1. Praise: From Saturday evening through Sunday is Tisha b'Av – a day of fasting and remembrance of numerous tragedies that have occurred on – or very close to – this date in Jewish history, including the destruction of the first and second temples in Jerusalem. Many Jews stay up all night and read through the book of Lamentations. The climax of that book was our starting point for praise this morning.

    • It is by YHWH's covenant-love that we are not destroyed, because His mercies never fail. They are new/renewed every morning; great is Your faithfulness.Lam. 3:22-23

    • Lord, thank You for Your great mercies to us and to all Israel.

    • Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting You are God.Psa. 90:2

    • You exist outside of time – therefore nothing ever takes You by surprise (Isa. 46:10; Rev. 1:8).

    • As You do not change (Mal. 1:5), we trust You to do that which You have promised (Num. 23:19).

    • We bless You for the privilege of living our lives by Your leading (John 10:27).

    • YHWH is my portion, says my soul; therefore I will hope/trust in Him. YHWH is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should quietly wait/hope/trust for YHWH's salvation.Lam. 3:24-26

    [Moving into intercession, we read Lamentations 3:37 which gave us great confidence to pray in line with His revealed Word: Who is this who says, and it happens, when the Lord does not command it?]

  2. Salvation: As many Jews, both in Israel and in exile, will fast and read Lamentations over Tisha b'Av, we asked God to break in and reveal to them their Messiah – the Lord Yeshua.

    • Abba use this time to exponentially increase the holy remnant of saved Israel (Rom. 9:27; 11:5).

    • For so says YHWH, Sing with gladness for Jacob, shout among the chief of the nations. Cry out, give praise and say, 'O YHWH, save Your people, the remnant of Israel'. (Jer. 31:7) Amen.

    • Send Messiah the Comforter to comfort many by His Spirit at this season (Lam. 1:16; John 14:16, 26).

    • As Jews read Your Word, remove the veil by revealing Messiah Yeshua to them (2 Cor. 3:14).

    • Watch over Your Word so that it accomplishes all You send it out to do (Isa. 55:11; Jer. 1:12).

    • May the family of the young man stabbed to death this past week find comfort in You (Isa. 40:1-2).

    • Lord, as You did when You were on the earth, open the eyes of the blind – especially Israeli politicians, prostitutes, perverts and all other sick people who are in need of the Divine Physician.(Matt. 9:12).

    • Your Spirit convicts the world of sin (singular) and that sin is of not believing in (or on) You (John 16:8-9). May the Holy Spirit do exactly that this weekend in the hearts of many of Your chosen people.

  3. Elections; The campaigns are very ugly, yet the polls say that the outcome will be not that much different from what we had in the last elections. We are also seeing more alliances between various smaller parties – most of which are alliances of convenience and not of political ideology. But God…

    • Lord, we look to You to intervene in this very crazy and dangerous situation and to bring forth an Israeli government through whom You can be glorified (Psa. 135:4-6; 138:4-5).

    • Deal with any alliances that are not in line with Your will at this time (Prov. 11:21).

    • Abba, please use the division that is appearing in the Blue & White party to break apart that alliance before the elections.

    • Lord, continue to fulfill Isaiah 1:26: And I will restore your judges as at first, and your counselors as at the beginning; afterwards you shall be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city.

    • Arise and muzzle all of the extremely left-wing, humanistic media in Israel (Matt. 16:23).

    • Do not allow the next election results to lead to another stalemate.

    • Give right wing parties, those with a mindset more in line with the Bible, a decisive victory (Psa. 44:4).

    • As pride comes before a fall (Prov. 16:18), so deal with Avigdor Liberman (Dan. 4:37).

    • Give us a government that will reflect Your character (Psa. 36:5-7).

    • Give us a government that will quicken the coming of the Lord – by not caving into the world when it demands that Israel divide Your land (Joel 3:1-2).

  4. Israeli PM Bibi Netanyahu: We thanked God for him as Bibi has been an excellent leader for this nation over his many years in office. We also prayed in other ways over him.

    • Lord Yeshua, we bless Bibi Netanyahu in Your name (Num. 6:24-26)

    • Open his ears to hear and heed Your wisdom as it guides him (Prov. 8:32-36).

    • Surround him with godly counsel and remove from him all ungodly counsel (Psa. 1:1-2),

    • Show him to use his accomplishments during this campaign and not just to attack his opponents.

    • Enable him to stand as strongly for the truth of where Israel is at today as he has done with the dangers of an Iranian nuclear weapon over the past 30 years (Hab. 2:3).

    • Rearrange Netanyahu's priorities so that they line up with Your priorities for Israel (Isa. 55:6-9).

    • Give him a heart to raise up the next generation of Israelis leaders (2 Tim. 2:2).

    • Move on him to seek You over Tisha b'Av (Psa. 42:1).

  5. Security – Judea & Samaria: There was a vicious stabbing death of a 19 year old Yeshiva student and soldier in Judea this past week. While this was a shock to the whole nation, thank God successful attacks in this region have fallen off tremendously. Yet Hamas influence has grown.

    • Lord, thank You for continually watching over this nation (Psa. 121:4).

    • God of all comfort, please comfort the family and friends of the terror victim at this time (2 Cor. 1:3).

    • May the terrorist to be caught and brought to justice quickly (Eccl. 8:11).

    • Expose to Israeli intelligence units all of Hamas' plans in these areas.

    • We hear lots of talk from politicians after every terror attack that the Zionist response is to build new homes and new communities in these areas. Enough talk. Let the buildings be built (Neh. 2:20).

    • Provide protection over the roads and public transportation (Jer. 31:10).

    • Thank You for the IDF. Continue to use them to protect Israel internally and externally (Ezek. 37:10).

