1. Praise:

   God is absolutely sovereign and does not need our help. Yet most of the time He holds back from doing His will until His children asks Him. This is what Yeshua indicated when He taught us to pray for His kingdom to come and His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven (Luke 11:2). This is also why the Bible is full of both examples and exhortations concerning prayer.

   • We bless You Lord for inviting us to call on You when we are in trouble so that not only will You answer, but You will also receive the glory (Psa. 50:15).

   • Abba, thank You for revealing to us that when You decide to judge a nation, an intercessor can stand in the gap and change Your mind to pour out Your mercy instead (Ezek. 22:30; cp. Ex. 32:11-14).

   • We praise You for relating to us Your will through Your Word and then encouraging us that as we pray in line with Your will we can be confident in Your hearing and answering (1 John 5:14-15).

   • Yeshua Lord, we rejoice that You have chosen us, and given us the authority to use Your name, in pray so that we can bear fruit for Your Father (John 15:16).

   • Thank You Lord for encouraging us to be persistent in prayer (Luke 18:1; Jam. 5:16b).

2. Government & society:

   Israel's political leaders are constantly faced with making challenging decisions – especially PM Bibi Netanyahu. Yet as we are called to pray for them (1 Tim. 2:1-4), we often see the Lord guiding their decision making processes (Prov. 21:1). [Next week the Knesset – Israel's parliament – starts its three month summer recess until after the fall feasts.]

   • Yeshua, King of Israel, take up the reins of Your nation and rule today (Psa. 103:19; Isa. 33:22).

   • Abba Father, continue to increase the sons and daughters of Zion who speak out in Israeli society, and let their wisdom make them extremely influential (1 Chr. 11:10; Obad. 1:21; Zech. 9:13; 12:8).

   • Messiah, we need Your clarity in praying for the government as often what is reported in the media is distortions of the truth, or even out and out lies against Israel's current leadership (Isa. 59:14).

   • God of Israel, protect Your people from all demonically-driven social media posts (Deut. 33:29).

   • Lord Yeshua, use the long recess for Your glory and give Bibi and the rest of his coalition wisdom as well as a time of refreshing (Psa. 115:1-3; 138:3).

   • Lord, thank You for answering our prayers for Netanyahu as despite all he has endured since Oct. 7th, he still has Your authority to guide Your nation (Psa. 18:2; 27:1-6; Dan. 2:21).

   • Lord God, give him all the physical health to finish the race You have set out for him (Jer. 33:6).

   • God, bring to him wise and godly advisors, and a few real friends (Prov. 17:17; 18:24; 27:6).

   • King Messiah, reprimand Israel's Supreme Court judges, who while unelected, think they have the legal right to overturn that which Israel's elected government decrees (Prov. 27:5; Eccl. 7:5).

   • Lord intervene, and remove Israel's "daughter of Greece" attorney general from her post (Dan. 4:32).

   • All-wise God, bring good out of the ultra-Orthodox/Haredi parties leaving the coalition (Rom. 8:28).

   • Lord, use Moses' rebuke in the Torah portion of the two and a half-tribes who wanted to stay east of the Jordan River to convict all Haredi rabbis of their disobedience to You when they refuse to let their capable young men fight for Your nation today (Num. 32:6-7, 20-22).

   • Almighty Creator, continue sustaining Israel's economy for Your holy name's sake (Ezek. 36:8-15).

3. Foreign relations:

   What we see today lines up with Psalm 2 as the nations rage against God and His anointed – Israel. While Psalm 2 primarily relates to Messiah Yeshua, the Anointed One of God, yet in Psalm 105:15, He also calls Israel His anointed [read in context – Psalm 105:11-15].

   • Lord God, we believe that You are fulfilling Your kingdom purposes on earth (Psa. 33:10-11; Isa. 55:8-9), and ask You to lead us very precisely to prayer in one accord with that (Amos 3:7).

   • Faithful God, watch over Psalm 33:10-11 as many nations plot and rage against Your nation Israel.

   • Use this rage to hasten the fulfillment of Numbers 23:9b (cp. Ex. 33:16; Deut. 33:28).

   • God of Jacob, shield Israel from the influence of Jewish communities living in the nations who often press Israel to act in ways that are not in line with Your will (Neh. 4:1-14).

   • King Messiah, guide Bibi in his dealings with US President Trump so that he knows when it is fine to compromise, but also sees when he must say "no" concerning Israel's actions (Psa. 17:4-5; 141:3).

   • Impart to Ron Dermer, Bibi's intermediary with the US, Your wisdom and courage (2 Chr. 19:11a).

