1. Praise:

   Shabbat's Torah portion contains two verses which declare that the Sovereign God of heaven and earth out of love for Israel's forefathers chose their seed as His elect nation. Behold the heaven and the heaven of heavens is YHWH's your God, the earth also, with all that is in it. Only YHWH had a delight in your fathers to love them, and He chose their seed after them – you above all people, as it is this day. (Deut. 10:14-15)

   • Thank You for being totally sovereign as well as a God of love (Psa. 96:10; John 3:16).

   • Lord, whether we are Jewish or gentile believers, we bless and praise You for choosing us (Eph. 1:4-5) and grafting us together into Israel's olive tree (Rom. 11:17-24).

   • Lord Yeshua, we are encouraged to read Isaiah 50:10 in the prophetic portion which urges us to trust in You regardless of what we understand or what we are experiencing (cp. Prov. 3:5).

   • We are so blessed to serve a living God and not one of mankind's dead idols (Psa. 42:2; 115:3-8).

   • We humbly confess that we love You because You first loved us (1 John 4:19).

   • Thank You for Your covenant-love which is renewed every morning (Lam. 3:22-23).

2. Government & society:

   We see God promoting more sons and daughters of Zion throughout Israel, and recall that He specifically directed us to pray for this – before Oct. 7th. This is still a burden on our hearts, along with us asking Him to remove every son and daughter of Greece, who are those who view the world through non-biblical humanistic lens, from influential positions in Israel.

   • Abba Father, continue anointing Israel's sons and daughters of Zion with Your wisdom and all of the authority they need to direct Your nation in a biblical way (Deut. 10:12; Isa. 28:5-6; Zech. 9:13).

   • Lord, we thank You for PM Bibi Netanyahu, Finance Minister Smotrich, Danny Danon, Israel's UN Ambassador, and all others who are taking a strong biblical stance for Your nation (2 Sam. 23:2-3).

   • Again, Lord You remind us to trust You and not Israel's government, yet knowing that You have created this government for this time enables us to pray with faith for it (Est. 4:14b; Dan. 2:21).

   • Almighty God, anoint Israel's current coalition for Your glory and make them one concerning all the directions and goals that are Your will for Israel today (Psa. 115:1-3; 133:1).

   • God, download to Bibi that wisdom and knowledge of which Daniel spoke (Dan. 2:21b).

   • Keep Your hand upon him as various forces try to move him away from Your will (Psa. 80:17).

   • Silence all those in the media – whether in Israel or globally – who constantly plant fear and guilt into the hearts and minds of Israel's citizens (Num. 13:31-33; 14:36-37; Psa. 31:18; 144:11).

   • Hedge in the social media also, as so much of it is humanistic, anti-Christ propaganda (Rev. 13:1, 6).

   • In line with the prophetic portion, Lord Yeshua comfort Zion abundantly at this season (Isa. 51:3)

   • Abba Father, fulfill Your word in the Torah portion and even in Israel's current major conflicts make it prosper abundantly so that Your covenant with Israel's forefathers can be established (Deut. 8:18).

3. Foreign relations:

   Israel today is a pariah nation which is not judged as other nations but is held to an impossible higher standard of behavior. Thus Balaam's prophecy of Israel being alone in the midst of the nations is being fulfilled (Num. 23:9b). While we dare pray against this fulfillment, we recognize that most Israelis who lack a living relationship with God through Messiah Yeshua like we do will understandably try to counter this because it is a frightening and lonely situation for them.

   • Being separated from the world to be one with You is one description of being "holy"; so we bless You for making Israel into that holy nation for which You chose it (Ex. 19:5; Deut. 7:6).

   • Yet Lord, even as we bless You for fulfilling Your Word (Jer. 1:12), we also ask for Your guidance to know how to pray about how the nations are basically cursing Israel today (Psa. 5:8-10).

   • Lord Yeshua, let Numbers 24:9b come to pass over the UN and its outreaches, like the ICJ, as they actively seek ways to curse Israel whenever possible (Gen. 27:29; Num. 23:7-8; Isa. 54:17).

   • May Your overall foreign policy be increasingly manifest in these days (Psa. 33:10-11).

   • Use the world's betrayal of Israel to turn Israelis unto You and away from man (Psa. 118:8-9).

   • Lord God, increase the number of sons and daughters of Zion and of Issachar in all areas of Israel's diplomatic corps (1 Chr. 12:32; Psa. 32:8; Isa. 48:17).

   • Prepare Israel's foreign ministry with wisdom and insight concerning the possibility that the next American president could be Kamala Harris (Prov. 26:12; Isa. 5:21; Matt. 15:1-3).

