Who are the Children of Israel, and where do the twelve tribes come from?

The Children of Israel are the descendants of Jacob (as), who bore the honorary name Israel. His twelve sons became the twelve tribes, ten of which later formed a northern kingdom of their own and were scattered by the Assyrians.

The name Israel originally belongs to a person. Jacob (as), the son of Isaac (as), bore this honorary name. His twelve sons became the forefathers of twelve tribes, and so all his descendants are called the Children of Israel. The Bible tells that Jacob (as) wrestled with God for a whole night and then received this name. This account is best understood as a vision in which God taught His prophet to strive for His cause.

It is often assumed that all twelve tribes lived in Palestine. That is not quite right. The kingdom was divided into a northern and a southern kingdom. Ten tribes lived in the north, and only two in the south, in Judah. About 720 years before Jesus (as) the Assyrians conquered the northern kingdom and scattered the ten tribes in different directions. Historians agree on this. To this day these ten tribes are called the lost sheep of Israel.

Judah remained intact for a time. Later it was attacked several times, among others by Nebuchadnezzar, and part of its population was scattered as well. What became of the various groups after that can hardly be traced in detail, because history was not recorded then as it is today.

The way the name was used is also interesting. At first it was mainly the ten northern tribes who were called Israelites. Only over time was the term extended to all the descendants of Jacob (as). The Levites, who also descend from Jacob (as), still hold a distinct and highly respected position among the Jews today.