Mediterranean Sea!

Last, we must pay particular attention to Imperial Parthia, one of the greatest powers in the East, which lasted in history from 250 B.C.E until 226 C.E. Parthia was a great Imperial power for 476 years. In 250 B.C.E., the Scythians and the related Sacae (Arsacids ), living in Syria, took steps to free themselves from the Seleucid Greek domination. A Parthian dynasty east of the Caspian Sea was established by Arsaces 1, who was the leader of a tribe of the Scythians. Please refer to the sixth chapter of the Steve Collins book, ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Yisr’el …Found!’ On pages 174 and 200, we see the following: The appearance of the Scythians in Asia occurs in the reign of King Sargon of Assyria (722-705 B.C.E.). This is precisely the time period of the fall of the northern kingdom of Yisr’el and the flight of the Yisr’elites out of the kingdom of Yisr’el into Asia. The Carthaginians and “Sacae” Scythians were both descended from the ten tribes of the northern kingdom of Yisr’el. Parthia and Rome were two of the largest and most powerful empires that ever existed on the earth. Since they were concurrently existing empires, they became rivals in an ancient “superpower” struggle, which lasted for several centuries.

250 B.C.E. – The Scythians and the related “Sacae” living in Syria took steps to free themselves from the Seleucid Greek domination. A Parthian dynasty was established by Arsaces 1, who was the leader of a tribe of the Scythians.

247 B.C.E. – Arsaces 2 - Tiridates became the second emperor of Parthia. He was responsible for the consolidation and settled establishment of the empire nation. The dynasty was established east of the Caspian Sea. 64 B.C.E.-226 C.E. was the time of the greatest power of the Parthian Empire and as well the greatest land mass accumulation during the life of the Empire. The Parthian Empire continued 476 years until 226 C.E. when the Persians living within Parthia revolted against the Parthian Empire and became a Persian nation led by the Sassanian Persians.

By contrast, the Roman Empire lasted 453 years from 27 B.C.E. until 426 C.E. Its first Emperor was Augustus Caesar, who took control of the empire in 27 B.C.E.

In total, however, the Roman Republic, including the years of the Roman Empire, lasted 936 years from its beginning in 510 B.C.E until 426 C.E. when the city of Rome fell to invaders. Rome was finally destroyed in 455 C.E. The building of the city of Rome was begun in 753 B.C.E.
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Time Line of Ancient Israel/Yisr’el

1095 – 1055 B.C.E - Saul was the first sovereign of the nation Yisr’el, who reigned 40 years. He was from the tribe of Benjamin/Benyamin.

1055 – 1015 B.C.E. – Dawid from the tribe of Judah/Yahudah reigned 40 years; 7 ½ years at Hebron and 32 ½ years at Jerusalem/Yehrushalayim.

1015 – 975 B.C.E. – Solomon/Shelomoh reigned as sovereign for 40 years.

975 B.C.E. – Yarab’am/Jeroboam was made the sovereign of the ten northern tribes of Israel/Yisr’el by Yehowah. Please see 1 Kings 11:28-43; 1 Kings 12:1-17 and 2 Kings 17:21.

975 B.C.E. – The house of Yisr’el, the ten northern tribes, revolt against sovereign Rechab’am/Rehoboam of the house of Dawid of Yahudah in Yehrushalayim. Please see 1 Kings 12:1-24. Yarab’am/Jeroboam built Shechem in the mountains of ‘Ephraim. He made Samaria his capital city of the house of Yisr’el.

Yarab’am/Jeroboam, as sovereign, began his rebellion against the laws and right-rulings of Yehowah by making two golden calves and placing them, one at Bethel/Bat-‘El and the other one at Dan and changing the dates of the annual Feasts of the Torah/Torot. Please see 1 Kings 12:25-33.

The kingdom of the house of Yisr’el lasted for 254 years and during the time was ruled over by 19 sovereigns.