   • Lord Yeshua, make Gideon Sa'ar, Israel's Foreign Minister, its US Ambassador Dr. Yechiel Leiter, and Danny Danon, its UN ambassador, Your mouthpieces – for Your glory (Prov. 25:13; Jer. 1:8-9).

   • Lord, use Israeli diplomats to share with the West, especially its leaders, that most ME Arabs and Iranians do not perceive life like those raised with a Judeo-Christian background (1 Cor. 15:41).

   • God, if it is time for Israel to wipe the dirt off its feet and leave the anti-God UN, please set it free from the fear of going outside the camp of this world (Matt. 7:6; 10:14; John 14:27).

   • Lord Yeshua, let more believers read Ezekiel 29:6-9 and see how furious You are with Israel's allies who prove to be unreliable, and then burden them to intercede for their nations (Ezek. 22:30-31).

   • Also let them read Isaiah 34:8 and 16 and see that You are in the midst of fulfilling that prophecy.

4. "Operation Gideon's Chariots" in Gaza is still ongoing. As of this writing, negotiations with Hamas to trade for some of the remaining hostages [20 living; 30 dead] for a ceasefire and the release of hundreds of jailed terrorists have been stymied by Hamas' inflexible attitude, and this is an answer to prayer! Hamas knows that if they keep even a few Israeli hostages they can manipulate its society and could survive to once again rule over Gaza. Yet their ultimate goal as revealed in their charter is the destruction of not just the Jewish nation, but also the death of every Jew in existence!

   • Lord God, do not let this war end until it is 100% Your time for that to occur (Psa. 46:9; Eccl. 3:8b).

   • Let Israel change its main goal from "ceasefire" to "victory" (2 Sam. 23:10, 12).

   • Almighty Healer, remove the fatigue of this extended war from off of the IDF and Israeli society and embolden Israel with what a total victory over Hamas would mean (Psa. 44:5-8; 60:11-12; 68:35).

   • God of hosts, intensify Your protection over IDF soldiers against attacks, traps, kidnapping attempts, and friendly fire or other dangerous accidents, especially as they enter into and take over new areas in Gaza (Psa. 4:8; Zech. 9:16; 10:5-8).

   • Abba Father, let Hamas' pride contribute mightily to their destruction (2 Sam. 22:28b; Prov. 16:18).

   • Lord, if the reports that Hamas' stubborn stance in the negotiations is a result of Iranian pressure on Hamas leaders in Qatar, expose this for Israel and America to see (Job 12:22).

   • God of compassion, You anointed both Abraham and David to rescue their hostages, and so we ask You to anoint the IDF to do the same today (Gen. 14:14-16; 1 Sam. 30:18-20; Psa. 57:3-4).

   • Abba, shut the mouths of media channels that report wicked distortions of how the IDF is fighting, and expose the truth to all who really want to know it (Ex. 23:1; Psa. 35:11; Prov. 14:5).

   • Lord God, we bless You for the tens of thousands of Palestinians who have left Gaza (Psa. 10:16).

   • Now Abba, open wide the gates for most of the others to leave as well (Jer. 12:17).

   • God, convince all Israelis that since You told them to possess Gaza, a part of Judah's inheritance, this must be Israel's "day-after" plan (Josh. 15:1, 47; Judg. 1:18; Prov. 16:9).

5. Internal security:

   Our prayer burden remains both the extension of Israeli sovereignty over all of the land west of the Jordan River and the elimination of terrorist groups in that area. And in both areas, we are seeing huge successes!

   • Thank You Lord God for last week's "Sovereignty" conference with Israeli leaders and others, and this week's vote in the Knesset for Israel to extend its sovereignty over the land today (Psa. 105:5-11).

   • Lord God, empower those with the authority to make this declaration of sovereignty a reality with wisdom and plans from on high (Isa. 54:2-3).

   • Also let there be more "walk" than "talk" in Israel to actually do this (Deut. 11:24; Josh. 1:3).

   • God of Israel, since there are numerous confirmations in the Torah portion about You giving the land to the nation of Israel, even swearing to give it, we ask for those Jews who read it – whether in Israel or in the captivity – to wake up and embrace Your will completely (Num. 32:11b).

   • Lord Yeshua, burden Your Body to pray for You to fulfill these promises of the land to Israel as they are clearly declared to be for Your holy name's sake (Psa. 87:2; 115:1-3; Prov. 3:12; 1 Thess. 1:3).

   • God of Abraham, use the protection that Israel has provided for the Druze in southern Syria to return that land, a part of Manasseh's inheritance, to Your people (Num. 32:19 in Torah portion; Jer. 49:1-2).

