1. Praise:

   Shabbat's prophetic reading contains this declaration by God of His relationship with Israel, and by extension, with us: Thus says YHWH, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, YHWH of hosts; I am the First, and the Last; and beside Me there is no God. (Isa. 44:6)

   • Messiah Yeshua, we are amazed at how this verse describes You, our King (Matt. 27:37; Rev. 15:3; 17:14; 19:16) and Redeemer (Job 19:25; Isa. 59:20; Tit. 2:14).

   • We thank You for declaring Yourself the First and the Last (Rev. 1:11, 17; 2:8; 22:13).

   • Again we are thrilled by the miracle of Your incarnation which made You, God the Son, to be born as the Son of Man, and the exact expression of the godhead bodily (Col. 1:14-15; 2:9; Heb. 1:3).

   • Thank You God that the prophetic portion states how You created Israel to declare Your praise and that is one of the reasons why we are new creations in Messiah (Isa. 43:21; Eph. 1:12, 24; 1 Pet. 2:9).

   • YHWH has established His throne in eternity; His kingdom rules over all. (Psa. 103:19) Amen!

2. External security:

   While we continue to pray for Israeli and America to deal a death blow to the radical Shi'ite Islamic regime in Iran, we confess that our confidence is in the One who rules over the nations and has chosen Israel as His segullah, His special treasured possession (Deut. 7:6; 14:2). In using His Word as our ultimate guide to know His will, we can expect Him to lead us in prayers which further the extension of His kingdom on earth – today (Luke 11:2).

   • Iran: Lord God of Israel, we ask for You to be the only One who determines when this war against Iran's radical Shi'ite regime will end (Psa. 46:9).

   • Abba Father, as the heart of Israeli PM Bibi Netanyahu and US President Trump are in Your hands, direct them to continue to wage this war until Your desired goals are reached (Prov. 19:21; 21:1).

   • Lord God, guide these two ally nations to find all of Iran's hidden enriched uranium supplies and to have Your wisdom to know what to do with it (Eccl. 9:18a; Isa. 54:17a).

   • King of Israel, show Israel's other enemies how You have returned the death threats against Israel from Iran's recently deceased leaders back upon their own heads (Gal. 6:7).

   • Lord God, continue to protect and conceal Israel's agents who are physically in Iran (Psa. 138:7).

   • Abba, Jeremiah 49:38b declares that Your goal is regime change and as the Basij paramilitary group leaders, who were at the forefront of confronting and killing Iranian protestors, were just taken out by Israel, let this open wide the gates for the Iranians to take back their nation quickly (Rom. 9:28).

   • Lord of heaven's hosts, help Israel to have great success in attacking the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp [IRGC] as well (Num. 35:16; Job 24:13-14; 1 Tim. 1:9).

   • Lord Yeshua, it seems impossible in the natural to expect the Iranian people to take back their nation from the current regime, but we pray for exactly this to happen as You have taught us that nothing is impossible for You (Gen. 18:14a; Jer. 32:17, 27; Luke 1:37; 18:27).

   • Abba Father, let Iran's regular army, which have weapons, to see that this is their chance to set their nation free and to start warring against the current regime's henchmen (Job 25:2-3; Psa. 110:3).

   • God Almighty, raise up as Iran's next leaders those who seek a relationship with Israel (Dan. 2:21).

   • Almighty Judge, judge all nations which still have financial links with Iran despite them knowing it to be the #1 global supporter of terror and how it just massacred its own people (Jer. 12:13; Hag. 1:6).

   • Lord Yeshua, use this war to further the building of Your throne in Iran through the exponential growth of the Iranian Body of believers (Jer. 49:38a).

   • Abba, give our Iranian family in Messiah specific wisdom in praying for their nation (Job 12:13).

   • Hizbullah in Lebanon: Thank You Lord God for putting a hook into Hizbullah's jaw and drawing them out to attack Israel so that this time Israel can totally destroy them (Ezek. 29:4a; 38:4).

   • Messiah Yeshua, fulfill Joel 2:17-21 and drive Hizbullah far off from Israel's border (Isa. 41:11-12), even using the Lebanese themselves to drive this terror organization out (Prov. 29:2).

   • Lord, direct Israel to establish a buffer zone up to the Latani River and to remain there – as that is part of the land promised to the tribes of Naphtali and Asher (Josh. 19:24, 31-32, 39).

   • Abba, guard over the IDF soldiers on the ground inside of Lebanon (Deut. 33:29; Psa. 3:3).

   • General: God of Israel, continue to guide Israel to gather accurate actionable intelligence on Iran and Hizbullah, and to correctly decipher that gathered data (Job 34:21-22; Psa. 139:12).

