"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: 'May those who love you be secure.'"
(Psalm 122: 6 TNIV)
Some years ago, I found myself sipping fresh pomegranate juice in a Jerusalem café. Behind me on the café wall, inscribed in both Hebrew and English, were the words of Psalm 122:6.
It's a scripture I had known and it felt both apt and beautiful on that sunny February day in Israel. Then, last autumn, the Lord returned that passage to me. It became the verse on my heart and one I chose to pray daily for a season. A year on, the words to that Psalm have perhaps never felt more relevant or searingly poignant.
However you view the conflict, the Bible makes clear the call to pray for Israel and Jerusalem. Underscored through the Scriptures is God's heart for Israel and the Jewish people. As Christians, we find our Messiah and the cornerstone of our faith, Jesus Christ, born of the Jews.
While it can be overwhelming to navigate global crises, we can, as through the tumults in our own lives, look to the Scriptures for our guide. In all seasons, the Psalms remain a faithful port of call and compass, offering us prayers when we have no words. In Psalm 122, David writes:
"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: 'May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels.'"
To pray back to the Lord his own words to us is one of the most potent and liberating forms of supplication. If you feel confused or helpless, take hope in the Lord and his eternal Word, remembering that "he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep" (Psalm 121:4).
For futher reading/prayer: Psalm 121; Psalm 122; Psalm 125: 1-2; Psalm 126; Psalm 130
Copyright © Sharmila Meadows 2023
Scripture quotations taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, TODAY’S NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 2004 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers, a division of Hodder Headline ltd. All rights reserved. “TNIV” is a registered trademark of International Bible Society.
Thank you RM for your thoughts. We must look to the Bible for how we view situations (more than media or politics) and discover what God has to say. Keep up the prayers!
Amen. We must keep praying for Israel, and for the salvation of all caught up in the conflict.