   • Use the warnings in the Torah portion against allowing any others who do not worship You to dwell in Your land to reinforce the growing resistance in Israel towards a Palestinian State (Num. 33:52-56).

   • Also Abba, let the warning in the Torah portion about letting the murderer live impress on Israel the necessity to use the death penalty on terrorists who are caught in the act (Num. 35:33-34).

   • God, expose and destroy all ties between Palestinian terrorist groups and Iran (Isa. 29:15).

   • King of Israel, like David battling Goliath, anoint the IDF to go out in Your name and with Your authority and power against all Palestinian terrorists (1 Sam. 17:37).

   • Abba Father, in line with Your promise, create a devastating fear and dread of the IDF upon all of Israel's enemies inside of Your land (Ex. 23:27; Deut. 11:24-25; Josh. 2:9-11; 2 Chr. 20:29).

   • Lord God, especially now, as Israel is in the hot summer months, protect Your people and Your land from all arson-terrorist attacks (Isa. 43:2).

   • Father God, we bless You for always being awake to guard over Israel (Psa. 121:4), and ask You to keep Israel's security guards at checkpoints and other posts alert and awake as well (Gen. 31:1-2).

6. External security – Middle East [ME]:

   There have been a number of articles in Israeli and foreign media outlets declaring that Israel is now the "superpower" in the ME. This is something we have prayed for, although using the biblical terms, that Israel becomes the "head" of ME nations. While this is still a work in progress, it is important for us to pray this to completion.

   • Lord God of hosts, You are the Superpower in the ME and we ask for You to continue to use Israel as Your weapon of war against Your – and their – enemies (Jer. 51:20-24; Ezek. 25:14).

   • Speaking of weapons, we bless You that Israel's Iron-Beam laser defense system will be activated in a few months and are thrilled that Israel's defense will be improved by pure light (Psa. 44:3)!

   • Lord God, we thank You for arranging circumstances so that within a relatively short space of time since the Oct. 7th massacre, Israel's deterrence has been restored and even has grown (Josh. 2:9-11).

   • Abba, as Israel maintains this position, do not let it be overly proud of its armed forces but instead to give You the glory for all You have done both openly and behind the scenes (Isa. 41:10-16).

   • King Messiah, guide Israel's response to what is happening in Syria and its intervention there to save the southern Druze communities from being wiped out by radical Islamists (Prov. 3:6; 16:9).

   • Sovereign Lord, open Trump and the NATO leaders' eyes to see Turkey's President Erdogan's evil Islamic schemes and turn them from supporting him (Psa. 10:4; 105:4-5; Prov. 15:26a).

   • Lord Yeshua, give Israel insight into all of the plans of Turkey in Syria (Job 12:22)

   • Abba Father, bring Israel real-time intelligence on the actual outcome of the attacks by Israel and America on Iran's nuclear facilities (Job 12:22; 34:21-22; Dan. 2:22).

   • We thank You for Israel already planning its next steps in its war against Iran – whether in the near future or years from now – and ask You to oversee all of its deliberations (Prov. 21:30-31).

   • Abba Father, use the water crisis and the wide-ranging arrests of ordinary Iranian citizens to hasten the day when Iran's wicked regime is brought down (Jer. 49:38b).

   • Messiah Yeshua, direct the Iranian Body as they pray for their nation and for Israel (1 Tim. 2:1-4).

   • Impart to Israel Your strategy and tactics to eliminate the Houthis threat from Yemen (Psa. 44:4).

   • As the Lebanese see Hizbullah weakened, God of all nations, encourage them to rise up and set their nation free from the control of this Shi'ite Islamic terrorist organization (Psa. 29:5-6; Prov. 28:15).

   • Lord God, give Israel discernment in its relations with Egypt, and equip it with wisdom and courage to deal righteously with Egypt's current breaches of the peace accord (Judg. 11:12-27; Ezek. 29:6).

   • Lord Yeshua, warn Your Body in Lebanon, Syria and throughout the ME that if they curse Israel, they will be cursed in return (Num. 24:9b; Psa. 6:1; Mark 3:5a; Rev. 2:14a).

7. Aliyah:

   When read in context, we see that God answers prayers for all Israel to be saved (Jer. 31:7b) by aliyah – bringing them home to the land which He has promised to them (31:8-10)!

   • We thank You Abba that the aliyah is a sign to the nations of Your faithfulness and power to fulfill Your promises, even though most nations are against Israel being restored (Isa. 43:12; Heb. 10:23b).

   • Lord, use the increased interest in aliyah to bring forth an actual increase of aliyah (Matt. 5:37).

   • Lord God Almighty, also use the explosion of anti-Israel/anti-Semitic acts, in particular in the West, to cause Jews who never considered making aliyah to contemplate immigrating to Israel (Jer. 16:16).