   • Messiah Yeshua, let Your Body warn their nations of Your judgments which are falling on many of them because of their desertion of Israel in its time of need (Num. 24:9b; Ezek. 29:6-7; Joel 3:1-2).

4. External security:

   Will the war with Iran and Hizbullah be like 1967 or 1973? In '67 Israel pre-empted and won a miraculous victory in just six days. Yet in '73, its leaders hesitated, being warned by the US to not pre-empt, and ended up losing thousands of men and at one point, even contemplated using its nuclear weapons in order to rescue the Jewish nation.

   • Lord, if Israel should pre-empt Hizbullah and/or Iran, move on it to do exactly that and defend it from the condemnation that will surely come from its so-called allies (Psa. 18:34-42; Isa. 54:17).

   • God Almighty let any future war against Iran and its proxies fulfill Micah 4:11-13, and receive all of the glory from the outcome, just as these Micah verses indicate (Psa. 115:1-3).

   • God of Israel, we remind You of Your promises to Israel, and that if You do not fulfill them then Your name, that is Your reputation, among the gentiles will be blasphemed. Therefore arise and deal with Your enemies – for Your holy name's sake (Ex. 32:11-13; Num. 10:35; Deut. 32:41; Psa. 68:1).

   • King of Israel, reinforce Your angelic armies guarding Your nation today (Psa. 35:4-6; 78:49).

   • Lord God, again we ask You to raise up more sons of Zion and of Issachar to influential positions in the IDF and replace all humanistic sons of Greece today (1 Chr. 12:32; Zech. 9:13).

   • Expose to the light all of Iran's and Hizbullah's current plans against Israel (Prov. 15:3; Luke 12:2).

   • Stir up division and distrust between Iran and its proxies – especially Hizbullah (Jer. 17:18).

   • God let any all-out IDF attack against Hizbullah be so overpowering that Lebanon itself shakes with a fear of Israel and of You, Israel's God (Ex. 8:22; 2 Chr. 14:14; 17:10; Psa. 96:10-13).

   • Let the prospect of Israel attacking Lebanon ignite the internal discord which is already noticeable between many of the Lebanese civilians and Hizbullah (Est. 9:3; Psa. 109:29; Prov. 28:15).

   • God of Israel, use Israel's deeper strikes into Lebanese territory against Hizbullah's weapons depots to totally defang Hizbullah's ability to strike back (Jer. 51:20; Ezek. 32:26-27).

   • Lord, anoint Israeli drone operators and its cyber-warfare warriors (1 Chr. 5:18).

   • God, break Elam's [ancient Iran's] bow (Jer. 49:35), and destroy its evil leaders (Jer. 49:38b).

   • Let Iran's leaders who threaten and curse Israel reap exactly what they sow (Num. 24:9b; Gal. 6:7).

   • God, very soon – and very suddenly – destroy Iran's nuclear facilities (Psa. 99:1; Jer. 51:25-26).

   • If instead You desire to use Israel as Your weapon of war, take control of the timing and tactics and let Iran's nuclear weapons program be totally eradicated (Prov. 21:31; Jer. 46:10; 51:20-25).

   • Abba, shame Israel's enemies to seek Your name, and if they refuse, eliminate them (Psa. 83:16-18).

   • We praise You for the Body in Iran, and ask You to protect them, to help them to grow numerically and spiritually and let them influence the rest of Iranian society for You (Jer. 49:38a; Matt. 16:18b).

   • We ask the same for the Body in Lebanon, Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East (Psa. 91:14-16).

5. "Operations Swords of Iron,"

   Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza, is being fought under the shadow of the "ceasefire/hostage" negotiations that so far, have gotten nowhere. PM Netanyahu's non-negotiable redlines for the negotiations are exactly what one should expect from a Son of Zion who leads the Jewish Nation and who knows the lessons of history. Yet there are too many voices in both Israel's military and politics that have not learned the lessons of Oct. 7th and resist him.

   • Lord, hold Bibi to his redlines so that Hamas does not continue ruling in Gaza and prevent him from being moved by the internal and external floods of criticism against him (Psa. 124:1-5; Prov. 21:1)

   • Arise, Lord, and fight for the release of the hostages without Israel needing to concede anything that would place it in grave danger – either now or in the future (Psa. 74:22-23; 124:6-8).

   • As in the prophetic portion, deliver the hostages and fight against Israel's foes so that all flesh shall know that I YHWH am your Savior and your Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. (Isa. 49:24-26)

   • Thank You for the IDF finding six more hostage bodies, and while we prefer to see them rescued alive, we do ask that this would bring comfort and closure to their loved ones (Psa. 23:4; 71:20-21).

