Kingdom of Judah
Unlike the Kingdom of Judah, which was able to return from its Babylonian captivity, the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom never had a foreign edict granting permission to return and rebuild their homeland. Many centuries later, rabbis of the restored Kingdom of Judah were still debating the return of the lost ten tribes. However, Assyria had been conquered by Babylon, and Babylon had been conquered by the Persians.