ok, if only those were real Jews, and not Askenazis, etc. If you're gonna go OT on part, imo you gottsa go OT on it all, and seems to me that God would disinherit all of the Ashkenazis. We are plainly told NT who "Israel" is now, imo. And i don't think it is the apartheid abomination manufactured by men who also had access to Scripture, and calculators.
The great enemy of truth is very often not the lie - deliberate, contrived, and dishonest - but the myth which is persistent, persuasive, and repeated. - President John F. Kennedy
Some of you folks have Ashkenazi on the brain. You really have got to get a life.
The majority of Jews in modern Israel's founding in 1948 were Sabras, those Jews who had been born there and had historic, genealogical ties to the land for centuries. There has always been a Jewish presence in the land. Even after the 70AD and 135AD events, there has always been a substantial Jewish community in the land. Sometimes even flourishing. Large communities were reestablished in Jerusalem and Tiberias. Later, substantial Jewish communities grew in Rafah, Gaza, Ashkelon, Jaffa, and Caesarea. During the Crusades, some crusaders had contests to see how many Jewish babies they could get on a sword. Something like 20,000 were burned alive in the Great Synagogue in Jerusalem by the crusaders, all while the crusaders marched around the burning building singing praises to Christ. What a wonderful history the established Church has regarding Jews. Is it any wonder many of them don't trust Christians and are loathe to even check out the Gospel. But it does establish one thing... there were substantial numbers of Jews in the land.
There are also Sephardi Jews, Mizrahi Jews, Beta Israel, Cochin Jews, Bene Israel, Karaite Jews, and many other groups.
And all the tribes were commingled back in 2 Chronicles 11 under Rehoboam. Jeroboam had screwed things up pretty bad up north with idol worship and other nonsense, and had cut off the Levitical priests from performing their duties. The Levites, and those that remained faithful to God from all the other tribes, migrated south and joined with the southern kingdom, and were even among those taken into captivity in Babylon.
When the remnant returned from the Babylonian captivity, Ezra called them Jews 8 times and all Israel 40 times. In the second wave, Nehemiah called them Jews 11 times and all Israel 22 times.
Sure, those that didn't return were assimilated into the culture and even migrated out to Europe and other places. Doesn't matter. There were always faithful from all the tribes living in the land. Even today in Israel, Ashkenazi Jews are only a fraction of the Jewish population. Sabras still comprise almost half of Jews in modern Israel.
There, I went OT on ya'. You should be satisfied, right?
But because only a remnant returned from Babylon, the majority were still disobedient by wanting to stay in Babylon. They had built homes, careers, etc and didn't want to give that up to move back to a destroyed Israel and rebuild it. Kinda like folks today don't want to give up their cushy lifestyle to do what is right in God's eyes. So Leviticus 26 kicked in and the remaining years of punishment were multiplied 7 times.
Even with the return from Babylon, there never was again a independent nation of Israel because of that extended punishment. They remained still under control of Cyrus, then Darius, then the Greeks, then the Romans, the Ottoman empire, The British, et al. Only when the years were fulfilled in 1948 did Israel once again become an independent nation.
Deny it. Try to refute it, whatever. Just be certain you are not impugning God's character that He doesn't keep His promises. Dangerous ground buddy. The one thing that distinguishes the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob from all others is that He is a God who delights in making and keeping His promises. If He can't be trusted regarding His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, then our salvation is in just as much jeopardy. Frightening thought right there. But I know in Whom I have placed my trust.