Luke’s Annunciation
Some people mistakenly think that the tribes of Israel no longer serve any purpose in the New Testament. However, even at the beginning of Luke’s Gospel, announcing Mary’s pregnancy and Jesus’ miraculous birth, Gabriel says, “He will reign over the house of Jacob forever” (Lk.1:32,33). Make no mistake, in the Hebrew Scriptures, the expression “the house of Jacob” always refers to the Jewish tribes – to the descendants of Jacob/Israel.
Luke connects Jesus to the tribes
The Annunciation in Luke connects Jesus with the twelve tribes, meaning that the tribes of Israel are still very important in the New Testament. We find additional and powerful proof of that at the end of the New Testament. Here we read about the names written on the gates of New Jerusalem – “which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel” (Rev.21:12).
See the New Testament from a new perspective
Scholars are not sure whether first century Jews expected the “lost” tribes to be “found” and restored. But clearly, they were important at this time: that’s why in the Second Temple literature we find genealogies of these tribes. Moreover, in the New Testament almost all the tribes are mentioned by name. Enroll today in our live online Biblical Hebrew courses to see the New Testament from a new perspective.