910 B.C.E. – King Ahab of Yisr’el was a particularly evil king in an unbroken progression of evil kings who ruled Yisr’el, and his wife Jezebel (a Phoenician princess) was worse yet! Yehowah intervened by sending Elijah to Yisr’el when the degeneration reached intolerable levels. It was by Elijah’s word that the three and one-half year drought occurred in Yisr’el (1 Kings 17:1, James 5:17). During this period of time the water sources dried up, there was scarcely any vegetation left, and severe starvation gripped both Yisr’el and the Phoenician city-states (1 Kings 17:1-12 & 18:5). Taken from ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Israel …Found!’ – Page 112 – Written by Steven M. Collins – Published by CPA Books, Boring Oregon 97009

906 B.C.E. – The drought brought on by Yehowah was finally ended after the confrontation of Elijah with the 450 priests of Baal (I Kings 18:20-46). The scripture records the episode in which Elijah challenged the priests of Baal to see whether Yehowah or Baal was more powerful. Taken from ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Israel …Found!’ – Page 115 – Written by Steven M. Collins – Published by CPA Books, Boring Oregon 97009

746/745 B.C.E. – Tiglath-Pileser III began his reign of the earlier Assyria by conquering Babylon. He died in 727 B.C.E.

738 B.C.E. – Tiglath-Pileser III invaded Yahudah Yisr’el and imposed heavy tribute tax payments upon King Ahaz (2 Kings 15:19).

734/733 B.C.E. – The northern house of Yisr’el was besieged in stages, with the first deportation to Assyria beginning within this time frame. The first invasion was by Tiglath-Pileser III  and was evidently the beginning of the exile and captivity of the ten tribes of the house of Yisr’el. 2 Kings 15:29; ‘In the days of Pekah sovereign of Yisr’el, Tiglath-Pileser III, sovereign of Assyria, came and took Iyon, Abel Beth Maachah, Yanowach, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria.’

1 Chronicles 5:26 confirms that Gad, Reuben, and half of Manasseh also went captive to Tiglath-Pileser. Besides the above tribes, other Yisr’elites near Galilee were also carried captive at this time. The Tribes of Zebulon and Issachar lived in that region, and contingents of these tribes were likely carried into captivity. Perhaps a third or more of Yisr’el’s population was carried off as captives at this time. . Taken from ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Israel …Found!’ – Page 119 – Written by Steven M. Collins – Published by CPA Books, Boring Oregon 97009

732/731 B.C.E. – Hosea became the sovereign of the ten tribes of the northern house of Yisr’el; the change of rule from sovereign Pekah to Hosea (2 Kings 15:30), the assassination of Pekah by Hosea and the accession of Hosea fell between Tishri (Sept/Oct) 732 and Nissan (Mar/Apr) 731. Hosea was deposed at the time of the overrunning and capture of Samaria in 723/722 B.C.E.

732/731 B.C.E. – Tiglath Pileser III, the sovereign of Assyria, captured the nation of Babylon and combined Babylon and Assyria into one nation, which became known as Greater Assyria, later to become known as the Chaldee-Babylonian Empire.

727 B.C.E. – Tiglath-Pileser III died and was succeeded by Shalmaneser V, who exacted tribute tax payments upon the northern tribes of Yisr’el.

725 B.C.E. – Hosea, king of northern house of Yisr’el, rebelled and discontinued paying the tax tributes to Shalmaneser. Hosea then immediately allied himself with Egypt against Greater Assyria.

725/724 B.C.E. – The Greater Assyrian invasion of Samaria by Shalmaneser V, and the land of the house of Yisr’el lasted for 3 years - 2 Kings 17:5; ‘And the sovereign of Assyria went through the land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three years.’

723/722 B.C.E. – 2 Kings 17:6; ‘In the ninth year of Hosea, the sovereign of Greater Assyria captured Samaria and exiled Yisr’el to Greater Assyria, and settled them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan and in the mountains of Media.’

Since Samaria was built in the area of the tribe of Ephraim, those Yisr’elites going into captivity when Samaria fell were likely Ephramites. Taken from ‘The “Lost” Ten Tribes of Israel …Found!’ – Page 119 – Written by Steven M. Collins – Published by CPA Books, Boring Oregon 97009

