How Israelites Should Pray for One Another: A Call to Confession and Intercession
The Power of Intercessory Prayer Among Israelites
One of the most encouraging passages in Scripture reveals how Israelites prayed for one another and how we—Israelites scattered in exile—should be praying today. The examples of Daniel in Daniel 9 and Nehemiah in Nehemiah 1 stand as powerful testimonies to the transformative power of confession and intercession. Both men prayed while confessing not only their own sins but also the sins of their forefathers and their entire people.
As Israelites who have sinned against YHWH, we must understand a fundamental truth: our dispersion from the Promised Land was a direct consequence of our covenant-breaking. Yet YHWH has given us examples through righteous saints who understood this reality and responded with prayer rather than blame. The Scripture reminds us that "the prayers of a righteous man avail much" (James 5:16).
We Are Called to Love One Another
Whether we are Bantu tribes of Africa, West African relatives, or members of the diaspora—all those moved by the power of the Holy Spirit to hear and understand this message—we ought to be praying for one another and loving one another. This is how YHWH established His covenant people. Yeshua taught us:
"Love your neighbor as you love yourself" (Matthew 22:39)
And in His model prayer, He instructed us:
"Forgive us our debts as we forgive those who are indebted to us" (Matthew 6:12)
Daily confession of sin must become our practice, just as Yeshua commanded when He taught us to pray.
Daniel's Prayer: A Model for Israelite Intercession
The Context of Daniel's Prayer
Daniel chapter 9 provides us with a profound example of how an Israelite should pray for his people. Daniel was a Judean—an Israelite—living in exile in Babylon (later under Persian rule). In the first year of Darius's reign, Daniel perceived in the books of Jeremiah the prophet that seventy years must pass before the end of Jerusalem's desolations (Daniel 9:2).
Upon this realization, Daniel did not complain or blame his oppressors. Instead:
"I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes" (Daniel 9:3)
This is the response of a righteous Israelite—not anger toward those who conquered them, but repentance and intercession before YHWH.
The Content of Daniel's Confession
Daniel's prayer begins with acknowledgment of YHWH's character:
"O Lord, the great and awesome Elohim, God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments" (Daniel 9:4)
Then he moves immediately to corporate confession:
"We have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules" (Daniel 9:5)
This is crucial. Daniel does not say "they sinned" or "our ancestors sinned." He says "we have sinned." He identifies himself with the corporate sin of his people.
Daniel continues:
"We have not listened to your servants, the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all people of the land" (Daniel 9:6)
The Scope of Daniel's Prayer
Daniel's intercession extends beyond Judah to all Israel:
"To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you" (Daniel 9:7-8)
Notice the phrase "those who are near and those who are far away." This refers to the Northern Kingdom of Israel, already dispersed by Daniel's time. Daniel prays for all twelve tribes, acknowledging that their dispersion resulted from their own treachery against YHWH—not from the strength of their enemies.
Why We Must Confess Our Sins
The Root Cause of Our Exile
One of the most critical truths we must grasp is this: our dispersion from the Promised Land is because of our own sin. This applies to all the ways Israelites have been scattered:
- The removal and scattering from the Promised Land
- The Trans-Saharan slave trade
- The Arab slave trade
- The Transatlantic slave trade
All of these occurred because of our covenant-breaking with YHWH. This is not a popular message, but it is the message of Scripture and the message that moves the Spirit of God.
The Danger of Misplaced Focus
Many who claim to be Israelites spend their time blaming external oppressors—focusing on what "the White man" did or how slavery affected us. While these historical realities are true, this focus reveals a lack of understanding of YHWH's covenant and His justice.
The righteous saints—Daniel, Nehemiah, and others—did not respond to their captivity by blaming their captors. They responded by confessing their sins and agreeing with YHWH that His judgment was just.
When people are led to anger against oppressors rather than to repentance before YHWH, they are not being led by the Spirit of God. That is a satanic deception. True Israelites who are awakened by the Spirit are led to:
- Confession of sins
- Repentance
- Prayer for mercy
- Intercession for their people
Not to blame-shifting or anger toward those who oppressed them.
YHWH's Character: Love and Hatred
Some may ask: "But isn't God love? Isn't God supposed to love everybody?" The answer is yes and no.
