This week in Israel:
1. THE LATEST FREEZE IN JUDEA AND SAMARIA
This week Prime Minister Netanyahu moved to impose a 10-month building freeze in the settlements on land in Judea and Samaria taken from Jordan in the Six Day War. This applies to building of homes whose foundations have not already been laid; the 3000 housing units already under construction may continue, and construction of public buildings will not be restricted. Significantly, the freeze does not pertain to any of the area within the borders of what Israel recognizes as Jerusalem. This gesture is ostensibly meant to pave the way for peace talks with the Palestinians to begin again, although the subtitle to a featured editorial in Friday's Jerusalem Post reads, "Netanyahu's settlement-start moratorium, predictably rejected by the Palestinians, is primarily designed to get the US off his back." However much this may be true, it is also true that the dilemma of any leader in Israel is a complicated, indeed, but for grace, impossible one. Apart from world opinion, what is Israel to do about Judea and Samaria? If she annexes them and wishes to continue as the "only democratic state" in the Middle East, no longer having a Jewish majority, her identity as a "Jewish state" will soon be a thing of the past. Yet it was God Himself, standing over the ladder near Bethel in what is now the center of this contested territory (see last week's Torah Portion Genesis 28:13-15), Who said that it would be inherited by the descendants of Jacob-and further, that He would not leave Jacob and his seed until that seed was returned safely to the Land and a blessing to all the families of the earth. He alone knows how He will bring all this to past. What we and our leaders need is His guidance and counsel for the present.
PLEASE PRAY:
*For wisdom and integrity, physical and emotional stamina for Prime Minister Netanyahu. Pray, as was suggested by Bridges for Peace in a recent prayer focus on this subject, Psalm 32:8, "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye."
*That Mr Netanyahu seek the LORD for wisdom, and receive knowledge, strength and courage to stand regarding areas of policy which must not be compromised.
*That God's kingdom come in Judea and Samaria. That like Jacob before, the religious Jews in the settlements be visited by dreams and visions from Heaven-that they receive revelation about their Messiah and realize that righteousness alone will root them in the Land-a righteousness which comes through the work of the Son.
*That President Obama be given godly counsel regarding the Holy Land, and not move in the flesh (Zechariah 2:13) regarding the influence his position holds over this region.
2. GILAD SHALIT AND THE PRICE FOR FREEDOM
It is over three years since the young soldier Gilad Shalit was captured by Hamas. Many times since then his release has been tauntingly dangled in front of Israel, only to be pulled away at the last moment. This week it appears that it may at last really be eminent. Yet there is growing controversy over what price his release might cost. The price Israel is willing to offer is a closely guarded secret-although the Prime Minister has indicated that he will bring it before the Knesset for approval before implementing an exchange. Hamas has demanded some 1,400 prisoners be released. At present it looks that Israel may offer close to 1000. Although many may have been incarcerated for relatively minor crimes, it is almost certain that a number on the list submitted by Hamas were convicted of involvement in serious terrorist activity against Israel.
Israel has a tradition of going to great, even extravagant lengths to get its people (in some cases even the remains of those who have been killed) back home. Shalit has become a strong cause here in Israel, with continued demonstrations and various initiatives calling for stronger government measures to obtain his release. But until now, to no avail. As the possibility of a deal appears to again be drawing near, there is a strong counter-movement, spearheaded by relatives of terrorists' victims against releasing those with "blood on their hands."
A key figure among the Israeli prisoners is Marwan Barghouti, a charismatic Palestinian leader currently serving five life terms in Israel on charges of murdering civilians and attacking Israeli soldiers. Barghouti holds immense influence even from his prison cell. The Palestinians have long called for his release, and he has even been considered by some left wing Israeli politicians as a viable possible successor to the present Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. We consider even the possibility of his release as being extremely dangerous.
PLEASE PRAY:
*For Gilad Shalit-that he would be protected and ministered to by God's holy angels-and that he would be released unharmed. Pray that even in confinement, he hear the call to "Seek My face" and respond with, "Your face O LORD will I seek."