722 B.C.E. – The Babylonian Chronicle indicates that Shalmaneser V died in his fifth year, in the month of Tebetu (Dec/Jan), while laying siege to Samaria; and on the twelfth day of that month (Dec 20, 722) his throne was seized by Sargon II, the commander-in-chief of his army. Sargon II would have started his official reign of Greater Assyria in Nisan 722/721. In some of his own late inscriptions in the Babylonian Chronicle, Sargon II claims that at the beginning of his rule, he captured Samaria, and carried 27,290 people away from the city into captivity to Greater Assyria and the Medes and resettled the city with Assyrians. (2 Kings 17:1-6, 24; 18:7-10) Sargon II also waged war against Yahudah Yisr’el and besieged Yehrushalyim, but he did not capture Yehrushalyim. (Isaiah 10:6, 12, 22, 24 & 34) - Taken from the ‘Handbook of Biblical Chronology’ – Item 246– Pages 250-251 – Written by Jack Finegan – Published by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc. PO Box 3473 – Peabody, Massachusetts 01961

722/721 B.C.E. – The Greater Assyrian sovereign Sargon II captured Samaria and exiled the house of Yisr’el, all ten tribes, to Assyria and the land of the Medes.

607 B.C.E. – Nabopolasser – King of Greater Assryia united with Necho of Egypt and Cyaxares of Media and they captured Ninevah, thus ending the Greater Assyrian Empire.

607/606 B.C.E. – The Chaldee-Babylonian Empire was then established with Nebuchadnetzar as its sovereign. By the year 588 B.C.E. his empire extended from the Tigris River to the Nile River of Egypt.

607/606 B.C.E. – In the first year of Nebuchadnetzar’s reign, and the third year of the reign of Yehoyaqim, Nebuchadnetzsar came to Yehrushalayim and besieged it. Yehoyaqim became a servant of Nebuchadnetzsar the sovereign of Babel, and he later rebelled against the sovereign of Babel. Yehowah then sent raiding bands of Chaldeans, ‘Arameans, Mo’abites and ‘Ammonites against Yahudah. 2 Kings 24:1-2.

606 B.C.E. – This is the first exile of Yahudi into Babel. Dani’el, HananYah, Misha’el and AzarYah were among those exiles returned to Babel on the first removal of Yahudi from Beit Yahudah, the house of Judah.

595-574 B.C.E. – The book of Ezekiel was written over a 21-year period of time. Chapters three and four were written in 595 B.C.E. Chapter five was written in 594 B.C.E. In chapters three and four, Ezekiel is given insight into the forthcoming major siege of Yehrushalayim. In chapter five of Ezekiel, he is also given the judgment periods of Yehowah for both wayward houses of Yisr’el. The judgment period for Beit Yisr’el is 390 years times 7 = 2730 years beginning 734 B.C.E. and ending in 1996 C.E. The judgment period for Beit Yahudah is 40 years times 7 = 280 years plus the 70 year exile in Babel, which is 350 years beginning 606 B.C.E. and ending in 256 B.C.E (Wayyiqra 26:27-28). In chapter five, Ezekiel is also given the details about the final siege of the city of Yehrushalayim. In 5:10, we can see that Yehowah tells both houses that a remnant of Yahudah and Yisr’el will be scattered to all the winds of the earth.

590 B.C.E. – Jeremiah 32:28 & 36; Therefore thus said, Yehowah, “See I am giving this city, Yehrushalayim, into the hands of the Chaldeans, into the hand of Nebuchadnetzsar sovereign of Babel, and he shall take it.”

36) And now thus said Yehowah, “The ‘Elohim of Yisr’el, concerning this city Yehrushalayim of which you say, ‘It shall be given into the hands of the sovereign of Babel by the sword, and by scarcity of food and by pestilence.’” Please see Jeremiah 32:26-38.

588 B.C.E. – Yehrushalayim was over-run and taken by raiding bands of Chaldeans, ‘Arameans, Mo’abites and ‘Ammonites. The Temple was burned, and the city walls and the city were destroyed. The sovereign Zedekiah’s sons were killed before his eyes and his eyes were then put out. He and thousands were taken captive in the exile to the Chaldee-Babylonian Empire. Please see 2 Kings 24:1-25; 30.

559 B.C.E. – The Persian monarchy was established and Cyrus became the sovereign of Media, which was later taken into the Great Persian Empire.

559-330 B.C.E. – Both the house of Yisr’el and the house of Yahudah became part of Persia and remained within the Great Persian Empire. The Persian Empire continued for 229 years until 330 B.C.E. The Great Persian Empire was born from the capture and surrender of Media, Assyria, Lydia and Egypt.