   • Abba Father, remove from the Jews the lukewarm name of where they live: "the diaspora" [Gk. "scattering"], replacing it with the biblical term: "the captivity" (Deut. 30:3; Ezra 2:1; Psa. 126:1-4).

   • God of mercy, draw Jews home today while they can still bring their silver and gold (Isa. 60:9).

   • Lord God, promote more sons and daughters of Zion to lead Jewish communities in the captivity that will encourage them to make aliyah and will also lead them back (Jer. 51:6-10).

   • God of Israel, release Jews in Iran, India, Ethiopia, and South Africa to return home (Isa. 43:5-7).

   • King Messiah, focus Israel's diplomatic outreach to Jews in the nations towards aliyah and away from aiding them to be "safe and secure" outside of Your land (Deut. 28:65-67; Psa. 107:1-9).

   • Messiah Yeshua, teach Your Body their biblical responsibility to help Jews to make aliyah through prayer, finances and by good words and works (Isa. 49:22; 60:1-12; 61:5; Rom. 15:26-27).

8. Salvation:

   Psalm 106:47 links Israel's salvation with aliyah, resulting in God being praised. Save us, YHWH our God, and gather us from the nations to give thanks to Your holy name, and to triumph in Your praise.

   • Yeshua Lord, reveal Yourself to Your people – for Your holy name's sake (Gen. 45:1-4).

   • Lord God, use Jeremiah 2:11 in Shabbat's prophetic portion to confront and challenge Your people that only the God revealed in the Tanach is their God.

   • Then Abba, cause them to cry out to You that which You declare in that same portion: My father, You are the guide of my youth? (Jer. 3:4)

   • Reveal to them Messiah Yeshua and pour upon them a deep spirit of repentance (Ezek. 36:31-32).

   • Messiah Yeshua, impart a burden to pray for Israel's salvation upon gentile believers (Rom. 10:1).

   • Lord of the harvest, reap a mighty harvest from all of the seeds which believers planted and watered in Jewish lives recently (1 Cor. 3:6-7).

   • Abba Father, by Your Spirit and Your grace (Zech. 4:6-7) save all living Holocaust survivors and their families; survivors of terrorism; all living hostages and their loved ones; IDF soldiers and their families; loved ones of soldiers killed or severely wounded; widows, widowers, orphans; rabbis in Israel and in the captivity; Israeli politicians, judges, lawyers, diplomats; Jewish university students wherever they reside; professors, teachers, medical personnel; Jews on their death beds; Israeli media professionals, tour guides, archeologists; Israelis living in the captivity; Jews who have recently made aliyah; Jewish hippies, LGBTQ+ and new agers; Jews in Iran, Turkey, Ethiopia, India, and China; Spanish and Portuguese speaking Jews; and unsaved loved ones of Messianic Jews. Thank You Lord.

9. Body of Messiah:

   When the Lord Yeshua returns, He sits on David's throne as Israel's King Messiah and judges the nations from Jerusalem. Satan is also judged and banished for a very long time, so he is outraged by Israel's restoration as he sees that his time is short. The reality that so many in the Body are blind to this, and do not perceive what the spiritual battle over Israel is truly about is an indictment on the low level of the Body's biblical literacy.

   • Divine Physician, heal Your Body of its biblical anorexia and prophetic illiteracy by injecting it with a hunger to "eat" all of Your Word (Jer. 15:16; Amos 8:11; Acts 20:32; 2 Tim. 2:15; Heb. 5:13-14).

   • Lord, cause members of Your Body to stop calling themselves "New Testament believers," and to start using the much more accurate term of "Bible believer" (Luke 24:44-45; 2 Tim. 3:15-17).

   • Abba, let believers see how impossible it is to know what end time prophecies You are fulfilling today if they do not know what the Tanach [Old Testament] says about these days (Luke 24:25:27).

   • Lord God, teach the Body how planting Israel back on its land is of central importance to You (Jer. 32:41); and then turn them to pray for this – Your will – to be done on earth (Luke 11:2).

   • Almighty Savior, let Your children see You as the Lamb of God (John 1:29, 36), and the Lion of Judah (Joel 3:16; Rev. 5:5), who is still a Man of War today (Ex. 15:3; Isa. 42:13).

10. IFI:

    We are seeing many answers to decades-long intercessions, yet each answer open up more areas that need prayer. Please pray for us to know God's leading as it is impossible for one ministry to effectively cover every prayer need. Thank you for your support.

Shabbat shalom, and blessings from Israel

Chuck Cohen, for the IFI team

Psa. 50:15