During the reign of Rehoboam, his kingdom was split into two: the ten northern tribes (called Israel) and the two southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin (called Judah). The northern tribes were defeated by the kings of Assyria (Tiglath-Pileser III, Shalmaneser V, Sargon II and Sennacherib), and many were taken into exile to Assyria (from 740-722 BC). Those who went into exile never returned. They assimilated with the nations into which they were taken captive and are often described as the “Ten Lost Tribes.” The southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin were conquered by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and taken into exile in 538 BC. Under Cyrus, king of Medo-Persia, the exiles from Judah and Benjamin were permitted to return to Jerusalem. The first wave of returned exiles occurred under Zerubbabel (also known by his Persian name “Sheshbazzar”), a prince of Judah (Ezra 1:8). Three more waves of returned exiles followed during years from 538–445 BC. The returned exiles were often called “the people of Judah” or simply “Judah.”
11 Judah has been faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the LORD, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god.