538 B.C.E. – The Chaldee-Babylonian Empire of Nebuchadnezzar ends.

536 B.C.E. – A decree to rebuild Yehrushalayim and build a house for Yehowah was issued by Cyrus in his first year as sovereign of the Great Persian Empire. Please see Ezra 1:1-3. The first return from exile of the Hebrews taken to the Chaldee-Babylonian empire between 606 and 588 B.C.E. from Yehrushalayim and its surrounding areas was 49,697 (42,360 exiles plus 7,337 servants) persons. They returned to Yahudah along with the gold and silver which Nebuchadnetzar had brought from the House of Yehowah and taken into the temple of Babel. The returning leaders were Sheshbazzar, Zerubbabel and Yeshua. Please see Ezra 1-6.

536 B.C.E – The work of rebuilding the Set-apart House of Yehowah in Yehrushalayim was begun. Please see Ezra 1.

536 B.C.E. – Work on the House of Yehowah was stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius I, the Great. Please see Ezra 4:5, 24.

520 B.C.E. – Work on the House of Yehowah was resumed by Zerubbabel and Yeshua. They were encouraged in their work by Haggai and ZecharYah. Please see Ezra 5-6.

515 B.C.E. – The House of Yehowah in Yehrushalayim was completed. Please see Ezra 6:15.

486 B.C.E. – Xerxes/Khashayarshah/Ahasurerus became the sovereign of the Greater Persian Empire. He reigned from India unto Ethiopia, a total of 127 provinces. He reigned from Shusan the palace until 465 B.C.E.

484 B.C.E. – In the 3rd year of his reign, Ahasurerus made a banquet unto all of his rulers and his servants to show the power and riches of Greater Persia and Media. Please see Esther 1:3-5.

482 B.C.E – Queen Vashti was divorced by Ahasurerus and Esther was made Queen in her place. Haman was hanged on the gallows and Mordecai came before the sovereign and he was given the signet ring of the sovereign.

475 B.C.E. - Ahasuerus decreed that the Yahudim were to be free and that the Yahudim could smite their enemy. Esther 8:16; ‘To the Yahudim had come light and joy, and gladness and honor.’ Esther 10:3; ‘For Mordechai the Yahudi was next to sovereign Ahasuerus, and he became great among the Yahudim and accepted by the multitude of his brethren, seeking happiness for his people and speaking peace to all his seed.’

458 B.C.E. – The second return from exile of the Hebrews taken to the Chaldee- Babylonian Empire in 588 B.C.E. from Yehrushalayim and its surrounding areas. 1,758 (1500 men, 38 Levites and 220 helpers) persons returned to Yahudah. Ezra was the leader of the return. Please see Ezra 7-10.

444 B.C.E. – The third return from exile of the Hebrews taken to the Chaldee-Babylonian Empire in 588 B.C.E from Yehrushalayim and its surrounding areas. The number of persons who returned is unknown. Nehemiah was the leader of this return. Please see Nehemiah 1-13.

406 B.C.E. – The Temple on top of Mount Gerizim is built by permission of Darius II, sovereign of the Great Persian Empire.

336 B.C.E. – The great Macedonian Empire of Alexander III, The Great was born as Athens, Sparta, and Macedon surrender to Alexander III, The Great. He succeeded his father at age 20 and died at the age of 33 in the year 323 B.C.E.

330 B.C.E. – The Great Persian Empire established in 559 B.C.E. mentioned above falls to Alexander III, The Great.

323 B.C.E. – Alexander III, The Great, often worshipped as a god by some Greek cities, dies and his vast Empire is broken up into three Hellenistic Empire groupings headed by his leading commanders: Craterus in Macedon and Greece, Ptolemy in Egypt and Seleucus along the Tigris Mediterranean axis. These groupings came into conflict, but eventually developed into empires: The Antigonid, Seleucid, Bactrian, and Ptolemaic.

1. Egypt under the 13 Ptolemies, which existed 293 years from 323 to 30 B.C.E.
2. Syria under the Seleucid Greek Monarchy, which existed 247 years from 312 to 65 B.C.E. After Alexander’s death the territory of Yisr’el became a province of Syria under the rule of the Seleucid Greek Empire.
3. The third grouping consisted of the following nations: Cappadocia-Asia Minor – Pontus – Bithynia – Pergamus – Greece – Macedon and Thrace
4. Roman Empire

Eventually the first three groupings and empires became part of the Roman Empire, which is considered the fourth and greatest of the four horns that replaced the large horn of the sovereign (Alexander III) of Greece mentioned in Daniel 8:21-22. At its greatest extent, the Roman Empire included all nations or empires except the following: Caledonia-Scotland, Parthia, and China.

