“Even when their paths wind through the dark valley of tears … they find a pleasant pool where others find only pain. He gives to them a brook of blessing filled from the rain of an outpouring. Hear my cry, O God of Heaven’s Armies! God of Jacob, listen to my loving prayer.” Psalm 84: 6,8
(The Passion Translation, which is an inspirational interpretation)
The Hebraic calendar year 5784 is drawing to a close, with the biblical fall feasts starting in under a month. Here in Israel, it has been a stand-alone year of war, wounding and weeping; of trauma, tears and turmoil. Thousands of Jews have immigrated from the nations and made aliyah; meanwhile, thousands of Israelis have left, planning never to return. One day there is news of a military miracle from Heaven; the next day, of mass murder from Hamas. On one side, there is repentant turning to God; on the other side, rebellious treachery against Him. Meanwhile, it seems no Jew since Jesus has been as hated by as many of his own people as Israel’s leader, Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Despite much uncertainty, there’s one thing we can count on daily: the world choosing to believe another lie about us.
Friends, Israel is flailing. BUT FOR GOD, she’d be failing.
We know that Sovereign Father God is and will be forever faithful to His covenant promises! We do not know exactly how He will bring those promises to glorious fulfillment—except that in all His ways, He is good and perfect. “I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” (Psalm 27:13, NKJV) And we do believe it!
Prophetic Prayer Prospective
For many years we have shared that God is in the process of restoring Israel according to a broad strokes picture painted in Ezekiel 36-39 There we see Him breathe upon dry Jewish bones, revive us physically, and take us back to the land He promised us. Next, He sprinkles clean water on us, purifying our hearts and reviving us spiritually. After that, King David (Yeshua) rules over us in a restored, undivided kingdom. At some point in the timeline, while we’re living in peace and prosperity, a coalition of nations led by Gog and Magog attacks us. The coalition is decisively defeated by God. In this broad strokes scenario, where might Israel be today?
The perspective I (Sandra) share below comes from hours of intercession and crying out to God for the particular understanding of Ezekiel 36-39 He wants me to have, at this time, for the sake of prayer. (While consistent with Scripture, it does not represent a theologically tight interpretation based on highly detailed, biblical exegesis.)
Several days ago, as I prayerfully pored over Ezekiel’s prophecy, a surprising picture-vision came to mind. I saw God leaning into and weeping over Israel, His beloved covenant nation. As He wept, tears from heaven fell upon, and soaked into, Israelis who were also weeping. The peoples’ tears, though genuine and heartbreaking, were inevitably tinged with fallen human emotion and sin. In contrast, heaven’s tears were pure like sparkling clean water.
As heaven’s tears fell, they sprinkled over the people. Heaven’s tears then mingled with the human tears. As they did, heaven’s tears not only comforted, but also purified and cleansed those who were weeping and mourning in the land. Through this sprinkling, and mutual heaven-and-human weeping, the soil of Israeli hearts softened. Eventually the peoples’ tears became clean and clear. Then, as their tears fell onto the ground, the soil of the land itself softened. Once softened, the soil of the nation was ready and receptive to a planting of seeds that could yield a good and bountiful harvest.
On September 1, just days after this vision, we learned that Hamas had brutally executed six more hostages, including an American. The entire country was stunned. Israelis wept in the streets, at their jobs, on mainstream and social media, seemingly everywhere. Some said it felt as if October 7 were happening all over again. But that same day, another extraordinary event occurred: rainfall. (Israel does not normally get rain as early as September 1.) Photos and videos of rain went viral on Israeli social media with the caption, “Even heaven is weeping.”
Could it be that Israel’s current crisis, though demonically driven and catastrophic, will give way to the outworking of God’s precious promise: “I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you and you will be clean: I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.” (Ezekiel 36:24-25, NASB 1995) Time and prayer will tell; meanwhile,
Let’s pray accordingly!
> Pray that Israeli hearts will soften, not harden, toward God in this period of worsening difficulty. Many hearts are softening but many others are hardening. The same day many wept at the news of six dead hostages, many others swarmed the streets in violent rage.
