Jerusalem, Israel
OCTOBER 2014 PRAYER UPDATE
Israel and
the Nations
A perspective on why Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not authorize IDF ground troops to stay in Gaza
and finish the job of getting rid of Hamas during Operation Protective Edge. Netanyahu
had to consider several matters:
(1)
There was a lack of unity within the Inner Security
Cabinet of Netanyahu’s government. There was not an agreement among government
leaders that would enable the IDF to take over all of Gaza and get rid of
Hamas. The IDF advised the Inner Security Cabinet that to destroy Hamas it
would require a full-scale invasion of Gaza. However, from the beginning of the
war, the main goal announced publicly was to stop Hamas rocket fire and
eliminate tunnels that could infiltrate Israel. The Israeli government planned
to weaken Hamas but leave it in place to govern the people of Gaza. This is
because Israeli leaders could not see any other group ready to govern if Hamas
was destroyed.
(2)
Netanyahu was not sure that the nation of Israel
could cope with hundreds of IDF soldiers being killed as a result of the war
being expanded. His political favor was
not strong enough to keep his government in power if mistakes were made during
the war that could have resulted in a large number of deaths in Israel or in
Gaza.
(3)
Diplomatically, the nations were already raging
because of the high “collateral” damage in Gaza. With over 2,000 people killed
(even if a majority were members of Hamas and other terrorist organizations),
Israel was already being accused of massacring the Gazan people (lies that were
being spread throughout the media). Could Israel handle the diplomatic fall-out
that would happen if thousands more lost their lives in Gaza because of a
prolonged war with Hamas? It would mean greater isolation for the Jewish State;
more boycotts; more campaigns to de-legitimize Israel; and, more possibilities
that Israel would be dragged before the International Criminal Court for war crimes.
(4)
Anti-Semitism was already at its greatest increase
since pre-WWII, especially in Europe. What would it be like for Jews living
abroad if the war had been expanded?
(5)
Economics and Education: Already, it has been a hardship for Israeli
southern communities to repair damages done – infrastructure of buildings,
homes, and roads. Children in the south would have not be able to start school
on time had the war continued. Whole communities would have stayed away from
the south for prolonged periods of time to avoid living in the war zone.
(6)
Hamas was a clear distraction from Israel’s main
enemy, Iran. Netanyahu needed to be able to diplomatically focus on Iran,
pressuring world leaders to listen to Israel’s point of view, especially as the
P5+1 nations are trying to make a deal with Iran by November 24th,
in order to stop Iran from becoming a nuclear state.
·
As you go
to prayer for Israel, please remember these points mentioned.
Israel still has not been able to
successfully eliminate rocket fire on its citizens. The nation is only in a
temporary cease-fire with Hamas. If Hamas does not get what it wants in
indirect negotiations with Israel (which are being conducted in Cairo), then it
has threatened to resume attacks on the Jewish State. Reportedly, 80% of its
rocket arsenal was destroyed. But, Hamas still has more than 2,000 rockets it
can fire on Israel in the future. Additionally, it can use mortar fire against
citizens in the south, which the Iron Dome cannot intercept.
Israel gained a temporary respite.
So far, the IDF can say it has achieved a level of deterrence in the south of
the country. But, critics of Netanyahu’s government say that Defense Minister
Moshe Yaalon did not push hard to end the war fast, and did not take the war
far enough into enemy territory.
Please pray that the deterrence will remain effective for the long-term.
Pray that Israel’s enemies in the south (Hamas and other terrorist groups) will
not be able to re-group, or to re-stock any more weapons in their arsenals.
Pray that the rockets Hamas does have will become useless; rocket launchers
will break down; all command and control centers will become dysfunctional;
and, that God will raise up an army of angels to infiltrate the ranks of every
terrorist group in Gaza and cause mass confusion in Yeshua’s name!
Declare God’s favor for Israel; that the IDF will triumph over its
enemies, according to Deuteronomy 7:23: “But the Lord Your God will deliver them over to you, throwing them into
great confusion until they are destroyed.”
·
Israel is preparing for a war in the north, as
Hezbollah continues to get stronger, with an arsenal of 100,000 rockets it
wants to use in a future battle with Israel.
Pray according to Exodus 23:27, entreating the Lord to help the
IDF prepare for conflicts on the horizon: “I'll go ahead of you and terrorize all the people to whom
you are coming. I'll confuse your enemies and make them turn their backs on you
and run away.”