  6. Security – Jerusalem's Temple Mount: Besides this weekend's Tisha b'Av observances, and some rabbis encouraging Jews to ascend to the Temple Mount, Eid al-Adha also starts Sunday. This Islamic feast recalls Abraham's willingness to sacrifice Ishmael on Mount Moriah, the Temple Mount. Yes, Muslims have distorted biblical history and say it was Ishmael – not Isaac – whom God [their god Allah] asked Abraham to sacrifice.

    • Hallelujah! Our God reigns (Psa. 93:1; 96:10; 97:1; 99:1; 103; 19; Isa. 52:7; Rev. 19:5-6)!

    • Lord, this is Your holy hill. Please guard over it at this time (Psa. 2:6; 3:4).

    • Although Israel foolishly gave the Temple Mount back to the Muslims in 1967, it is still in Your hands (Psa. 15:1; 48:1-2).

    • Expose to Israel's security forces all the enemy's plans and weapons caches on the mount (Job 12:22).

    • Anoint them to know how to keep the peace in that very explosive area (Isa. 41:10-16).

    • Guard and grant peace to the residents of the Old City of Jerusalem as well (Psa. 122:6-9).

    • Bless You for building a living temple of living stones in Jerusalem today (1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19; 1 Pet. 2:5).

  7. Security – Gaza: Demonstrations, incendiary devices and constant chaos are what Israeli residents and the IDF deal with in this area. And yet many deceived people – both Jews and the nations – think we can still make a deal and give land-for-peace. Inconceivable is the refusal of people to face reality.

    • Lord Yeshua, these resilient Israelis need You to walk among and heal them – physically, emotionally, mentally and especially spiritually (Luke 4:18).

    • Give Israel a response to the constant assault of firebombs (Prov. 21:31).

    • Quicken IDF soldiers so that they are not distracted, or deceived in the face of any attacks (Psa. 140:7).

    • May the instructions from the high command to the soldiers be clear, concise and godly (1 Cor. 14:8).

    • Lord, is it not time to stir up a rebellion against Hamas in Gaza itself (Psa. 55:9)?

    • As Hamas and Abbas' Fatah in Judea and Samaria are at war with each other, please use this division to cause the whole house to collapse (Psa. 129:5; Mark 3:25).

  8. Security – Iran: Most Persians who live under this evil Shi'ite Islamic regime want to be set free. We often hear how once they are free they want to have good relations with Israel and the Jews – as they have had for over 2,000 years until the 1979 Islamic revolution that brought the ayatollahs to power. This regime continues to threaten Israel almost daily.

    • Keep not silence, God; do not be speechless; be not still…For behold Your enemies roar; those who hate You have lifted up their head. They take shrewd counsel against Your people… 'Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, so that the name Israel may be remembered no more'.Psa. 83:1-4

    • Lord, these verses are such an encouragement! For almost 3,000 years Your enemy has tried to destroy Israel – and yet we're back! Thank You for being Israel's Rock (Deut. 32:3-4, 30-31).

    • For Your holy name's sake and to display Your mercy, for Iran's leaders we pray, Fill their faces with shame, that they may seek Your name, O YHWH. (Psa. 83:16)

    • I will set My throne in Elam, and will destroy the king and the rulers from there… (Jer. 49:38) Amen!

    • Lord Yeshua, You are setting Your throne in Elam [ancient Iran] as we hear how the Iranian church is growing tremendously (Matt. 16:18). Isn't it time to also destroy the king and the rulers as well?

    • Pour out blessings of protection and growth numerically and spiritually on our Iranian family in Yeshua.

    • Forbid that any form of replacement demonology infects the Iranian Body (Eph. 4:11-16).

    • As they get saved, also give them a love for Zion (Psa. 50:2; 78:68; 84:7).

    • Dry up all the funds Iran uses to foment terror in the Middle East and the rest of the world (Jam. 5:1-3).

    • Raise up voices in the Church in the nations, especially in Europe, who are still supporting the Iranian regime, to warn them that if this continues their economies will be judged (Num. 24:9b; Psa. 9:19-20).

  9. Security – Hizbullah: This most dangerous and immediate threat sits in Lebanon and now in Syria and is controlled by Iran. Israel must be stripped of its humanist goals when it comes to war and see that the only sure way to end this war against Iran's proxies is by a total victory like every other war in history. There is a war with Hizbullah coming, Israel is training for it all the time. Yet, is this nation and its military ready mentally, emotionally and sacrificially to end what the enemy starts? Let's pray so.

    • You are my king, O God; command victories for Jacob. Through You we will push our enemies; through Your name we will trample those who rise up against us.Psa. 44:4-5

    • Release the IDF to fight biblically and not humanistically (Rom. 13:3-4).

    • Lord, reveal any hidden traps that Hizbullah has set for the IDF.

    • Let them fall into their own snares they have set for this nation (Psa. 35:4-8).

    • Bring all IDF commanders into one accord and make them a fire against the enemy (Zech. 12:6).

    • Aid the IDF to know how to distribute its manpower, its equipment, etc.

    • Keep all IDF soldiers in the northern theater alert and empower them to defend this nation (Psa. 44:1-3).

    • Give to the IDF planning division out-of-the-box plans that are actually from You (Prov. 19:21; 21:31).

    • Cut off all lines of support from Iran to Hizbullah (Psa. 129:5).

We finished by praying for the Israeli Body to receive a revelation of the importance of intercession for this nation at this time. Please pray for that revelation for the Body in your nation as well. We are at the time when Messiah Yeshua told us to watch and pray (Mark 13:33). May He enable all of us to do this in line with the leading of His Spirit.

Shabbat shalom and blessings from Zion,

The IFI team