YHWH loves everyone—that is why He sent Yeshua, YHWH Himself coming down in the flesh. But Scripture is equally clear:
"He hates the workers of iniquity" (Psalm 5:5)
YHWH can love and hate simultaneously. He is Elohim. He loves the sinner but hates the sin. He loves His covenant people but hates those who break His covenant and refuse to repent.
If you do not love YHWH and keep His commandments, the wrath of God will be upon you. This is not a popular doctrine, but it is the doctrine of Scripture.
The Danger of Making Israelite Identity an Idol
There is a critical warning here for those awakening to their Israelite heritage: do not make being an Israelite your idol.
Many people have discovered that they are Israelites and have made this identity their god. When someone questions whether they are truly Israelite, they become angry—not because their relationship with YHWH is threatened, but because their idol is being threatened.
True Israelites, those genuinely awakened by the Spirit of YHWH, are not primarily concerned with defending their Israelite identity. They are concerned with obeying YHWH's commandments, confessing their sins, and interceding for their people.
If you have been led to the knowledge that you are an Israelite but have not been led to repentance and confession of sins, you do not yet know God. You do not yet have the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God always leads to repentance.
The Remnant Shall Return
Only a Remnant Will Be Restored
Scripture is clear about the future restoration of Israel. Isaiah 10:20-23 speaks of this:
"The remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no more lean on him who struck them, but will lean on Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the Mighty God. For though your people, Israel, be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return" (Isaiah 10:20-22)
Though Israelites are numbered as the sand of the sea—billions of grains—only a remnant will return to the Promised Land. This is not because YHWH lacks power to bring all back, but because most will refuse to repent and turn to Him.
Why Are We So Many If Only a Few Will Return?
This raises a profound question: Why did YHWH scatter us into such vast numbers if only a remnant will return? The answer is sobering: If we were few, there would be none left.
Look at the condition of Black people and African peoples—many of whom are Israelites. Look at the Bantu tribes of Africa, their West African relatives, and the diaspora. Do you see many living in righteousness according to Scripture? The answer is no. The wickedness is so pervasive that if Israelites were few in number, the enemy would have destroyed us completely.
But because we are hundreds of millions, even though only a small remnant will turn to YHWH and return to the Promised Land, that remnant will be sufficient to restore the kingdom of Israel.
The Call to Righteous Intercession
What YHWH Desires From Us
YHWH does not desire our complaints about how bad things are. He desires our confession of sins and our intercession for our people.
When Daniel prayed this way—confessing sin, acknowledging YHWH's justice, and interceding for his people—YHWH responded mightily. He sent Gabriel to reveal to Daniel the seventy weeks of years concerning the restoration of Jerusalem and the coming of Messiah.
This is the kind of man or woman YHWH is looking for: not those who complain about their circumstances, but those who confess their sins and agree with YHWH that judgment is just.
The Rarity of True Israelites
The righteous Israelites are very few among the wicked Israelites. They are very few. Scripture says:
"Though you may be as many as the stars of heaven or as the sand of the sea, only a remnant is going to return" (Isaiah 10:22)
Very few Israelites will hear this message. Very few will turn to YHWH. But those who do—those who are moved by the Spirit to confession and intercession—will be part of the remnant that YHWH restores.
Being Israel in the Flesh vs. Being the Israel of God
There is a critical distinction: You may be Israel in the flesh, but that does not make you the Israel of God.
The Israel of God is composed of those who:
- Confess their sins
- Are moved by the Spirit of YHWH
- Intercede for their people
- Keep YHWH's commandments
- Love YHWH with all their heart
Being Israel in the flesh is a matter of genealogy. Being the Israel of God is a matter of the Spirit. YHWH will hear the prayers of the Israel of God and will move in power to break the powers of the Gentiles and bring His people back to the Promised Land.
Conclusion: The Power of Our Prayers
Do you understand that it is our prayers that YHWH wants to hear? Not our complaints, not our blame of others, but our acknowledgment of our sins, our confession of what we have done, and our intercession for our people.
When we do this, YHWH will hear from heaven. He will move in power. He will break the powers of the Gentiles. And He will bring the remnant of Israel out of the nations and back to the Promised Land.
This is the calling of true Israelites in this hour. This is how we should pray for one another.