   • Please reveal where the rest of hostages are (Zech. 9:11-12), and lead the IDF to find and free them (Isa. 49:24-26), and thus to release Israel from Hamas' emotional blackmail (Psa. 140:7).

   • Stop Israel from caving in to global pressure for a ceasefire making the blood of the 1200 murdered on Oct. 7th and the blood of Israel's soldiers to have been shed in vain (Num. 35:33; Psa. 79:10).

   • Lord, fulfill Jeremiah 30:23-24 in relation to Yahya Sinwar, Hamas' leader, who hides in Gaza's tunnels and surrounds himself with Israeli hostages as human shields (Job 12:22; Psa. 95:4).

   • Anoint the IDF to fight against Hamas as You commanded it in the Torah portion (Deut. 7:16).

   • Also, as in the Torah portion, Almighty Creator, send forth warrior hornets to seek out all of the terrorist who are hiding from the IDF – especially in their underground tunnels (Deut. 7:20).

   • Lord, help Israel remind the world that all dead civilians, Gazans or Israelis, are the responsibility of Hamas who broke the ceasefire and attacked Israel, who hide weapons in civilian areas, dress up their fighters as civilians and use civilians as human shields (Job 24:14; Psa. 5:10; 10:8; 34:21).

   • Support Bibi's demand that Israel must maintain full security control over Gaza, and the Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egyptian border, for the foreseeable future (Neh. 4:17; Jer. 50:25).

   • Thank You for Israel asking its own military industries to supply it with whatever it needs to defend itself – and so it can depend less and less on its unfaithful "allies" (Prov. 8:12; Isa. 30:1).

6. Internal security:

   We know God's Word does not return to Him empty (Isa. 55:11). So as Jews study Deuteronomy for Shabbat's Torah readings from now until the fall feasts in October, this is a great time to pray for Israel to possess all of its God-given possessions as He promises the land to Israel over 80 times in that final book of Moses.

   • Since biblical truth is established by two or three witnesses, Your land promise is settled in eternity, therefore we ask You to fulfill it suddenly – and very soon (Gen. 15:18; Matt. 18:16; Rom. 15:8).

   • Erase all humanistic thinking from Israelis that led to the "Oslo Accords Two-State Solution" non-solution, and replace it with Zionistic thinking based on Your Word and promises (Psa. 33:9; 89:34).

   • At this time, press Israel to take over more of the land which You have given it as You promised in the Torah and prophetic readings (Deut. 7:22-23; Isa. 49:19-20).

   • Watch over Deuteronomy 11:24-25 in the Torah reading and place the fear and dread of Israel upon all of its enemies throughout all of Your land that You have given to Your people.

   • Uncover every terrorist plot and tunnel everywhere in Judea and Samaria (Psa. 59:12; Obad. 1:6).

   • Thank You for all of the "work accidents" in which terrorists blow themselves up while trying to set explosive devices to kill and maim Israelis (Psa. 9:16: Gal. 6:7).

   • Improve Israel's ability in guarding its roads, checkpoints and its entire public transit system against terror attacks (Deut. 28:6-7; Psa. 121:8; Jer. 49:37).

   • Quickly bring to fruition the IDF's plan to create a Jordan Valley battalion to prevent smuggling of Iranian weapons across that long border to Palestinians in Judea and Samaria (Psa. 147:14a; Mal. 1:5).

   • God, uproot Your enemies from out of Your land – and do it suddenly (Psa. 125:3; Jer. 12:14-17).

   • Lord Yeshua, draw many Jews who are now in Your land to You (Ezek. 36:24-27, 37).

   • Also, Lord, save many Palestinians as well (Matt. 5:44; Luke 19:10).

7. Aliyah:

   Scattered Jews are being regathered to a resurrected Jewish State (Jer. 30:8-10). This is an open witness to the world of God's faithfulness to His promises (Heb. 10:23b). Since this needs to happen before the Lord returns (Psa. 102:16), Satan is trying to destroy Israel (Rev. 12:12-13).

   • Thank You for using the aliyah as one answer to the Body's 2,000 year old prayer that You would sanctify Your name through Your will being done on earth (Psa. 50:15; Ezek. 36: 23-24; Luke 11:2).

   • Lord God, send angels to drag your people out of the captivity (Gen. 19:19:15-16; Acts 12:7-11).

   • Use the growth of anti-Semitism and Islam in the West to chase Your people home (Jer. 16:16).

   • Almighty One, by Your covenant-love, draw multitudes of Jews back to Israel (Jer. 31:3).

   • Abba, draw whole families and even communities back home together (Ex. 12:37-38; Jer. 31:3-5).