·
It
appears that Iran is helping Al-Qaeda. And, Shiites in Iraq and Syria have
committed the same atrocities and barbaric acts that Sunnis like Al-Qaeda and
Islamic State have committed. The concern that Middle East analysts have reported
is that various Sunni jihadist groups will begin to join ranks and unify as has
already happened among the Shiites (Iran, Hezbollah and Syria’s Assad regime).
Sunni radicals like Al-Nusra Front and Islamic State in Syria are starting to
unify, as the U.S.-led coalition continues its air strikes, and more nations
join in. What the U.S. should be preparing to do is use the same coalition of
Arab states and Western nations to threaten Iran if it does not surrender to
world pressure to stop its quest for nuclear weapons!
As intercessors, let’s
stand in the gap and pray that the Lord will intervene in this region and stop
the bloodshed. Let’s believe for His sovereign plan that will save the Middle
East peoples and bring revival to these tribal nations. Pray for all enemy
lines to be pushed back. Pray that a wall of protection will surround Israel
that cannot be penetrated; that her borders will be secured; that she will
enjoy calm, quiet, and peace from the north to the south, and the east to the
west.
Thank the Lord for His
promises and declare Isaiah 60:2-3 over Israel: “For
behold, darkness will cover the earth; and, deep darkness the peoples; but, the
Lord will rise upon you, and His glory will appear upon you. Nations
will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.”
·
There
is a strong relationship between Turkey’s intelligence services and Iran,
resulting in a rift and developing mistrust in the Turkish-Israel relationship.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan continues to antagonize Israel with
anti-Semitic statements. He has also kept his country from entering into the
U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. And, he has not
allowed Turkish Kurds to cross the border and help their Syrian brothers in the
fight against Islamic State.
·
Pray for the Turkish President to
accept the ways of the Lord and His Kingdom; or if not, that God would remove
him from government. Thank the Lord for His Word and His Authority that is
above all!
Daniel 4:35: “All the peoples of the earth are
regarded as nothing. He does as He pleases with the powers of heaven and the
peoples of the earth. No one can hold back His hand or say to Him: "What
have you done?"
·
Almost
immediately after the recent meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and
Netanyahu, the White House blasted Israel for its settlement policy, condemning
Israel for approving the construction of new houses in Jerusalem. This has
caused another rift between the U.S. government and Israel. (Most likely, it is
the Obama Administration’s way of preparing for another round of futile talks
between Israel and the Palestinians, when Israel will be pressured to freeze
new construction in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria).
Ask the Lord to remove
the animosity between these two allies. Pray that Obama and his administration
will surrender to God’s Word pertaining to the covenant the Lord has made with
Israel. Pray that God will raise up new leaders in the U.S. who will be
favorable towards Israel, especially in the elections soon to take place in
America.
Proclaim, according to
the land of Israel and its inhabitants, Psalm 89:3-4: “I have made a covenant
with My chosen; I have sworn to David My servant, I will establish your
seed forever, and build up your throne to all generations."
·
Mahmoud
Abbas wants to force a two-state solution on Israel through a future vote in
the UN Security council. He has submitted a draft resolution that would set a
deadline of November 2016 for Israel to withdraw to the pre-June 1967 border.
This deadline would be right after the 2016 presidential elections, and before
the new U.S. president takes office. This would allow Obama, as a lame duck
president, to act on his personal vendettas. He could direct America’s UN
representative to vote on behalf of the PLO’s plan and not veto the plan on
behalf of Israel.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is, reportedly,
trying to organize a regional peace conference that would force Israel into
accepting the 2002 Saudi Peace Initiative (which would leave Israel with
indefensible borders; not a good plan!)
Declare Isaiah 54:17
over Israel; that God would thwart the ways of those who have ill plans for the
Jewish State: "No weapon that is formed against you
will prosper; and, every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from
Me, declares the Lord.”
·
Another disagreement between the Obama Administration
and the Netanyahu government has to do with foreign policy. Recently, Netanyahu
said in his UN speech that all of militant Islam poses a cohesive ideological
threat to the Western world. The U.S. State Department disagrees. Its
spokesperson, Jen Psaki tried to differentiate between various jihadist
terrorist groups. Netanyahu sees them all as evil. He stated at the UN: “The Nazis believed in a master race. The
militant Islamists believe in a master faith. They just disagree about who
among them will be the master of the master faith.”
Intercede before the Lord that He will enlighten U.S. foreign policy
makers and the Obama Administration to the fact that militant Islam wants to
dominate the earth and destroy Israel and the West, and all these extremist
groups are radically trying to achieve the same goal. Thank God that no matter
what its U.S. ally is saying or doing, He will not allow Israel’s foot to slip. “He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel will
neither slumber nor sleep. (Psalm 121:3-4).