Issachar By Signs

This article explores how to identify the lost tribe of Issachar by signs. This is based on Jacob's strange blessing over Issachar.

Jacob's Blessing

Jacob pronounces a blessing over Issachar that describes his eventual location in the world:

Yugoslavia

This blessing is not particularly unique. Many places are good resting places, have fertile land and have been oppressed by outsiders. The best we can do is overlay these points to Yugoslavia at the time of the seal date and see what makes sense.

Yugoslavia sits on the land trade-routes between Europe and Turkey, and from there to the east, India and China, and by land to Africa as well. The donkey here would be the donkey carrying good along trade routes.

The saddle bags could also be seen as the tribes of Joseph and Judah at odds to each other. The British and the Russians were influencing the Ottomans in various ways and likely worked to collapse the Ottoman empire, creating Turkey.

The other idea that Jacob hints at with Issachar is that he would submit to forced labor.

The Seal Date event was a peasant revolt in the Balkans that broke off Ottoman rule over the South Slavic peoples. This is the bondage that Jacob is hinting at. They would also come under Communist rule in the early 1900s, and then later NATO rule (and bombing).

The main characteristic of Issachar is his inability to stand alone as an independent people.

Map of South Slavic Languages

The dark green in the following map shows the peoples who share South Slavic languages and form the basis for Issachar.

Albania

The language map excludes Albania because the Albanian language is unique. The country of Albania should be included in Issachar, and not Zebulun, because the name of Albania, in Albanian, is Shqipëria, a play on Issachar.