> As the new year 5785 begins, pray for God’s promised sprinkling of clean water, that as we journey through this “valley of tears,” Israel might discover His “pleasant pool” and “brook of blessing filled from the rain of an outpouring.” (Psalm 84:6, TPT)
> Pray for God’s gift of tears not only for Israelis—and specifically PM Netanyahu and our other leaders—but for believers around the world as they pray for Israel. (Jeremiah 9:1, 17-18)
The vision of tears does not reveal the myriad nuances and complexities of Israel’s present condition. Nor does it address whether the apocalyptic battle of Ezekiel could be at hand. To explain such matters would require extensive research and the writing of an entire book. To a degree, that is what I am doing by updating Why Care About Israel? Five of fourteen chapters are now updated. The entire book is available here as a free pdf during the update process – with videos on each updated chapter here.
Praying Now for Israel: Who’s Right and Who is Left?
“There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms.” (Ezekiel 37:22)
It saddens us to say that divisions within Israeli society are even worse than before the war began. The very vocal and extremely angry anti-Netanyahu protest movement has turned violent. There are fires set in highways, riots in cities, assassination threats, and public calls for civil war. Known sometimes as the Kaplan Force, this mounting rebellion currently masquerades as a grassroots movement to rescue hostages held by Hamas. In so doing it has been able to draw huge numbers of supporters. The most pressing demand, therefore, is an immediate end to the war and a peace deal with Hamas—at absolutely any cost. Some Israeli believers have supported the movement because of its whistle blowing on government corruption.
But there’s more.
Beneath the mask, we believe the movement is a deceptive plant and plan of Satan himself. Nothing else can explain its characteristic, frenzied rage and feverish hate of Jews toward Jews, or its furious push for policies that would undermine the sovereignty of a Jewish state. Not surprisingly, the movement is reportedly funded mostly by globalist organizations and entities. The diabolical strategy, it seems, is not just to overtake authorities God has placed into position (despite their flaws), but to destroy law and order, thus weakening Israeli society to the extent it implodes. In such a turn of events, our enemies could then easily overtake us. Alternatively, widespread social-economic-governmental chaos could become such that we willingly surrender sovereign statehood for a purported (false) peace through antichrist structures, and eventually an anti-Christ figure himself.
But that is not what God wants!
On the other side of Israeli society are ultra-Orthodox and ultra-Zionist right-wing extremists. These fringe groups are also growing in numbers, increasingly violent, and intentionally disruptive of law and order. Some of their rabbis call for and oversee pogroms in Judea/Samaria aimed at Palestinians trying to live in peace. These same zealots have violently assaulted Messianic Jews for decades. Sadly, the growing, extreme right-wing movement is just as flawed, corrupt and self-righteous as the leftists they despise. They, too, give way to antichrist-laden policies, particularly in their zeal to construct a third temple and re-institute animal sacrifices for forgiveness of sins. Resuming the Mosaic mode of sacrifice will, before long, empower them to further suppress the Gospel and persecute those who believe in Messiah Yeshua’s once-for-all atonement. Nevertheless, some Israeli believers support them because of their uncompromising goal to immediately take over all of God’s promised land.
Both left and right wing extremes are laden with nuance and complexity. Each camp contains grains of truth—buried beneath mounds of deception. Lacking biblical, Holy Spirit discernment and honest fact gathering, Israelis (like others around the world) can be easily seduced toward one extreme or the other, especially during a period of prolonged emotional distress.
Please know we do not want to wrongly pass judgment on, or gossip about, our beloved fellow Israelis. Rather, we believe you who are Israel’s true friends need an honest understanding of our condition in order to pray effectively. We trust you’ll bear in mind and heart that God is weeping, as are many moderate Israelis who are turning to Him.
You probably know by now that Israeli soldiers have unearthed from tunnels in Gaza proof of Hamas’s extensive and sadly effective use of psychological warfare. From the outset, they intentionally preyed upon our internal, domestic discord. The attack of October 7, including the capture of hundreds of hostages, was intended from the beginning to spark the likes of civil war. At the same time, Hamas knew they could isolate Israel internationally by playing into the hands of disgruntled masses in the West and closet anti-Semites around the world.