*For Prime Minister Netanyahu to be led in great wisdom in this exchange. In his former term in the late 90's, in return for two Mossad agents captured in Jordan he allowed the return of the notorious Sheik Yassin to Gaza. What was supposed to be a "humanitarian gesture" for an old man about to die, resulted in Yassin, founder and spiritual leader of Hamas, entrenching himself in a position from which he virtually managed through a demonic spiritual communications infrastructure the murderous 2nd Intifada. He had just released a demand that young women begin to be groomed as suicide bombers when he was finally (we believe through the prayers and intercession of the Saints) located and killed. Within a short time thereafter, the spiritual communications system had short-circuited and the Intifada came to an end.
*That no prisoners who are in satan's plans to bring evil on Israel would be released. That prisoners who are released in exchange for Shalit's freedom would be visited by the mercy of God-and rescued from the powers which drove them into acts of violence.
*For Marwan Barghouti.that in the mercies of the God of Heaven, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob whom he has defied, he would come to humble himself and find grace. That his gifts would be turned from the service of that which is false to honour and serve the God of the Universe.
3. RAIN
"Let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the LORD. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, like the latter and former rain to the earth."
After the sudden and unexpected day of heavy rain several weeks ago, it has been mostly dry in Israel. Please, in this season of the "former rains" join us in praying for the Lord in mercy to send strong showers into Israel. Last year saw little rain in the fall, one heavy rain in January, then the driest February on modern record. Israel is desperately in need of sizable amounts of moisture. It is interesting that the Hebrew news admitted that although the weather forecasters had predicted a decline in temperatures, the huge rains which fell for a day on central Israel three weeks ago were totally unexpected. So please pray that we will not trust merely in forecasters-not speak such things as "It's not supposed to rain for the next ten days." James teaches that Elijah was a man like us, and prayed (in the face of the most dire of forecasts), and it poured!
This week's Torah Portion:
From ancient times there has been a weekly portion from the five books of Moses (The Torah) and from the prophets (Haftarah-final reading) read on the Sabbath in synagogues around the world. This portion is given a Hebrew name taken from the opening words of the passage. An illustration of this practice appears to have been recorded in Luke 4:16 where Yeshua (Jesus) arrived in the synagogue in Nazareth and was asked to read the Haftarah portion (Isaiah 61) from the Prophets. We have found that in perusing these weekly readings, not only are we provided opportunity to identify in the context of God's Word with millions of Jewish people around the world, but very often the Holy Spirit will illumine specific passages pertinent that week in our intercession for the Land and people of Israel. All texts are those of English translations of the Scriptures.
The readings for November 29-December 5 are called VaYishlach "And sentJacob messengers"-and include:
TORAH: Genesis 32:3-36:43
HAFTARAH: Obadiah 1:1-21
*Genesis 32:3. "Then Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother in the land of Seir, the country of Edom." The word translated "messengers" is the same as that translated "angels" two verses earlier. Angels are messengers "of God", these are messengers of Jacob.
*Genesis 32:9-10. "O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the LORD [YHVH].I am not worthy of the least of all the lovingkindnesses and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies." "Lovingkindness and Truth" (Hebrew: chesid and emet) are a pairing of divine attributes and blessings which appear many times throughout the Hebrew Scriptures. The modern Hebrew translation of John 1:17 reads (English paraphrase), "For the Torah was given through Moshe, chesid and emet [lovingkindness and truth] came through Yeshua the Messiah." Please pray for discovery, revelation and understanding among the Jewish people of the presence of Yeshua (Jesus) throughout their holy writings (Luke 24:44-45). That He was Himself present with the Patriarchs and throughout all of the history of the Hebrews! He will never leave them nor forsake them (I Corinthians 10:1-4; Hebrews 13:5).
