12 Bible Verses about Tribes Of Israel

Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you, [since] you have become my followers, in the time of new beginnings [i.e., the church age], when the Son of man sits on His glorious throne, you apostles will also sit on twelve thrones, judging [i.e., through their writings] the twelve tribes of Israel [i.e., God's people].

Jesus then called His twelve apostles [see next verse] to Him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal all kinds of diseases and illnesses. Now the names of the twelve apostles were: First, Simon, also called Peter, Andrew, his brother, James and John, sons of Zebedee, Philip, Bartholomew [i.e., the same as Nathaniel. See John 1:45], Thomas [i.e., the same as Didymus. See John 11:16], Matthew, the tax collector [i.e., the same as Levi. See Mark 2:14], James, the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus [i.e., the same as Judas, son of James. See Luke 6:16],read more.
Simon, the Cananean [i.e., the same as the Zealot. See Luke 6:15], and Judas Iscariot, who also [besides being an apostle] was His betrayer.

He then went up into the mountain and summoned those He wanted to come to Him and they came. He appointed twelve apostles to travel with Him, whom He could send out to preach and have authority to drive out evil spirits.read more.
These apostles were: Simon, to whom He gave the added name Peter, James and his brother John, the sons of Zebedee, to whom He gave the added name Boanerges, which means "Sons of Thunder," Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew [i.e., the same as Nathaniel. See John 1:45], Matthew [i.e., the same as Levi. See Mark 2:14], Thomas [i.e., the same as Didymus. See John 11:16], James, the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus [i.e., the same as Judas, the son of James. See Luke 6:16], Simon the Canaanean [i.e., the same as the Zealot. See Luke 6:15], and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. Then Jesus went into a house.

And it happened during that time that Jesus went out to the mountain [i.e., probably a hillside near Capernaum] to pray, and continued praying to God all night. And when it was daylight, He called His disciples and chose from among them twelve, whom He also called apostles. [They were] Simon, also called Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John [also brothers], Philip, Bartholomew [i.e., the same as Nathaniel. See John 1:45],read more.
Matthew [i.e., the same as Levi. See Mark 2:14], Thomas [i.e., the same as Didymus. See John 11:16], James, the son of Alphaeus, Simon, called the Zealot [i.e., the same as the Cananean. See Matt. 10:4], Judas, the son of James [i.e., the same as Thaddaeus. See Matt. 10:3] and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor [to Jesus].

Now you apostles are the ones who have remained with me throughout my trials, and just as my Father assigned a kingdom to me, so I am assigning a kingdom to you, so you can eat and drink at my table in my [coming] kingdom. [Also] you will sit on [twelve] thrones [See Matt. 19:28], judging the twelve tribes of Israel [i.e., judging God's people through their writings].

Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the place called "Mount of Olives," which was about three-fourths of a mile from Jerusalem. Upon arriving at the house where they were staying, they went upstairs. [Those present were]: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James, the son of Alpheus, Simon the Zealous [one] and Judas, the son of James. [Note: Judas Iscariot, the twelfth apostle, had already committed suicide]. These men continued in united prayer [for the kingdom to come? See 1:6; Matt. 6:10] along with [certain] women, Mary the mother of Jesus and His [half-] brothers.read more.
And during this time Peter stood up to speak to a gathering of about one hundred twenty persons. [He said], "Brothers, it was necessary that the Scriptures be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke through King David about Judas, who guided the soldiers who came to arrest Jesus. For he was one of our number and shared with us [in the responsibility of] this ministry." (Now this man [Judas] paid for [in a sense] a [burial] field with the reward money he had received for his sinful act [of betraying Jesus, See Matt. 27:3-10]. [Then, some time after Judas hanged himself, See Matt. 27:5] he fell down headlong, [his swollen body] bursting so that his intestines gushed out. This incident became known to everyone who lived in Jerusalem so that the [burial] field purchased with the reward money became known as "Akeldama" [an Aramaic word] which means "Field of Blood.") "For it was written [about Judas] in the book of Psalms [69:25]: 'Let the place where he lives become deserted, with no one living there' and [Psa. 109:8] 'Let someone else fill his ministry.' The person [to replace Judas] would have to be one of those who accompanied us [disciples] during the time the Lord traveled around with us, from His immersion by John [the Immerser] until He was received up from us [in a cloud]. Of these people [we must choose] someone to become a witness with us [i.e., to tell people] of Jesus' resurrection [from the dead]." And so they presented two men [for consideration]: Joseph, called Barsabbas (and also called Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, "Lord, you know the inner thoughts of all men, so show us which one of these two men should be selected to replace Judas in this ministry and this group of apostles, from which he fell away to go to where he belonged" [i.e., to the place of punishment for unrepentant sinners]. So, they drew lots [i.e., devices used for making random choices] and the lot [i.e., the choice] favored Matthias, so he was added to the other eleven apostles.

It had a very high wall [around it], with twelve angels [stationed] at its twelve gates. The names written on the gates were those of the twelve tribes of the Israelites. There were three gates on the east side [of the wall]; three gates on the north side; three gates on the south side; and three gates on the west side. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb [were inscribed on them].

[This letter is from] James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, [who sends] greetings to the twelve tribes which are scattered throughout the world. [Note: This refers to Christians, probably of Jewish descent].

And now I am standing [here], being judged because [I believe that] God will fulfill the hope He promised to our forefathers. This is the promise our twelve tribes [i.e., family groups], who earnestly serve God night and day, hope to see fulfilled. It is because [I advocate] this hope, O King, that I am being charged [with wrongdoing] by the Jews.

After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth. They were holding back the four winds of the earth so that no wind would blow on the earth, on the ocean or on any tree. And I saw another angel coming up from the east; he held the seal of the living God. [Note: This "seal" was a mark of identification or ownership]. And he called out with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given [the power] to harm the land and the ocean, saying, "Do not harm the land, or the ocean, or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God [with a mark] on their foreheads."read more.
Then I heard the number of those who were sealed. [It was] one hundred forty-four thousand [in all] from every tribe of the Israelites [Note: This could refer to Christians of Jewish descent]. There were twelve thousand sealed from the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand from Reuben, twelve thousand from Gad, twelve thousand from Asher, twelve thousand from Naphtali, twelve thousand from Manasseh, twelve thousand from Simeon, twelve thousand from Levi, twelve thousand from Issachar, twelve thousand from Zebulun, twelve thousand from Joseph and twelve thousand from Benjamin.

Then one of the seven angels who held the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues [i.e., judgments, See 15:1], came and spoke to me, saying, "Come here, [and] I will show you the bride, the Lamb's wife." So, he transported me away in [i.e., under the influence of] the Holy Spirit, to a very high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It had the splendor of God [shining from it], and was as brilliant as a very precious stone, as crystal-clear as jasper.read more.
It had a very high wall [around it], with twelve angels [stationed] at its twelve gates. The names written on the gates were those of the twelve tribes of the Israelites. There were three gates on the east side [of the wall]; three gates on the north side; three gates on the south side; and three gates on the west side. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb [were inscribed on them].

And there was a woman prophet named Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, from the tribe of Asher [i.e., she was a descendant of one of Jacob's son]. (She was very old, having lived with her husband for [only] seven years after being married, and has been a widow [all these years], and is now eighty-four years old.) She has never left the Temple, but worships [God] by fasting [i.e., going without food and/or water for religious reasons] and praying night and day. She came forward at that very time and thanked God [in prayer] and spoke about the child [Jesus] to everyone [in the Temple area] who was expecting the redemption of the people of Jerusalem [i.e., their liberation from sin].