250 B.C.E. – The Scythians and the related Sacae (Arsacids ), living in Syria, took steps to free themselves from the Seleucid Greek domination. A Parthian dynasty east of the Caspian Sea was established by Arsaces 1, who was the leader of a tribe of the Scythians.

247 B.C.E. – Arsaces 2 - Tiridates became the second emperor of Parthia. He was responsible for the consolidation and settled establishment of the empire nation. The dynasty was established east of the Caspian Sea. 64 B.C.E.-226 C.E. was the time of the greatest power of the Parthian Empire and as well the greatest land mass accumulation during the life of the Empire. The Parthian Empire continued 476 years until 226 C.E. when the Persians living within Parthia revolted against the Parthian Empire and became a Persian nation led by the Sassanian Persians.

185 B.C.E. – Parthians expand into eastern Iran, later known as the Kushan Empire
(1 C.E. to 147 C.E.).

174 B.C.E. – The reign of Mithridates 1, known as “The Great” Wise and Virtuous One, becomes the most important reign of the 467 year Imperial Parthian history. He reigned for 38 years, his reign ended in 136 B.C.E.

The reign of Mithridates 1 (the sixth sovereign) is the most important in the Parthian history. Receiving from his brother Phraates a kingdom of but narrow dimensions confined (as it would seem) between the city of Charax on the one side, and the river Arius, or Heri-rud on the other, he transformed it, within the space of thirty-seven years into a great and flourishing empire. It is not too much to say that, but for him, Parthia might have remained a mere petty state on the outskirts of the Syrian kingdom, and instead of becoming a rival to Rome, might have sunk shortly into obscurity and insignificance. The Sixth Monarchy – page 69 – by George Rawlinson, M.A. –published by Dodd, Mead & Co. – NY, NY

170 B.C.E. – Yehrushalayim was taken by Antiochus 4 and 40,000 Yisr’elites and sojourners were slain.

168-167 B.C.E. – Yahudi priest Maccabaeus (Mattathias of Modin) begins the revolt against Antiochus the 4th because of his anti-Yahudaic measures. The Hasmonean Dynasty was established, which eventually replaced the Zadokite Dynasty of the second Temple period.

144 B.C.E. – The Parthians take Babylonia.

141 B.C.E. – The Parthians take Media.

139 B.C.E. – The Parthians take Persis

126 B.C.E. – The Parthians retake Babylonia

115 B.C.E. – The Parthian sovereign Mithradates II receives an envoy from the Emperor of China.

113 B.C.E – Dura-Europos is captured by the Parthians.

106 B.C.E. – The Chinese send an emissary to Mithradates II in the Parthian capital of Hecatompylos where they were particularly intrigued by the Syrian jugglers and acrobats they saw. The first trading caravans bring silk to Parthia and return to China with horses.

103 B.C.E. – Yahudim under Alexander Jannaeus break away from Seleucid rule and establish the Hasmonean dynasty.

100 B.C.E. – Rome officially becomes known as the Roman Empire.

98 B.C.E. – Mithradates of Parthia sends ambassadors to both Sulla/Sylla and
Wu-ti/Vou-Ti to provide an important trade link between Rome and China.

95 B.C.E. – Parthians sign a treaty of friendship with Sylla, the Quaestor of Rome, fixing their western frontier on the Euphrates River. Please see Antiquities Of The Jews – Book X1- Chapter V – Verse 2., which was written by Flavius Josephus.

60 B.C.E. – A triumvirate is established over the Roman Empire with the heads being
Julius Caesar, Crassus and Pompey.

53 B.C.E. – Parthians defeat the Romans at the Battle of Carrhae (Harran), Triumvir Crassus is killed; 34,000 Roman legionaires are captured or killed, and 10,000 are led into captivity in Margiana in Parthia.