   • Lord of hosts, guide Israel to update its target banks against the above enemies (Job 12:21).

   • Abba Father, increase Your angelic protection over Israel and its people from everything that Iran and Hizbullah fire at them (Isa. 31:5).

   • God, show the IDF how to make its Iron Beam laser weapon more effective (Psa. 144:1).

   • For all Israelis, innocent Iranians and Lebanese, and IDF and US soldiers who have been injured or killed, Lord comfort and/or heal them and/or their surviving loved ones (Isa. 40:1; Luke 1:78-79).

   • King of the nations, use Iran's deadly missile attacks against many of its neighboring Arab nations to divide the house of Islam in the Middle East and thus destroy this demonic spirit (Mark 3:24-26).

   • Also use these attacks to drain the finances of Qatar and other double-dealing Arab nations.

   • Abba, with reports of rapprochement between Turkey and Egypt, let Turkey's President Erdogan's arrogant pride and hatred of Israel bring this ungodly alliance to ruin (Psa. 33:10; Prov. 17:19).

3. Foreign relations:

   Operation Roaring Lion, Israel's war against Iran, impacts its relationship with other nations and global NGOs. For those nations who despise God's nation, to see the close cooperation between America and Israel, both militarily and politically, pushes their ultimate hope of destroying the Jewish nation further away. We are asking God to help Israel to take advantage of this and to bring the day when it will be the head of the nations closer to reality (Deut. 28:13a; Isa. 2:2-4).

   • Lord God, thank You for showing us that as we pray for Israel and the nations, our goal is for Your kingdom and glory to be revealed throughout the earth (Psa. 57:5, 11; 108:5; Isa. 55:8-9).

   • King of kings, You have placed all world leaders in their positions today (Prov. 8:15; Jer. 27:5); use them for Your name's sake – as You did with Pharaoh, Cyrus and many others (Rom. 9:15-23).

   • Abba, let the growth of anti-Zionism push Israel to be that prophesied set-apart nation (Num. 23:9b).

   • Almighty God, anoint Bibi and other Israeli leaders with wisdom and boldness to resist any well-meaning but anti-biblical advice from their "allies" (Num. 23:23; Psa. 33:10-11; Ezek. 37:4-10).

   • King of Israel, continue to help Bibi to know when to bend, and when to stand firm in his dealings with President Trump (Psa. 9:19-20; 17:4-5; 141:3).

   • God of Jacob, as with Balaam, so turn all curses against Your people from nations, global NGOs, the media, or anyone else, into blessings – simply because You love them (Deut. 23:5; 33:3).

   • Righteous Judge, defend Israel against the unrighteous lawfare attacking it (Psa. 35:1).

   • King Yeshua, anoint Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon, Minster of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli and other Israeli diplomats to speak Your Word against all threats and lies that are spoken and printed against Your nation (Prov. 2:11-12; Isa. 54:17; 55:11).

4. Government & society:

   Israel's national elections have not yet been scheduled although they should be held by late October. Of course, they could be held sooner if Israel completes its war against Iran and Hizbullah. This is a vital issue to keep in prayer.

   • Sovereign Lord, You ordain who rules over the nations (Job 34:24; Jer. 27:5), yet You tell us to pray for the authorities (1 Tim. 2:-3), therefore guide us as we pray into Israel's upcoming elections.

   • Abba, use Operation Roaring Lion as part of Your election campaign to turn more Israelis to vote for right-wing Zionistic parties and less for the humanistic "peace-now" left-wing parties (Eccl. 10:2).

   • Lord God, give Netanyahu wise, godly advisors and a few real friends (Prov. 17:17; 18:24; 27:6).

   • God Almighty, do not let him or any other coalition politician view all that they say and do at this time through the filter of what is best for the next election (Matt. 6:34).

   • Almighty King, create and guard over a divine unity in Israel's coalition about the issues which are essential for Your nation today (Gen. 1:1-2; Psa. 133:1; Isa. 48:17).

   • Sovereign Lord, let critical issues, like the extension of sovereignty and judicial reform, be debated in the campaign, and forbid the opposition from running only on an anti-Bibi platform (Zech. 8:16a).

   • Lord, may the next government not lose any ground which the current government has gained, in the physical, political, social and even spiritual arenas in Israel (Ex. 14:15; Luke 9:62).

   • Abba Father, give Israel's anti-Zionist media laryngitis (Prov. 12:13; Isa. 52:15; Luke 1:20) so that Your people can hear the real truth about the choices they will need to make (Psa. 25:5a; 43:3).

   • Father God, promote many more influential children of Zion on Israel's social media (Psa. 60:4).

