Two House Theology - Missing Links

Missing Links

For students of the Lost Tribes of Israel, including some Two House advocates, the Behistun Rock Inscription has provided an invaluable missing link, which adds credibility to where and who the Northern Kingdom Israelites were in the 5th century BCE and where they subsequently went in the following periods of their history.

George Rawlinson, Sir Henry Rawlinson's younger brother (translator of the Behistun Inscription), connected the Saka/Gimiri of the inscription with deported Israelites:

“We have reasonable grounds for regarding the Gimirri, or Cimmerians, who first appeared on the confines of Assyria and Media in the seventh century B.C., and the Sacae of the Behistun Rock, nearly two centuries later, as identical with the Beth-Khumree of Samaria, or the Ten Tribes of the House of Israel.” – George Rawlinson, note in his translation of History of Herodotus, Book VII, p. 378

The Behistun Inscription connects the people known in Old Persian and Elamite as Saka, Sacae or Scythian with the people known in Babylonian as Gimirri or Cimmerian. This is important because the Assyrian's referred to the Northern Kingdom of Israel in their records as the "House of Khumri", named after Israel's King Omri of the 8th century BCE. Phonetically "Khumri", "Omri", and "Gimiri" are similar.

"It should be made clear from the start that the terms 'Cimmerian' and 'Scythian' were interchangeable: in Akkadian the name Iskuzai (Asguzai) occurs only exceptionally. Gimirrai (Gamir) was the normal designation for 'Cimmerians' as well as 'Scythians' in Akkadian."

In the photo of the Black Obelisk to the right, compare King Jehu's pointed Saka/Scythian style headdress, which is similar to the captive Saka/Scythian king seen to the far right on the Behistun Inscription. Note: King Jehu of Israel was son and heir to King Omri of the Northern Kingdom of Israel.