44 B.C.E. - Julius Caesar is assassinated. The second triumvirate is formed after Julius Caesar’s assassination. Marc Anthony (Marcus Antonius) took the wealthy eastern territory adjoining Parthia; Lepidus (Marcus AEmilius) took Spain and Africa; and Octavian (Augustus Caesar) took Italy and Gaul.

40 B.C.E. –The Parthian army captures all of Asia Minor, thus they swept the Romans out of Asia for a short time. For three years plus a few months, 40–37 B.C.E. Judea-Palestine was within the Parthian Empire. Judea was ruled by a Jewish vassal sovereign of the Parthians, named Antigonus. Marc Anthony ordered that Antigonus was to be beheaded. This act was to appease the Jews and to force them to reaccept Herod as their sovereign.

37-36 B.C.E. – Marc Anthony then led a very large contingent of Roman legions in an invasion of Parthia. His army was totally defeated by the Parthians.

27 B.C.E. – “Imperial Rome” begins this year – its first emperor was Augustus Caesar.

20 B.C.E. – Parthia returns standards captured from the Romans at the defeats of Crassus in 53 B.C.E, from L. Decidius Saxa in Syria in 40 B.C.E., and from Marc Anthony in 36 B.C.E.

6 C.E. – Yahudi (Judean) territory becomes a providence of the Roman Empire.

33 C.E. – The Messiah Yahushua, the Name meaning “Yehowah He is Salvation,” is crucified on a stake.

33 C.E. – The day of the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) is fulfilled and all present were congregated in union of one mind and suddenly from the heavens a voice as a forceful mighty wind filled the house where they were sitting. Also, there appeared to them
divided tongues as fire, and settled on them one by one. And, they were filled with the Set-apart Spirit of Yehowah and they began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them to speak. Please see Acts 2:1-21, Joel 2:28-32 and Romans 10:13.

39 C.E. – Herod Antipas is exiled to Gaul at the charges of a secret alliance with Parthia.

47 C.E. – Parthian ruler Gondophares displaces northern Sakas in Gandhara.

52 C.E. – This is the legendary date of arrival of Apostle Thomas into India.

66 C.E. – The Arsacid dynasty of Armenia is formally established when King Tiridates of Armenia, a Parthian nominee to that throne, visits Nero in Rome.

66 C.E. – Yahudim of Judaea rise up in revolt against Imperial Rome.

70 C.E. – Titus, of the Roman Empire, approached Yehrushalayim with an army of 60,000 men. The most horrible suffering since the world began occurred in the city. 1,100,000 residents miserably perish. Men are crucified until wood for stakes can no longer be found in the city and surrounding territory.

100 C.E. – The four great Empires of the day – the Roman Empire (27 B.C.E thru 426 C.E.), Parthian Empire (250 B.C.E. thru 226 C.E.), Kushan Empire (2nd century B.C.E. thru 3rd century C.E.) and Imperial China worked together to bring stability to the Silk Trade Route with caravans going on two routes – the north and south.

105 C.E. – Petra is captured and partially destroyed by Trajan for assisting the Parthians against Rome.

114 C.E. – The Roman Empire wars on Parthia and later annexes Armenia.

132 C.E. – Simon Bar-Kochba and Rabbi ‘Eleazar lead Yahudi in revolt against Roman authority and take control of the Yahudim.

135 C.E. – Romans forces crush the Yahudim revolt. The Yahudim Diaspora continues when Hadrian bans Yahudim from living in Yerushalyim and the surrounding territory. Yahrushalyim is then renamed Aelia Capitolina.

165 C.E. – Dura-Europos is captured by the Romans, thus ending Parthian control.

195 and 197 C.E. – Septimius Severus campaigns against Parthia, taking Ctesiphon in 197; his triumph is celebrated upon his return to Rome in C.E. 202.

217 C.E. - Caracalla (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus) campaigns against Parthia with some success, but is assassinated and replaced by Macrinus who meets with severe military reverses.

224 C.E. – Persia revolts and Ardashir 1 defeats the last Parthian king; it is during his reign that eastern Iran, the former Kushan Empire, is also conquered.

226 C.E. – The Parthian Empire ends as Ardashir 1 takes Mesopotamia, which was a major portion of Parthia as an empire.

227 C.E. – Sasanian Empire is formed by Ardashir 1. The Empire lasts until 651 C.E.

Tsleeleem Shofar Qeheelah
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