Given all these realities, our Messianic Israeli friend and respected leader, Reuven Doron, recently expressed thoughts about Israel’s future. His view is probably shared by much of Israel’s centrist majority. He writes that since October 7:
“Israeli mindsets have changed, even for the most peace-loving folks among us, and there are no more illusions about ‘peace with our neighbors’ through compromise or wishful thinking. True biblical Zionism is pragmatic and practical, and whoever wants peace in the Middle East must be strong. …
“Israelis are beginning to understand that no matter what government will replace this one, [we] will live under the constant threat of an existential war for years to come. The circumstantial handwriting is so clear on the wall that most end-time teachers and preachers vouch that the Antichrist and his false “peace covenant” with Israel are right around the corner. …
“This means that [to exist as a sovereign state] Israel will need stronger security policies, a larger battle-ready army, and greater independence from foreign manipulation and weapon embargoes. It also means that our economy will be pressed hard because the State will pay a lot more for security and for war damages. A long process of rebuilding the north and the south [of Israel] will require resources and leadership, all while fighting a long and difficult war. Do we have such leaders? God’s will be done and prayer is the key. …”
> Please pray with us that God will miraculously intervene to spare His people. More and more, we, along with other Israelis, consciously live in the reality He is our only hope. Although Scripture warns of end times chaos and devastation, pray such things will not materialize until God’s sovereign timing.
> Pray for mercy and grace to break the escalating, devilishly driven, domestic hate and rage that could push Israel toward civil war. (It seems Satan knows how to fuel anti-Semitism even among us Jews.)
> Pray for daily renewed strength for our heroic soldiers in Gaza, Judea/Samaria, and the north. Because we are a tiny country, our armies are few in number. Yet terror rages against us from the north, south, east and west. We regularly hear that our selfless soldiers are exhausted, their families are suffering, their jobs and businesses are shuttering, and more. Recent surveys show that half our people suffer from clinical PTSD.
> Pray for daily renewed strength, unity and protection of PM Netanyahu and all our governing leaders. Pray they will graciously and mercifully be given the gift of the fear of the Lord, for it is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge. More than ever before, Mr. Netanyahu needs every prayer of every Israel-loving follower of YHVH. (Proverbs 1:7; 9:10)
> Pray that God will bring a swift end to Hamas’s top leader, Yahya Sinwar. (Psalm 149:6-9) In partnership with another, large international prayer ministry, we recently called for a day of global prayer and fasting toward Sinwar’s demise. We were amazed to learn that many thousands participated. You can access and pray the suggested prayer here.
> Pray for the safe return of our hostages and estimated 70,000 Israeli war evacuees. Pray for the recovery of farms and towns that have been decimated in the north (Golan and upper Galilee) and south (Negev).
> Pray for your family, church, and nation to align with God’s Word concerning Israel. Our Father carefully weighs our responses to Israel in times of her distress. We believe humankind stands today in a metaphoric valley of judgment, based on how we individually and nationally choose to judge Israel. (As you know, Joel 3:1-2 teaches a literal judgment of God will take place in the not too distant future, in a literal valley that is aptly called Jehoshaphat, meaning “God Judges.”)
> A more detailed prayer list is accessible here.
Despite the sobering news and views, we are sincerely, deeply grateful for God’s wraparound presence, mercy and grace. Threatened retaliatory, crippling attacks by Iran and Hezbollah have not taken place. Attempted mass terror from the West Bank has been thwarted. Day to day functioning continues mostly as usual for us personally. God is with us and Israel is still a land of miracles! We believe this is largely due to the prayers of friends like you.
In closing, we want to remember the current Hebraic month of Elul is known traditionally as a time when the “King is in the Field,” This is thought to be the month He visits His servant-friends. engages intimately with them, and examines His soon-to-be-harvest. This Elul, may each of you experience your King’s loving and very near presence as you serve the desires of His heart. May you rejoice with Him in a good and bountiful harvest.