   • Let Jews who are afraid to come to Israel because it is a war-zone see that where they live among the nations today is also a war-zone for them and that the chance of gentile security forces laying down their lives for Jews is much less than Israel's security forces who do this daily (Psa. 38:12)

   • Set Western Jews free of their dangerous expectation that life will return to "normal," as the current surge of anti-Semitic hatred will not dissipate until Your return (Deut. 30:3-5; Zech. 10:8-10).

   • Creator God, show Western Jews that today they can come to Israel with their financial resources, but they might not be able to do that tomorrow (Isa. 60:9).

   • Draw all Israelis living in the nations back home, especially Messianic believers (Isa. 35:10; 51:11).

   • God, release Jews from all nations which prevent them from leaving (Ex. 8:1; Zeph. 3:19-20).

   • Lord God, tear out of Israel's bureaucratic system all blockages to making aliyah (Isa. 62:10).

   • Abba, abundantly bless every Israeli plan to absorb millions of new immigrants (Ezek. 36:8-12).

   • Lord God, marry Your people to Your land, showing them that it is a marriage – for better or worse, richer or poorer, in sickness and in health – and not just a love affair (Isa. 62:4-5).

   • Thank You Lord, for all believers who have taken Isaiah 49:22, which is in Shabbat's prophetic portion, seriously and has contributed in some ways towards carrying Your people home. More Lord!

8. Salvation:

   Save us, YHWH our God, and gather us from the gentiles, to give thanks to Your holy name, and to triumph in Your praise. (Psa. 106:47) This verse links Israel's salvation with the aliyah, both of which lead to God being glorified, praised and exalted!

   • Lord Yeshua, place Your burden of seeing all Israel being saved on more believers, and move upon them to intercede specifically for that (Luke 19:10; Rom. 10:1; 1 John 5:14-15).

   • Abba Father, please do away with the partial blindness You placed on most Jews for the last 2,000 years concerning Messiah Yeshua and reveal Him to them today (Rom. 11:25-26; cp. Isa.45:15).

   • Use Israel's increased isolation to turn many Israelis to Yourself (Ex. 33:16; Deut. 33:28-29).

   • May Deuteronomy 8:2-3 in the Torah portion ignite a hunger in Jews to read and study Your Word.

   • Let Deuteronomy 10:16-17 challenge Jews with the command to have one's heart circumcised and then remind them that You promise to do it for them when they are back in the land (Deut. 30:5-6).

   • Abba, show them that heart-circumcision and being born from above are essentially the same thing (Psa. 51:10; Jer. 31:31-34; 32:37-40; Ezek. 36:24-28: John 3:3, 7; Rom. 5:5; 10:8-10).

   • Anoint the IDF's Messianic Jewish soldiers to provoke others to jealousy (Rom. 11:14).

   • [Please seek God about a specific group or groups of Jews to intercede for this week.]

9. Body of Messiah:

   How is it possible for so many believers to be ignorant of the significance of Israel's restoration? Is it because they avoid, or worse, reject God's prophetic word? These blind spots in His Body are linked together and are definitely not pleasing to the Lord.

   • Messiah Yeshua, convict more of Your Body that Israel's restoration and salvation is crucial to Your end-time plans and to Your return in glory (Isa. 41:11; 43:5-7; 60:12; Zech. 8:1-8; 12:2-10).

   • King Messiah, show us what prophecies You are fulfilling today (Dan. 12:4a; Rev. 22:10).

   • Heal the Body of its biblical anorexia and prophetic illiteracy and gift it with a hunger for all of Your Word (Jer. 15:16; Amos 8:11; Acts 20:32; 2 Tim. 2:15; Heb. 5:13-14; Rev. 6:9).

   • Use the remnant who do understand Your plans and purposes for Israel in these last days to be like a grain of mustard and impact many others within Your Body (Matt. 13:31-32)

   • Walk through the Body and cast out from its members all demonic spirits of Jew and Israel-hatred, regardless of what excuses are given to justify it (Gen. 18:18; 22:18; John 4:22; Rom. 9:1-5).

   • Equip more sons and daughters of Zion to be teachers in Your Body (Acts 20:26-27; 2 Cor. 2:17).

   • Teach Your Body the joy and efficiency of true corporate prayer (Psa. 133:1; Matt. 6:9; 1 Cor. 6:19).

10. IFI:

    Looking back, we recognize it is only by His grace mediated through His Spirit that we have been able to stay the course and keep this ministry productive (Zech. 4:6-7). Please pray for God to continue to pour out His Spirit and His grace upon us (Eph. 6:18-19).

Thank you, Shabbat shalom and blessings from Zion

Chuck Cohen, for the IFI team

Rom. 16:24-27