   • Lord God, open the eyes of the children of Greece in Israel and turn them to see truth through Your light (Psa.36:9; 119:130; 146:8a).

5. Gaza:

   Gaza has been put on the backburner at this time. Hamas has not joined the fight and Trump's Board of Peace has been quiet. Yet while the war is draining Hamas' finances, they appear to be solidifying their hold over areas in Gaza [around 45%] where the IDF is not in control.

   • God Almighty, we ask for Your divine will concerning Gaza to prevail (Psa. 33:10-11; Prov. 21:30).

   • King of kings, arise and confound all those on the "Board of Peace" who are actual enemies of Zion (Psa. 129:5; 144:7-8; Isa. 33:7).

   • Lord God of Jacob, watch over Malachi 1:4 and whatever Esau/Edom [Islam's spiritual roots] tries to build in Gaza – destroy it (Isa. 34:5; 63:1-6).

   • Abba Father, use the war against Iran to totally bankrupt Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other Palestinian terrorist groups who aim to destroy Your nation (Jer. 51:8, 44).

   • Shield of Abraham, shield the minds and hearts of every IDF soldier positioned in Gaza, regardless of whether they are veterans or new recruits (Gen. 15:1; Psa. 89:18).

   • Lord God, once the war in Gaza restarts, anoint the IDF to accomplish a great victory (2 Sam. 23:10, 12), and let Hamas be snared in the traps they are currently planning for Israel (Psa. 7:15-16).

   • Creator God, shake the ground and bury Hamas' underground tunnels (Num. 16:31; Psa. 99:1).

   • God of Jacob, teach Israelis that Gaza was given as part of the tribe of Judah's inheritance and so taking back Gaza is a very biblically-based "day-after" plan (Josh. 15:1, 47; Judg. 1:18; Prov. 16:9).

6. Internal security:

   Operation Roaring Lion has diverted the world's attention away from whatever Israel is doing to extend its sovereignty over more of its land – and for that we give thanks. We also praise God that Ramadan passed without any major terror attacks, and that finances Iran was sending to support the Palestinian terrorists inside of Israel is basically no longer available.

   • Lord Messiah, burden more believers to pray for Israel to possess its land (Obad. 1:17), teaching them how this is not political, but prophetic, and is for Your name's sake (Ezek. 36:34-36; 37:14).

   • King Yeshua, anoint America's Israeli Ambassador Mike Huckabee with boldness and wisdom to warn Trump against hindering Israel from extending sovereignty over Your land (Lev. 25:23).

   • God, hasten Israel's building of facts on the ground in Judea and Samaria (Jer. 31:3-5; Zech. 12:2-7).

   • Lord God of Israel, preserve the illegal buildings that the EU built for the Palestinians in Area C so that they may be used as homes for Jews as they resettle Your land (Deut. 6:10-11; Josh. 24:13).

   • Messiah Lord, bless abundantly Israel's plans to develop its North and the Negev (Jer. 24:6; 32:44),

   • Almighty God, bind up the lying spirit of Islam which intimidates world leaders to reject Your will and to assume that the "two-state solution" can bring peace (Psa. 28:3; 120:6-7; Jer. 6:14; 8:11).

   • Abba, make sure that the issues of sovereignty and a Palestinian State will be openly talked about in Israel's upcoming election campaign so that Israelis see who is for what (1 Kin. 18:21; Jam. 1:8).

   • King of the nations, drag the UN and its outreaches into Your Valley of judgment as they continue to pass one resolution after another to divide Your land and create a "Palestine" (Joel 3:1-2).

   • We praise You Lord God of hosts for decreasing the number of terror attacks in Israel in 2025 and ask for that positive trend to be increased during 2026 (Psa. 44:4).

   • Commander of heaven's armies, empower Israel's security forces in Judea and Samaria to fight like Your prophesied sons of Zion against all Palestinian terrorists (Zech. 9:13-15; 10:3a-7; 12:5-6).

   • Abba Father, we bless You for always watching over Israel (Psa. 121:4), and ask You to aid Israel's security guards at checkpoints and other posts to also be alert and watchful (Gen. 31:1-2).

   • Lord Yeshua, burden believers in nations which "recognized" a "Palestine" to cry out for mercy as Your hand of judgment becomes heavier on those countries (Gen. 6:5-8; Isa. 60:12; Ezek. 22:30-31).

7. Aliyah:

   The increase of Jew-hatred and anti-Zionism in nations where Jews, until recently, have lived safely is one of ways that God is using to alert them to the reality that "the captivity" is over. Yet this is also a history lesson as in any nation where Jews lived, eventually they were no longer welcomed or protected. We see this especially in Western nations today.

   • Lord Yeshua, give the Body more elders in who speak out about the connection between may Your name be sanctified (Luke 11:2) and the return of Your people to Israel (Ezek. 36:21-24).

   • Faithful Lord, fulfill Ezekiel 28:25-26 so that as aliyah increases we also see the removal of Israel's enemies, and many Israelis coming to know their King, Messiah Yeshua.

   • Lord God, let the explosion of anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism open the eyes of Jews in the captivity that are blind to the signs of the times, and then turn their hearts toward Zion (Jer. 51:9-10).

   • As nations like Belgium make circumcision illegal, remind Your people that once gentiles decide to not let Jews live as Jews, history shows that they then decide to not let Jews live (Psa. 106:47)!

   • Abba, challenge Jewish pride that says, "They will not chase us out!" and show them that You are doing the chasing in order to bring them back home today (Prov. 16:18; Isa. 43:5-7; Jer. 31:3-5).

   • Almighty God, release Jews in Iran, India, Ethiopia, and South America to come home (Isa. 43:5-7).

   • King Messiah, speak to the mountain that blocks aliyah for many Jews – the rabbinic definition of who is a Jew – and replace it with the biblical definition (Isa. 62:10; Mark 7:9, 13).

   • Precious Lord, send forth grace, favor and sufficient finances on all believing organizations whose ministry is to aid in the aliyah process (Isa. 49:22; Rom. 15:27).

   • Lord God, embolden believers to talk about aliyah with their Jewish acquaintances (Eph. 4:15a).

8. Salvation:

   Ten times in Shabbat's Torah portion this phrase is found: …the priest shall make atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them. (Lev. 4:20; cp. 4:31, 35; 5:6, 10, 13, 16, 18; 6:7)

   • Abba Father, use these verses to show Your people their need of a mediator between You and them and then reveal the Mediator whom You have provided – Messiah Yeshua (1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 12:24).

   • Also, let Jews see the biblical connection between blood sacrifices and their atonement (Lev. 17:11).

   • God of Israel, turn Your people seek You through Your grace and mercy as You say in the prophetic portion that You save them for Your own sake (Isa. 43:25).

   • Lord Yeshua, in line with Isaiah 44:21-22 in the prophetic reading, show Jews that repentance is the fruit of being saved – and not the root (Ezek. 36:25-31; Zech. 12:10-12).

   • Lord God, as the Passover Seder will be held on the evening of April 1st, cause many Jewish families to recognize the Passover lamb and its blood as central to the exodus story (Ex. 12:6, 11, 21, 27).

   • Remove from believers the concept that sharing the good news with a Jew is offensive (Luke 9:26).

   • [Seek the Lord concerning what specific groups of Jews He would like you to pray about this week.]

9. Body of Messiah:

   Yeshua challenged the Jewish rulers on their failure to discern the signs of the times (Matt. 16:2-3). I believe He is challenging His Body today with their ignorance, or worse, their lukewarmness, about the prophecies which He is literally fulfilling concerning Israel.

   • Abba Father, warn believers who are lukewarm about the restoration of Israel that You – the One whom they proclaimed as their God – are jealous/zealous over it (Zech. 8:-18).

   • God Almighty, speak to them that if they are ignorant of what the Tanach states about these days, they are also ignorant about what end time prophecies You are fulfilling (Luke 24:25:27).

   • Lord Messiah, let Your Body take Your warnings to heart that in the last days false prophets will come, both in Your name as well as confessing You, and will deceive many (Matt. 24:4-5, 11, 24-25).

   • Sovereign God, show the Body that how Satan first caused humanity to sin is still his favorite tactic as he is constantly asking both believers and non-believers, Has God really said? (Gen. 3:1a)!

   • God the Son, move upon Your Body to renounce all proud and racist attitudes towards the Jews or Israel, and instead to bless Your people and nation (Prov. 8:13; Isa. 37:23; Rom. 11:17-18, 22).

10. Water:

    Israel is receiving rain for which we bless God. Pray for it to continue so that the land will be blessed to be a blessing to those living here and those soon to come (Psa. 147:7-8).

11. IFI:

    Sirens still disturb our sleep and our mental sharpness. Yet God is good as He has provided so many faithful partners who pray with us for Israel and who also pray for us. Thank you.

Blessings and Shabbat shalom from Zion

Chuck Cohen, for the IFI team

[From Shabbat's prophetic portion: Shout for joy heavens, for YHWH has done it; shout in triumph, lower parts of the earth; break forth into rejoicing, mountains, forest, and all trees in it; for YHWH has redeemed Jacob, and glorified Himself in Israel. (Isa. 44:23; cp. Rom. 8:19-22)]