One thing most everybody agrees on today is that Jerusalem is a holy city. It’s holy to the Jews. It’s also holy to Christians and Muslims. But it’s only promised to one of those groups. God promised it to the Jews. It is a sacred part of their past and central to their God-ordained future.

This, too, is something many believers haven’t understood. Certainly, they know about the city’s biblical history. They know Jerusalem was the site for the first Jewish temple, built by Solomon and later destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar. They know many years later, a less glorious version of the temple was rebuilt by Herod and destroyed by the Romans in about 70 A.D.

But that’s not the end of the matter. Bible prophecy reveals that when Jesus returns to reign on the earth, He will come to Jerusalem and build a third millennial temple there. It will rest on the original site of Mount Moriah and be the most glorious temple of all.

I can’t go into detail about it here but to get an idea of how important Jerusalem will be during the Millennium, read about it in Ezekiel 43. That chapter tells how the glory of God will fill the temple at that time and remain there forever. It declares that Mount Moriah will always be most holy and separated unto the Lord.

The prophet Zechariah adds that in those days the Lord Himself will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem:

…and Jerusalem shall be called the [faithful] City of Truth, and the mountain of the Lord of hosts, the Holy Mountain. Thus says the Lord of hosts: Old men and old women shall again dwell in Jerusalem and sit out in the streets…And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets…Behold, I will save My people from the east country and from the west…And I will bring them [home] and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God in truth and faithfulness and in righteousness.
(Zec. 8:3–8 AMP)

Most wonderful of all is what the book of Isaiah tells us about Jerusalem. It says that during the Millennium “…all nations shall flow to it. And many people shall come and say, