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The Roots:
Totten:
Con:
On Sunday, April 16, 2000 The
Time/Warner cable channel A&E aired a presentation on the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel.
The thesis of this program represented with great detail, anthropological research
and fact that the lost tribes were scattered largely to the east, as far east as the
Burmese border(Manasseh), southerly to Ethiopia (Dan) westerly to Tunisia and northerly to
Iraq and Afghanistan (). All missing tribes are represented by peoples living in the
eastern hemisphere. According to the program, there is no evidence that peoples from
England and or the United States have any valid claim to Ten Lost Tribes status.
There is much detailed evidence, however that most of the 10 tribes of Isael have
practiced their religion in small enclaves of relative isolation for 2700 years.
Through cultural and religious evidence, the program demonstrated quite conclusively that
the descendants of the exiled Hebrew people virtually fell off the radar screens of
western culture. The ten tribes have not been lost to themselves, but only to us.
JEREMIAH IN IRELAND FACT OR FABRICATION?
By John D. Keyser
According to Herbert Armstrong in the book The United
States and Britain in Prophecy, the prophet Jeremiah (in the company of his scribe
Baruch) took King Zedekiah's daughter to Ireland where she founded a line of Davidic kings
that has continued on down to this day. What corroborating evidence can be found in the
Irish annals to back up this assertion? What FACTS can be gleaned from the ancient sources
to show this compelling story to be true? Shocking as it may sound, there is NO EVIDENCE
WHATSOEVER in either the Irish or the Scottish annals not even a TRACE of Jeremiah, Tea
Tephi and the ever faithful Baruch! The TRUTH is, if Jeremiah ever brought Zedekiah's
daughter to Ireland, it went TOTALLY UNNOTICED in the ancient Irish annals.
It makes fascinating reading! As related by Herbert W. Armstrong in the booklet The
United States and Britain in Prophecy, the story of Jeremiah's journey to Ireland
with a daughter of King Zedekiah of Judah comes to life under the author's pen:
"The real ancient history of Ireland is very extensive, though colored with some
legend. But with the facts of biblical history and prophecy in mind, one can easily sift
out the legend from the true history in studying ancient Irish annals. Throwing out that
which is obviously legendary, we glean from various histories of Ireland the following:
Long prior to 700 B.C. a strong colony called "Tuatha de Danaan" (tribe of Dan)
arrived in ships, drove out other tribes, and settled there. Later, in the days of David,
a colony of the line of Zarah arrived in Ireland from the Near East.
"Then, in 569 B.C. (date of Jeremiah's transplanting), an elderly, white haired
patriarch, sometimes referred to as a "saint," came to Ireland. With him was the
princess daughter of an eastern king and a companion called "Simon Brach,"
spelled in different histories as Breck, Berech, Brach, or Berach. The princess had a
Hebrew name Tephi a pet name her full name being TEA TEPHI.
"Modern literature of those who recognize our national identity has confused this Tea
Tephi, a daughter of Zedekiah, with an earlier Tea, a daughter of Ith, who lived in the
days of David.
"This royal party included the son of the king of Ireland who had been in Jerusalem
at the time of the siege. There he had become acquainted with Tea Tephi. He married her
shortly after 585
when the city fell. Their young son, now about 12 years of age, accompanied them to
Ireland.
Besides the royal family, Jeremiah brought with them some remarkable things, including a
harp, AN ARK, and a wonderful STONE CALLED "LIA FAIL," or "STONE OF
DESTINY."
If.... many kings in the history of Ireland, Scotland, and England have been coronated
over this stone -including the present queen. The stone rests today in Westminster Abbey
in London, and the coronation chair is built over and around it. A sign beside it labels
it "Jacob's pillar stone" (Gen. 28:18).
"The royal
husband of the Hebrew princess Tea was given the TITLE HERREMON upon ascending the throne
of his father. This Herremon has usually been confused with a much earlier Gede the
Herremon in David's day who married his uncle Ith's daughter Tea. The son of this later
king Herremon and Hebrew princess continued on the throne of Ireland and THIS SAME DYNASTY
CONTINUED UNBROKEN through all the kings of Ireland; was OVERTURNED and transplanted again
in Scotland; again OVERTURNED and moved to London, England, where this same dynasty
continues today in the reign of Queen Elizabeth 11....
"In view of the linking together of biblical history, prophecy, and Irish history,
can anyone deny that this Hebrew princess was the daughter of King Zedekiah of Judah and
therefore heir to the throne of David? That King Herremon was a descendant of Zarah, here
married to the daughter of Pharez, healing the ancient breach? That when the throne of
David was first overturned by Jeremiah, it was REPLANTED in Ireland, later overturned a
second time and replanted in Scotland, overturned a third time and planted in London? When
Christ returns to earth to sit on that throne, He shall take over a LIVE, EXISTING throne,
not a nonexistent one (Luke 1:32)." 1980, Worldwide Church of God. Pp. 99 102.
No References!
In preparation for the writing of this article, and several others on the royal house of
Britain, I searched out and read literally DOZENS of books written by British Israelites
in order to more accurately understand the BASIS for the Jeremiah/Tea Tephi legend so
eloquently penned by Herbert Armstrong. I also consulted primary and secondary sources on
the Irish and Scottish annals.
To my surprise I found that the British Israelite books all REPEAT the same Tea Tephi
story (with slight variations), each aggressively claiming that the story is found in the
ancient annals. In my research I have NOT FOUND a single British Israelite book that
actually gives a REFERENCE to WHERE in the Irish and Scottish annals the supporting
material may be found! Armstrong's booklet does not nor does Joseph Allen's earlier book
on the subject.
As also discovered by Greg Doudna (former Ambassador College student, now with the
Department of Near Eastern Studies at Cornell University), "they all seem to draw
from previous British Israel writings. They speak so confidently it sounds like there must
be something in the annals to which they refer. The NAMES mentioned in the Tea Tephi
legend appear in the annals, true enough, but I have discovered they are TOTALLY DIFFERENT
PERSONS IN THE ANNALS than the BritishIsrael legend makes them out to be. The annals
simply don't say what the British Israel literature, or the Worldwide Church of God, SAY
they say. It is a LEGEND that someone somewhere within British Israel circles began,
stated it as fact, and it has been repeated as fact within British Israel circles ever
since, down to the present day in which the Worldwide Church of God repeats it to
millions. It may make an interesting story, but IT IS COMPLETELY FABRICATED."
(Afterward on British Israelism, p. 121).
I have to echo Greg Doudna in his discoveries: There is absolutely NO FOUNDATION in the
Irish and Scottish annals for the story of Jeremiah and Tea Tephi! NONE of the dozens of
British Israelite books I have read give quotations from the annals themselves, or cite
chapter and verse in the annals. They simply ASSERT, in a convincing style, that these
things are so. Frankly, I was not aware how BASELESS these assertions were until I
researched all the literature for myself.
Who Was Ollam Fodhla?
The key figure in
Armstrong's story is, of course, Jeremiah the prophet. According to Worldwide Church of
God historian Herman L. Hoeh, Jeremiah the prophet was known in Ireland by the name
"Ollam Fodhla." (See Compendium of World History, vol. 1, p. 432). In
Armstrong's booklet a similar connection is made; and British Israelite theorists also
claim this as fact. E. Raymond Capt in his book Jacob's Pillar makes the SAME assertion:
"Many of the ancient Irish records, when making reference to an 'eastern king's
daughter,'also mention an old man; 'a patriarch, a saint, a prophet,' called 'OLLAM
FODHLA'....Tradition asserts that Ollam Fodhla was none other than JEREMIAH, the
prophet..." (Artisan Sales, Thousand Oaks, CA. 1977. P. 31).
Let me state here and now that I have found NO SUCH TRADITION in the Irish annals!
To further solidify this identification of Jeremiah with the Irish Ollam Fodhla, E.
Raymond Capt makes the following statement:
SOME authorities on Irish history have cited the Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland by the
Four Masters (edited from MSS. in the Library of the Royal Academy and of Trinity College,
Dublintranslated by John O'Donovan, M.T.I.A.) as A LINK BETWEEN IRELAND AND JEREMIAH:
"Ollam Fola (Foldha) is celebrated in ANCIENT HISTORY as a sage and legislator,
eminent for learning, wisdom and excellent institutions, and his historic fame has been
recognized by placing his medallion in 'basso relievo'with those of Moses and other great
legislators in the interior of the dome of the Four Courts of Dublin .... (Ibid., p. 41).
Excuse me did I miss something here? I might be as blind as a bat in a London fog but I
saw no link between Ireland and Jeremiah in this passage! If that's all they can base
their identification of Jeremiah on, then their whole theory is extremely tenuous!
Greg Doudna noticed the same paucity of evidence:
'What the originators of the ... legend did was simply combine famous, known figures in
the annals, many centuries apart, and splice them together in a TOTALLY IMAGINARY
RECONSTRUCTION.
"For example, who is Ollam Fodhla? In British Israel theory, and stated in the USBP,
he is JEREMIAH, the aged prophet. In fact, Ollam Fodhla appears in the Irish legends as
one of the greatest NATIVE MILESIAN KINGS. Unlike the British Israel books I examined, I
will now actually QUOTE something from the annals. A poem quoted in one of the annals
called the Book of Leinster, and identified by one of Ireland's early authorities on the
annals, Eugene O'Curry, as written around the time of the birth of Christ and of a very
high degree of authority, has this to say of Ollam Fodhla, whom the WCG book, UNCRITICALLY
REPEATING BRITISH ISRAEL LEGEND, says was "Jeremiah." Does this read like a
description of the biblical Jeremiah?
'Ollam Fodhla, of furious valour, Who founded the Court of Ollamh, Was the first heroic
KING That instituted the Feast of Teamain [Tara]. FORTY sweet musical YEARS He held the
high sovereignty of Erinn [Ireland]; And it was from him, with noble pride, The Ultonians
took their name.
Six kings of
valiant career
OF OLLAMH'S RACE reigned over Errin;
For two hundred and ten full years,
No other person came between them...'
"The ancient poem continues with an account of Ollam's six reigning descendants.
OLLAM WAS NOT JEREMIAH. The annals say Ollam FOUNDED A COLLEGE and was an enlightened
ruler, known as "Doctor of Wisdom." This is said of the famous KING Ollam Fodla.
The name "Ollam" thereafter meant a wise man. THE BRITISH ISRAELITES ARBITRARILY
SAID OLLAM FODLA WAS JEREMIAH, even though the ANNALS say he was a NATIVE MILESIAN KING.
THE JEREMIAH IDENTIFICATION IS A COMPLETE FABRICATION.
"Dr. Herman Hoeh, the leading historian of British Israelism in the Worldwide Church
of God, was aware of the KING named Ollam Fodla. In the Irish kings list in his Compendium
of World History, an Ollam Fodla is dated 714-674 B.C., with the appended comment,
"Not the later prophet Ollamh Fodhla In fact, THERE IS NO "SECOND," LATER
OLLAM FODLA IN THE IRISH ANNALS who may be identified with JEREMIAH. There is only the ONE
famous King Ollam Fodla." Afterward on British Israelism, pp. 121 123.
One of the leading authorities on Irish history O'Flaherty's Ogygia makes PLAIN that
Ollamh Fodhla was NOT the same person as Jeremiah: "Ollam Fodla, of the HOUSE OF HIR
[IR a son of Gathelus], the SON of king Fiach, slew Faidergod in the battle of Temor
[Tara], and ascended the throne. He had FOUR SONS, viz. Finnacta, Slanoll, Ged, and
Carbry, the progenitor of the Rudicians; from his name Ollamh, the name of ULSTER is said
to be derived. He first instituted the assemblies of Temor [Tara], which were held every
three years for enacting and executing laws. Three days before, and so many after the
FESTIVAL, WHICH WE CALL SAMHUIN [ALL HALLOWS DAY pagan Irish festival] ... these solemn
assemblies were celebrated with great pomp and ceremony....
"He, being a man of great literary knowledge, is called Ollam Fodla, i.e. through
Ireland which is called Fodla in our language, he was a great professor of learning ...
which he deservedly obtained on account of his extensive learning. He erected Mur
Ollamhan, i.e. the wall of the learned, at Tara. You may call it a college ... an academy,
or a lyceum...." (Vol. 11, translated by James Hely. W. M'Kenzie, Dublin. 1793. Pp.
70 71).
When Did Fodhla Reign?
The epoch of Ollam Fodhla, as we shall see, is FAR TOO EARLY to be associated with
Jeremiah. Francis Plowden notes that "the grand epoch of political eminence in the
early history of Ireland is the reign of their great and favourite monarch OLLAM FODLAH,
who reigned, according to Keating, ABOUT 950 YEARS BEFORE THE CHRISTIAN ERA." (An
Historical Review of the State of Ireland, vol. 1. William F. M'Laughlin, Philadelphia.
1805. P. 13).
Seumas MacManus places the time of Ollam Fodhla's reign a little later, but still too
early for Jeremiah! "All the stories say that the greatest king of those faraway
times was the TWENTY FIRST MILESIAN KING, known as Olam Fodla (Ollav Fola) who blessed
Ireland in a reign of forty years, some SEVEN OR EIGHT CENTURIES BEFORE THE CHRISTIAN
ERA." (The Story of the Irish Race. The Devin Adair Co. N.Y. 1949. P. 15).
Even Herman Hoeh,
in his Irish chronology, places Ollam Fodhla's reign as 714 to 674 B.C. once again too
early for Jeremiah. He gets around this, as we have seen, by stating that this is
"not the later prophet Ollamh Fodhla"! However, there was ONLY ONE Ollam Fodhla
in all of Irish history!
There is, basically, TWO MAIN CHRONOLOGIES of the Irish kings in the annals of Ireland.
Roderic O'Flaherty's chronology in his Ogygia, places the arrival of the Milesians under
Heremon in approximately the year 1,000 B.C.; while The Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland,
compiled by the Four Masters, places the invasion of Ireland at a time shortly after the
Exodus (ca. 1434 B.C.). When you carefully study the history of the Milesians, it soon
becomes evident that The Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland contain the CORRECT chronology
of the Irish kings.
With this in mind, a remarkable coincidence becomes apparent in the Irish king list! The
regnal years of Ollarnh Fodhla fall at the SAME TIME as the reign of King David of Israel
a year or two differential between the two reigns if the chronology of Ussher is compared
with that of The Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland! How much of a "coincidence"
this discovery really is will be examined shortly.
More Than One Tomb?
British Israelites have pointed to two possible burial places for Jeremiah in Ireland to
justify their claims of the prophet's presence in this land. But are they burial places of
Jeremiah? According to E. Raymond Capt: "The burial place of OLLAM FODH LA (Jeremiah)
is claimed as being in TWO DIFFERENT PLACES. One is a tomb hewn out of rock in a cemetery
on Devenish Island, in Lough Erne. It has been known from time immemorial as
"Jeremiah's Tomb." The other, and best authenticated is located in Schiabhla
Cailliche, near Oldcastle, County Meath, in Ireland, not far from Tara. A huge cairn of
stones marks the spot, and a large carved stone is still pointed out as Jeremiah's
judicial seat." (Jacob's Pillar, pp. 39-40).
In all books on the antiquities of Ireland, these two locations are known as possible
tombs of OLLAM FODHLA not Jeremiah! The British Israelites (including Capt) ASSUME these
tombs to be those of Jeremiah because they ASSUME Jeremiah went to Ireland, a supposition
that is supported by absolutely NO historical proof whatsoever!
Astonishing New Evidence: Did King David Visit Ireland?
On the Ordnance Survey maps of Ireland can be found an area, three miles north of Tara
Hill, called "Dowd's Town" literally "DAVID'S TOWN" THE SETTLEMENT OF
DAVID! Is it just possible that King David of Israel visited Ireland and brought the
country under his sway? Herman L. Hoeh thinks so:
"Perhaps the enigmatic 29th chapter of Isaiah will take on new meaning in answer to
this question:
'Ah, ARIEL, ARIEL, THE CITY WHERE DAVID ENCAMPED! Add ye year to year, Let the FEASTS come
round! Then will I distress ARIEL, And there shall be mouning and moaning...' (Jewish
translation)
"That this
prophecy refers to the House of Israel is made plain from the context. The climax of the
prophecy is the time of divine intervention in all human affairs. But why should the
"CITY WHERE DAVID ENCAMPED" symbolize the center of government of the House of
Israel today? It is not a fitting expression for Jerusalem and Mt. Zion, for David DID
MORE than encamp there. He dwelt and ruled there! Notice further the name ARIEL. Here is a
CITY WITH THE NAME ARIEL. It symbolizes the same people as does Mt. Zion in prophecy, but
it is NOT Mt. Zion. It is only a place WHERE DAVID ENCAMPED.
"Cities in early times often changed names, or were given names, due to FAMOUS MEN
WHO RESTORED OR REBUILT THE SITES, or to men who established the priority of their names
in a genealogical line. Take for example the change of the name of Aegialea to Sicyon in
Greece .... Was there at Tara a FAMOUS KING with the name of ARIEL whose blood line rules
today in the British Royal Family? Indeed there was. Of four sons of Gede the Heremon,
only the line of IRIAL (Irish for Ariel) continued to rule from Tara. His name was as RARE
in Irish history as the name David was in Jewish history!
"These scant evidences of history are more than mere coincidence. NO OTHER PLACE ON
EARTH bears the names of Eber, of Dan, of David, of Ariel." Compendium of World
History, Vol. I., Ambassador College, Pasadena, CA. 1962. Pp. 426 427.
Irial Faidh was the sixth Milesian king of Ireland, ruling from 1414 B.C. to 1404 B.C. The
annals point out that he was a great warrior who fought four major battles during his ten
years on the throne. He was the first of the Irish kings to FORTIFY AND BUILD EMBANKMENTS
around the city of Tara, and to clear the plains and build forts throughout the land. This
Irial was none other than the ARIEL of Isaiah 29; and Tara was named after him for a
period of time.
Both Ollamh Fodhla and King David reigned for FORTY YEARS; and of ALL the Milesian kings
from Heremon down to Queen Elizabeth 11 only FOUR in 3,500 years had reigns of 40 years in
length. BOTH kings were noted warriors; BOTH kings were poets and sages; and BOTH kings
died natural deaths at home. Of ALL the Milesian kings from Heremon to Ederscel (time of
Christ) ONLY EIGHT died a natural death; and of these FOUR DIED AT TARA (i.e. AT HOME).
Most of the others died in battle. King David faithfully kept God's annual festivals; and
the Irish annals show that King Ollamh Fodhla faithfully kept a seven day feast in the
fall of the year the FEAST OF TABERNACLES!
O'Flaherty records in his work that "from his name OLLAMH, the name of ULSTER
[northern province of Ireland] is said to be derived." (P. 70). This is very
significant! The flag of Northern Ireland (Ulster) has a white background with a red
cross. In the center is a SIX POINTED STAR, and in the center of this white star is
"the BLOOD RED RIGHT HAND OF ULSTER." Immediately above this six pointed
"STAR OF DAVID" is the royal crown.
Why does Northern Ireland or Ulster have the STAR OF DAVID on its flag (symbolic of David
and the Pharez line of Judah) AND the Red Hand (symbolic of the Zarah line of Judah)?
Because the Red Hand represents the line of Zarah which has ruled Ireland from the time
Heremon established himself in the land (1434 B.C.); and the star of David indicates the
presence of David in Ireland some 400 years later! It does NOT, however, necessarily
indicate a healing of the breach that occurred in Genesis 38:27 30!
'Why," some say, "should this strange story of the scarlet thread be recorded in
Bible history unless this BREACH was to be healed between the sons or their descendants at
some future date?" True but it never occurred during the lifetime of Pharez and
Zarah. How, then, (or when) was this breach healed?
The British Israelites and a number of churches believe the breach was healed when the
prophet Jeremiah supposedly traveled to Ireland with a daughter of King Zedekiah (of the
line of Pharez). This daughter, so they claim, married Heremon the son of Gathelus (of the
line of Zarah), thus healing the breach. Unfortunately, as we have seen, this never
occurred! Jeremiah NEVER set foot in Ireland with Zedekiah's daughter. Instead, the breach
was healed at a much later date in the person of King Arthur -who himself was a type of
Christ! Send for our article "Joseph of Arimathea and David's Throne in Britain"
for the exciting details!
The Arrival of Lia Fail
Another so called "link" between Jeremiah and Ireland was investigated by
Doudna. Notice:
"I finally was able to find a reference in a British Israel book identifying WHERE in
the Irish annals the Tea Tephi/JEREMIAH story is supposed to be found. The reference is
cited as from the Chronicles of Eri (at Trinity College, Dublin), 11, 3 (p. 89). The
relevant passage comes in a narrative account of the legendary wanderings, thefts, and
counterthefts of the Lia fail stone (which had a mystique surrounding it whoever possessed
it would rule). The passage reads: 'For being but few to journey on the land, they would
move on the face of the waters in search of their brethren, led by TWO OF THE RACE, to the
extremity of the world of land to the sun's going, as they had heard. And they were driven
from their course. The vessel was borne to this land [Ullad] and here was broken, but all
the men came safe with Lia Fail.'Then on page 90, 'Chiefs of lber, Gaal of Sciot, look on
this stone ... Be thus: guard well this blessed gift; and in what land this messenger
shall stay, a chief of lber shall bear sway.'
"British Israelites ARBITRARILY say, WITHOUT ANY EVIDENCE BEYOND THEIR SAY SO, that
the "two of the race" are Jeremiah and Baruch. "To the sun's going"
means they came from the east, which means they came from Palestine. "A Chief of
lber'means a Hebrew Prince.
"This is, apparently, the TRUE BASIS claimed in the annals for the story of
Jeremiah/Zedekiah's daughter's transfer (combined, of course, with separate accounts drawn
from elsewhere of the great KING Ollarn Fodla, the king Simeon Brach, Princess Tea, and
Queen Tephi of Spain, all separated widely in time). This is the "TRUNK OF THE
TREE" (even though the dating of this incident involving anonymous personages is MANY
HUNDREDS OF YEARS EARLIER THAN WHEN JEREMIAH LIVED). Are there ancient records or legends
of any people on earth in most of which references can be found somewhere to "two
people travelling" and "west" and names with syllables in them from which
the same kind or genre of conclusions could not be generated?" Afterward on British
Israelism, note 25, p. 138.
A good question indeed I have never found so much based on so little by so many!
The idea that the Stone of Destiny, or Jacob's Pillar stone, was also taken by Jeremiah to
Ireland does NOT stand up to the records of history. The Irish and Scottish annals show
that this famous stone was taken to Spain by GATHELUS, the son of Calcol, and then to
Ireland (after his death) by his wife SCOTA and son Heremon. Heremon was the first Irish
Milesian king to be crowned upon it in their new land.
Notice:
"In the capital of the Scottish kingdom [Scone] was a venerable fragment of rock, to
which, at least as early as the fourteenth century, the following legend was attached: The
STONY PILLOW on which Jacob slept at Bethel was by his countrymen transported to EGYPT.
Thither came GATHELUS, son of Cecrops [Calcoll, King of Athens, and married Scota,
daughter of Pharaoh. He and his Egyptian wife, alarmed at the fame of MOSES, fled WITH THE
STONE to Sicily or to SPAIN. From Brigantia, in Spain, it was carried off by ... the
favourite son of Milo the Scot [Gathelus], to Ireland ... On the sacred Hill of Tara it
became'Lia Fail,'the'Stone of Destiny.'On it the Kings of Ireland were placed."
(Historical Memorials of Westminster Abbey, by Arthur Penrhyn Stanley. John Murray,
London. 1876. P. 57).
The Scottish historian Hector Boece recorded the same events in his book Chroniklis of the
Scots (1531): "GATHELUS, a Greek, the son of ... the Athenian Cecrops ... went to
Egypt AT THE TIME OF THE EXODUS, where he married Scota, the daughter of Pharao, and after
the destruction of the Egyptian army in the Red Sea, fled with her ... till he arrived in
PORTUGAL, where he landed, and founded a kingdom at Brigantium, now COMPOSTELLA. Here he
reigned in the marble chair, which was the'lapis fatalis cathedrae instar,'or FATAL STONE
like a chair .... a descendant of Gathelus [actually his son Heremon] brought the chair
[and stone] from Spain TO IRELAND, and was crowned in it as King of Ireland."
These are just two of NUMEROUS references in the annals regarding the arrival of the Stone
of Destiny in Ireland. NOWHERE is there any mention of Jeremiah in connection with the
stone. The stone arrived in Ireland ALMOST 1,000 YEARS before the time of Jeremiah! Once
again, this is just another flight of fancy by Herbert Armstrong with absolutely NO
CORROBORATING PROOF in the history of Ireland. Jeremiah's trip to Ireland is pure
fabrication NOT fact!
Two Tea Tephis?
The same thing happened with the Tea Tephi story in Armstrong's book and British Israelite
literature: The originators simply combined famous, known figures in the Irish annals
figures that were many centuries apart and spliced them together in a totally IMAGINARY
RECONSTRUCTION.
Let Greg Doudna explain:
"Likewise, there is no second Tea Tephi. TEA appears in the annals as the wife of one
of the original Milesian brothers, Heremon. British Israel theory said this was Zedekiah's
daughter. But this doesn't fit chronologically, since this Tea would be dated at either
1,000 B.C. or 1,500 B.C. (depending on which of TWO CHRONOLOGIES in the annals is
preferred). But Zedekiah's daughter and Jeremiah lived in the mid 500's B.C. The USBP
therefore says there was a "SECOND" TeaTephi in the mid 500's B.C. who was
Zedekiah's daughter. As Hoeh said .... The Annals of the Four Masters reads: "TEA,
the daughter of LUGAIDH, SON OF ITHA, who Eremhon married IN SPAIN." This Tea is an
altogether different person from the Tea who came more than four centuries later to the
Irish Isles. The British Israel World Federation ... is unwilling to believe the history
of Ireland as it is plainly recorded. The Tea who married Ghede the Heremon was a daughter
of Lughaidh, the son of Ith, uncle of Miledh [Milesius] .... These events occurred in
David's reign, not Zedekiah's.
"But the
"SECOND" TEA TEPHI proposed by Hoeh and in the USBP book is a SHEER FABRICATION,
since THERE IS NO "SECOND" TEA TEPHI IN THE IRISH ANNALS which, after all, are
supposed to be our sources.
"Admittedly, a problem occurs EITHER WAY Tea Tephi is interpreted. The problem with
the BritishIsrael Tea Tephi being the daughter of Jewish king Zedekiah is:
a) she is the COUSIN of Milesian founding king HEREMON,
b) her father is said to have been LUGAIDH, A MILESIAN, NOT ZEDEKIAH, A JUDEAN,
c) she comes from SPAIN, not Palestine, and, finally,
d) she is about FIVE HUNDRED YEARS TOO EARLY.
"The problem with the WCG's "SECOND" Tea Tephi in the time of Jeremiah is,
a) primarily, that SHE DOESN'T EXIST.
"The "second" Tea Tephi, like a "second" Ollam Fodla, HAS BEEN
COMPLETELY INVENTED." Afterward on British Israelism, pp. 123 124.
Not only that, but there NEVER was a Tea Tephi to start with! The original wife of the
Heremon in question was named, simply, "TEA," NOT "Tea Tephi." Doudna
notes that a much earlier "Tephi" does appear in the Irish annals; however, she
was the daughter of a LEADER OF A CELTIC SETTLEMENT IN SPAIN. She evidently married a
British king by the name of Canthon and had absolutely nothing to do with the Irish royal
line.
How the"Tea Tephi" name came about is recorded by Doudna:
"in 1861, a British Israel expositor named F.R.A. Glover COMBINED'Tea'and'Tephi' into
ONE PERSON, in the first book to promote the 'Tea Tephi' theory. Glover is the inventor of
the story of 'Tea Tephi' and Jeremiah, et al. Glover's slipshod
scholarship was adopted by other BritishIsraelites, including C.A.L. Totten's first five
volumes of Our Race (1890 92), followed by W.M.H. Milner, The Royal House of Britain an
Enduring Dynasty (1902), J.H. Allen (1902), and of course, Herbert W. Armstrong, whose
book circulates to the whole world by the millions today. [It has now been dropped
by the Worldwide Church of God]. The story of Glover's origination of 'Tea Tephi,' with
documentation, is told in Filmer, Nithsdale, Price, and Stough, 'Tea Tephi or Scota,' The
Message, Issue 5 (London: Covenant Publishing Co., [1982?])." (Ibid., note 22, p.
138).
In a rather bizarre twist of circumstances, Doudna wrote to the Worldwide Church of God in
1987 for further information about the Tea Tephi/Jeremiah story:
"I also asked WHERE in the [Irish] annals the story of Tea Tephi and Jeremiah was
found. To that, I received this response: "You also asked for information regarding
Princess Tea Tephi. This information is available in booklet form from: The Covenant
Publishing Co., Ltd., 6 Buckingham Gate, London, SW1E6JP, United Kingdom."
"I wrote the Covenant Publishing Co., and, TO MY ASTONISHMENT, received back a letter
dated March 11, 1988, from the Secretary, Richard Hall, with an enclosure giving a policy
statement from six years earlier REFUTING BEYOND ANY DOUBT THAT THERE EVEN WAS A TEA
TEPHI. (As explained in an earlier note, there was a Tea, and there was an earlier Tephi,
which had been WRONGLY COMBINED INTO ONE PERSON in 1861 by Rev. F.R.A. Glover, but there
is NO "TeaTephi" in the annals at all.)
"In other words, not only is the WCG UNABLE to quote from the annals themselves to
support assertions in the USBP, but the SOURCE to which a questioner is referred mails
back evidence COMPLETELY BLOWING THE THEORY OUT OF THE WATER.
"(The Covenant Publishing Co. believes the connection of the Irish royalty to David
happened instead through a "SCOTA," wife of Miled. This is not an improvement to
the theory, however. "Scota" appears in the annals as A DAUGHTER OF PHARAOH, NOT
ZEDEKIAH or any other Jewish king. Also, SHE IS AT LEAST 500 OR 1200 YEARS TOO EARLY,
according to Irish chronology. Hence, Scota WAS NOT a means of transfer of the Davidic
line to Ireland. See MacManus, Story of the Irish Race, p. 8.)" (ibid., note 35, p.
140).
In an extract from the booklet Coincidences? Pointers to Our Heritage, by Brigadier G.
Wilson, the author ADMITS the shortcomings in the Tea Tephi story. Unfortunately, he
follows this admission by including another error that is equally UNTRUE! Notice:
"The account given here concerning ZEDEKIAH'S DAUGHTER is that which is generally
accepted [the Tea Tephi legend]. However, RECENT RESEARCH suggests that the Princess was
NOT Tea or Tea Tephi as previously thought, but SCOTA, Zedekiah's eldest daughter [?]. In
accordance with royal Egyptian custom this princess had, on coming to Egypt with Jeremiah,
been adopted by Pharaoh Hofra as HIS daughter. This explains why she was thought to be an
Egyptian princess when she arrived in Ireland. Research suggests that Eochaidh Heremon of
all Ireland, was SCOTA'S SON and NOT her husband, and that EOCHAIDH MARRIED TEA, DAUGHTER
OF LUGHAIDH. Lughaidh was grandson of Breogan who was Eochaidh's great grandfather
alsothus they were all DESCENDED FROM CALCOL, SON OF ZARAH JUDAH, and were
all'Judahites.'" (Pp. 13 14).
Well, it seems like necessity is the mother of invention! When you have to discard one
theory because of a total lack of coroborating evidence, you just INVENT another one to
avoid facing the ultimate reality that the daughter of King Zedekiah and the prophet
Jeremiah NEVER set foot on the soil of Ireland! Nowhere in the Irish or Scottish annals is
SCOTA remotely connected with King Zedekiah! The idea that Scota was adopted by Pharaoh
Hofra as his daughter is ludicrous Scota was a daughter of the pharaoh CONTEMPORARY WITH
MOSES, as all the records show!
I personally wrote to the Covenant Publishing Company in London, and received a rather
defensive letter from them declaring that they no longer propound the Tea Tephi scenario.
They claim to follow the Scota/Jeremiah idea instead. To back this up, they sent me a
reprint article from The National Message which states practically the same thing as
Brigadier Wilson's booklet.
The bottom line is, ALL the annals and histories of Ireland and Scotland place SCOTA in
the same epoch as Moses, so there is NO WAY she could have been a daughter of Zedekiah!
Breck, Berech, Brach or Baruch?
Let us now turn our attention to Jeremiah's scribe Baruch. The United States and Britain
in Prophecy, as quoted earlier, says, "With him [Ollam Fodhla/Jeremiah] was ... a
companion called "Simon Brach," spelled in different histories as Brech, Berech,
Brach, or Berach ... can anyone deny ... that his companion was Jeremiah's scribe, or
secretary, Baruch?"
Well, yes, I can deny that and I DO deny it, because it is simply another invention!
Notice what Greg Doudna discovered:
"In the FIRST place, nothing in the annals links Ollam Fodla with Simon Brach.
SECOND, Simon Brec is identified in the annals, according to Britannica (11 th ed.), as a
famous ancient warrior BEFORE the Milesians ever arrived in Ireland. Other records in the
annals spell his name "Breas" and say he was a leader of sea robbers. This name
WAS LIFTED OUT OF ITS CONTEXT in the annals nearly 1000 years earlier and arbitrarily said
to be "Baruch, the scribe," who accompanied Jeremiah to Ireland in the 500's BC.
"Actually, there is a SECOND tradition of Simon Brec in the annals. O'Flaherty's
Ogygia has "Siomon Breac" as a Milesian king in the 400's BC. It is surprising
that both the Compendium and Joseph Allen's Judah's Sceptre book, have "Simeon
Breac"which they already identified with BARUCH [Jeremiah's scribe] listed in the
line of kings SEVERAL GENERATIONS AFTER TEA TEPHI, without comment or a hint of
embarrassment. The Compendium lists Siomon Breac's reign as 483 477 BC.
"The anomaly can be stated another way: One publication, The United States and
Britain in Prophecy, authored by Herbert Armstrong, says Simeon Breac was Jeremiah's
scribe who came over with Tea Tephi.
"But another Worldwide Church of God publication, Les Pays de Langue Francaise Selon
La Prophetie (France in Prophecy), authored by evangelist Dibar Apartian, long time head
of the WCG's French Department, says Simeon Breac was an IRISH KING at least FOUR
GENERATIONS LATER, descended from Tea Tephi. Since this booklet is offered only in French,
it is safe to say that few English reading Worldwide Church members are aware of this
CONTRADICTION in two current pieces of literature, both offered freely to the public to
this day.
"It is evident that if Simeon Breac was an IRISH KING generations after the alleged
arrival of Jeremiah and Tea Tephi, and if he was descended from earlier Irish kings, then
HE CANNOT BE THE BIBLICAL BARUCH WITH JEREMIAH. Afterward on British Israelism, pp. 124
125.
Geoffrey Keating, in The History of Ireland, verifies the existence of the early SIMEON
BREAC, who was the grandson of Neimheadh and the "sea robber" mentioned in the
eleventh edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica. (See Vol. 1, pp. 179 191. The Irish Texts
Society.) The second Simon called SYMON BREK is verified by Hector Boece in The Chronicles
of Scotland as being a later KING OF IRELAND and far removed from the time of Jeremiah.
(See Vol. I., pp. 27 30. William Blackwood & Sons, Ltd. Edinburgh. MCMXXXVIII).
"is there a "THIRD BREAC" in the annals answering to the biblical companion
of Jeremiah named Baruch? Absolutely not! "The story of Jeremiah [and Baruch]
bringing Zedekiah's daughter over to Ireland is an OBVIOUS CUT AND PASTE JOB, taking
prominent names in the Irish annals SEPARATED BY MANY CENTURIES and making the most
superficial, gullible identifications. If anyone checks the story of the annals themselves
and stumbles across these things, the WCG explanation is that there were 'SECOND' Ollam
Fodlas, Heremons, Tea Tephis, and Brachs these 'SECOND' personalities all just happening
to have such famous names and of whom, strangely, THE IRISH LEGENDS KNOW NOTHING and all
conveniently at the right time, unlike their inconveniently dated famous namesakes."
(Afterward on British Israelism, pp. 125 126).
What About Prince Heremon?
Another problem with the Jeremiah/Tea Tephi story is the AGES of King Zedekiah's
daughters. According to the Jewish historian Josephus, the king's daughters were still
under the care of their mother; and, since Zedekiah was just 32 at the fall of Jerusalem
(11 kings 24:18), his daughters must have been quite young. Says Doudna, "was the
Irish prince just hanging around in these unappealing conditions waiting for one of them
to grow up so he could marry her? And how did he escape death or captivity after Jerusalem
fell when King Zedekiah was blinded and most of the rest of Jerusalem's leadership
executed?"
It does seem strange that an Irish prince would choose to be in Jerusalem in the middle of
a devastating siege; and the Book of Jeremiah makes NO MENTION of anyone remotely
resembling an Irish prince accompanying Jeremiah. Aside from all of this, Heremon was the
founder of the Irish Milesian kings, which took place around 1500 B.C. according to the
Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland by the Four Masters. This, obviously, is centuries too
early for Zedekiah's daughter to have married him. How Herman Hoeh and the Worldwide
Church of God overcame this obstacle is revealed by Doudna:
"British Israel theory says Zedekiah's daughter was Heremon's wife Tea Tephi. But
since the WCG version and the Compendium have already ruled out this Tea Tephi in favor of
an IMAGINARY "later" Tea Tephi, they simply go down the list of kings until one
is found five hundred years later [1,000 years if you go by the chronology of the Annals
of the Four Masters] at approximately the right time, and ARBITRARILY say, "Here!
This one must have been the'Heremon' we're looking for that Zedekiah's daughter
married!" It happens that his name isn't Heremon, but this was solved by suggesting
that Heremon became a TITLE that could be applied to ANY KING descended from Heremon. (But
this does not appear in the annals.) Thus a "SECOND" HEREMON is added to the
"second Tea Tephi" and "second Ollam radio'' to make the British Israel
legend work. Strangely, NONE of these figures, who just happen to have duplicate names to
known leading figures in the annals, appear THEMSELVES in the annals." Afterward on
British Israelism. P. 124.
The Ark of the Covenant
Armstrong insists, as do the British Israelites, that "Jeremiah brought with them [to
Ireland] some remarkable things, including a harp, AN ARK, and a wonderful stone called
'Lia Fail,' or'STONE OF DESTINY."' The ark referred to here is none other than the
ARK OF THE COVENANT kept in the Holy of Holies of the Temple in Jerusalem. According to
the story, Jeremiah was able to remove the Ark from the Temple before the Babylonians
overwhelmed the city and the Temple Mount. Is this true, or just another flight of fancy
taken by the author?
Some Christian and Jewish scholars believe that, just prior to the burning of the Temple
by the Babylonians, Jeremiah secretly hid the Ark and the altar of incense in a cave in
Mount Pisgah in Jordan. This tradition, however, seems to contradict the fact that the
Bible mentions the Babylonian army capturing thousands of Temple artifacts and
transporting them to Babylon. Other scholars have suggested that the Zealots took the Ark
to Herod's fortress of Masada in A.D. 70 to escape the Roman armies. This idea is
confounded by the fact that part of the Jewish oral law the Mishna states clearly that the
Ark was not in the Second Temple.
A popular viewpoint today is that the Ark is located in one of the many tunnels underneath
the Temple Mount. According to Grant R. Jeffrey: "A respected source told me in
confidence that Jewish archaeologists had in fact seen the Ark at a distance in one of
these tunnels but were prevented from examining it because the Muslim authorities
immediately sealed up the tunnel entrance." (Armageddon: Appointment with Destiny, p.
122).
The Jewish sage Maimonides, in an account called The Laws of God's Chosen House, gives
this remarkable story: "When Solomon built the Temple, he was aware that it would
ultimately be destroyed. He constructed a chamber in which the Ark could be entombed below
the Temple in deep, maze like vaults. King Josiah commanded that the Ark be entombed in
the chamber built by Solomon, as it is said (2 Chronicles 35:3), 'And he said to the
Levites who were enlightened above all of Israel, 'Place the Holy Ark in the chamber built
by Solomon, the son of David, King of Israel. You will no longer carry it on your
shoulders. Now, serve the Lord, your God.' When it was entombed, Aaron's staff, the vital
manna, and the oil used for anointing were entombed with it. All these sacred articles DID
NOT return to the Second Temple." (Hilchos Bais HaBechinah).
Is this the Ark of the Covenant that sat in the Holy of Holies in the Temple of Solomon?
There is another tradition that the Ark resides in the country of Ethiopia in Africa. In
the September, 1935 issue of the National Geographic magazine, an article appeared
regarding interviews with different priests in various parts of Ethiopia. These priests
consistently stated that when the Queen of Sheba visited King Solomon in Jerusalem, she
had a child by him called Menelik 1.
According to the priests author L. Roberts interviewed, Solomon educated the young boy in
Jerusalem until he was nineteen years of age. The young man then returned to Ethiopia with
a large group of Jews, taking with him the TRUE ARK OF THE COVENANT. As the story goes,
King Solomon wanted to give Menelik a REPLICA of the Ark to take with him since the
distance between Jerusalem and Ethiopia was such that Menelik would be prevented from ever
again worshipping at the Temple.
"However, Prince Menelik was concerned with the growing APOSTASY of Israel and the
fact that his father, Solomon, was now allowing idols to be placed in the Temple to please
his pagan wives. King Solomon gave the prince a going away banquet and after the priests
were filled with wine, Menelik and his loyal associates SWITCHED ARKS AND LEFT THE REPLICA
in its place in the Holy of Holies.
"A group of priests with some representatives from several of the tribes of Israel
reverently took the TRUE ARK OF THE COVENANT to Ethiopia for safekeeping until Israel
should turn from idol worship and return to the pure worship of God. Unfortunately, Israel
never wholly returned to following God exclusively and suffered a succession of mostly
evil kings until both Israel and Judah were finally conquered four hundred years later.
Thus, the Jewish descendants of Menelik 1. of Ethiopia NEVER RETURNED the Ark of the
Covenant to Jerusalem." (Armageddon: Appointment with Destiny, by Grant R. Jeffrey.
P. 115).
The TRUE ARK now sits in the historic Church of Zion of Mary in AKSUM, ETHIOPIA, while the
REPLICA, built by Solomon for Menelik, sits entombed beneath the site of the Temple in
Jerusalem. NOWHERE is there ANY MENTION of an ark (original or replica) being taken by
Jeremiah to Ireland! This, once again, is PURE FANTASY on the part of Herbert Armstrong
and the British-Israelites.
The Final Bombshell!
All of this research into Jeremiah and the so called Tea Tephi is actually made
superfluous by one core truth only a SON, NOT A DAUGHTER, could perpetuate the royal line
of David!
If you study the genealogies in the Bible, you will find that they pass down through the
MALE LINE without exception. The only time females are named in the genealogies is when
there is something remarkable about them that needs to be recorded. Examples of this are
found in Gen. 11:29; 22:23; 25:1 4; 35:22 26; Ex. 6:23 and Num. 26:33. This is why
Josephus could say: "And after this manner have the kings of David's race ended their
lives, being in number twenty one, until THE LAST KING, who altogether reigned five
hundred and fourteen years, and six months, and ten days: of whom Saul, who was their
first king, retained the government twenty years, though he was not of the same tribe with
the rest." (Antiquities of the Jews, chap. Vill, 4).
During an interesting dissertation on the anointing oil used by certain royal lines,
Roderic O'Flaherty comments "that David and his posterity were anointed with the same
oil that is used in the ordination of priests: the Rabbis unanimously believe it: and they
also confirm, by traditions which they hold in the highest veneration, that the blessed
oil, with which Aaron was anointed priest, was providentially and miraculously preserved
without the smallest diminution, UNTIL THE LINE OF DAVID WAS EXTINCT.... " (Ogygia,
or, a Chronological Account of Irish Events. Vol. 1. W. M'Kenzie, Dublin. 1793. P. 71).
This is not to say that DESCENDANTS of David no longer carried on the line, but that
descendants of David SITTING ON THE THRONE in Jerusalem came to an end. David's blood line
continued and there are people today, on this earth, descended from David!
Obviously O'Flaherty, a leading authority on the Irish annals, KNOWS NOTHING of David's
line being transferred to Ireland by Jeremiah!
Lack of Evidence
In The United States and Britain in Prophecy, not the slightest attempt at documentation
appears within its pages. This is also true for Allen's Judah's Sceptre and Joseph's
Birthright. In spite of the tone of authority in Armstrong's book, citing the legend of
Jeremiah/Tea Tephi as fact, it is very evident the tale did not come from Ambassador
College researchers consulting the Irish and Scottish annals DIRECTLY and summarizing them
for public consumption. WHOLE PASSAGES were simply lifted from Allen's book even down to
details! An example of this can be found on page 99 of Armstrong's work. Allen wrote that
Jeremiah was "a patriarch, a saint." The United States and Britain in Prophecy
says Jeremiah was an "elderly, white haired patriarch, sometimes referred to as'a
saint.'" The adjectives "elderly" and "white haired" were
obviously added by Herbert Armstrong for effect a minor embellishment, a touch of artistic
licence!
"Perhaps the forger or forgers of the Jeremiah legend would have been better off if
they had invented totally fictitious names, rather than taking famous characters in the
annals (one from here, one from there ... ), and so obviously revealing WHERE they got the
names. But whatever names might be chosen for Jeremiah and a daughter of Zedekiah, they
would still FAIL TO RELATE to anything in the annals, despite what British Israelites and
the WCG tell the public." (Afterward on British Israelism).
If Jeremiah brought Zedekiah's daughter to Ireland, it went TOTALLY UNNOTICED in the
ancient Irish annals. Don't you think such an event as a prophet of God bringing a royal
princess of Judah from the Middle East to Ireland would have been recorded, and re
recorded, throughout the annals, and legend upon legend generated around this event? It
would have been a MOMENTOUS EVENT in the long and illustrious history of the Irish people.
But, British Israelite and Church of God literature notwithstanding, the history and
legends of Ireland are ENTIRELY BLANK when it comes to Jeremiah and the so called Tea
Tephi.
Let me make it perfectly clear that although the royal house of Britain is NOT directly
descended from King David of Israel through the MALE LINE, it is quite possibly descended
from King David through a wife or female descendant of this king who married into the line
of Brutus. If this was the case, Queen Elizabeth is decended from Judah through BOTH
the lines of Zarah and Pharez. The line of Zarah was brought to Ireland by Heremon the
grandson of Calcol; and the line of Pharez came to Britain when Joseph of Arimathea
founded the Church of God at Glastonbury. Read our article The Stone That Roared: The
Incredible Story of Lia Fail for further details of the line of Zarah arriving in
Ireland.
THE STONE THAT ROARED:
THE INCREDIBLE STORY OF LIA FAIL!
For thousands of years the kings of England, Scotland and Ireland have been crowned while
sifting on a mysterious stone! Where did this STONE OF DESTINY originate the "LIA
FAIL" or "MARBLE CHAIR" of the Scots? Why was this stone placed in the care
of the Scottic race in particular, and jealously guarded by them down through the ages?
The Irish and Scottish annals reveal a story more exciting than fiction, and more
intriguing than a best selling thriller!
For your article, or a FREE subscription to Prophecy Flash magazine, write to:
Triumph Prophetic Ministries (Church of God) Box 292 Altadena, California 91003 U.S.A.
Prophecy Flash A magazine of insight and understanding of Biblical prophecy for
our time!
We, the editors,
are not promoting the information shown on these Totten/Anglo-Israel related pages as
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points of reference. The Editors
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