*Genesis 32:24, 28. "Then Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.So he said to him, 'What is your name?' He said, 'Jacob' And he said, 'Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.'" Of course there are no upper/lower cases in Hebrew, so "man" and "he" are not capitalized, as they appear in many Christian Bibles. This Genesis passage says that Jacob struggled with a "man" (Heb: ish). The Hosea passage below calls the being an "angel" (mal'akh). But remember, mal'akh means "messenger" and does not always refer to a created heavenly being. Since verse 24 can be interpreted to mean that this particular struggle took place with God (Elohim), the Church has traditionally held that Jacob was here struggling with a pre-incarnate form of the God-Man Yeshua (Jesus)-a Messenger from the Father. "Israel" means "He struggles with God"-while "Jacob" is related to struggle with man. The names are used interchangeably throughout the rest of the Hebrew Bible-and Israel and his seed have continued to struggle, both with God and man. Yet when Jacob was allowed to "prevail with God" it was not on behalf of his old desires, but for the favour of sanctification which would change what he could not change himself. In using this incident as an aid to prayer for Israel today, we would encourage you to use the following related passage from Hosea 12:3-6:
"He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and in his strength he struggled with God. Yes, he struggled with the angel and prevailed; He wept, and sought favour from him. He found him in Bethel, and there He spoke to us-that is, the LORD God of armies. YHVH is His memorable name. So you, by the help of your God, return; observe mercy and justice, and wait on your God continually."
*Genesis 33:18-19. "And Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem.and he pitched his tent before the city. And he bought the parcel of land, where he had pitched his tent, from the children of Hamor, Shechem's father, for one hundred pieces of money." As we mentioned a few weeks ago, those places where the Patriarchs and David purchased land are centers of fierce spiritual contention to this day. From the rape of Dinah in the following chapter and the bloody massacre which follows, through the dreadful events of Judges 9, to King Rehoboam's decision there to discipline his subjects "with scorpions" (I Kings 12:14 NASB), to the days of Hosea (Hosea 6:9: "As bands of robbers lie in wait for a man, so the company of priests murder on the way to Shechem; surely they commit lewdness"), the city of Shechem (modern-day Nablus) has been associated with violence. In our own day it remains a hot-bed for terrorism against Israel. Yet it is also the first place where Abraham is recording as having stopped after arriving in Canaan (Genesis 12:6). The LORD (YHVH) appeared to him there and promised the land to his seed, "and there he built an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him." It would be the location where Joseph's bones would be brought and buried (Joshua 24:32); and where Yeshua Himself would have a meeting with a woman at a well Jacob had dug there (John 4). Presently it is a Palestinian city with several Jewish settlements nearby. In the early days of the last Intifada, Jews were driven out of the site of Joseph's Tomb, which was desecrated and burned. Almost certainly this city and the settlements will be a big issue in any proposed peace settlement in the future. PLEASE PRAY: That the power of violence be broken over Shechem/Nablus-and its inhabitants brought into the Kingdom of the Prince of Peace. Pray that the altars of Abraham and Jacob to the LORD be restored there-and that the wells of living water that Yeshua spoke of there would spring up to Arab and Jew alike. Psalm 60:6 and 108:7 prophecy "God has spoken in His holiness; 'I will exult, I will portion out Shechem . . .'".
*Genesis 33:20. "Then he erected an altar there and called it El Elohei Yisrael." We have found many names of God revealed thus far in Canaan-El Elyon (God Most High), El Shaddai (God Almighty), El Roi (The God who Sees), Elohei-Avraham (the Abraham-God). But this name.Elohei-Yisrael, the "Israel-God" is the one which will be used most hereafter. God Himself has chosen sovereignly to identify His name with Israel (Jacob) and his descendants. He is the LORD (YHVH) God of Israel, and it is to Him that all of us, whatever our lineage must come. Muslims identify their deity with Ishmael. PLEASE PRAY for grace for revelation and humility among both Jews and Muslims in Israel to bow to the one true God, who has allowed Himself to be identified with Israel and his seed.
*Genesis 35:2,5. "And Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, 'Put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, and change your garments.And they journeyed, and the terror of God was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob."
PLEASE PRAY: For the conviction of the Holy Spirit in Israel to turn from idols and turn to the Living God for cleansing and clothing in righteousness. Pray especially for holiness in leadership in the Body of Messiah here-Clothed in that, the Terror of God will cause darkness to flee as they advance through the Land!
[The Torah and Haftarah portions for next week (6-12 Dec "VaYeshev") will be: Genesis 37:1-40:23; Amos 2:6-3:8]
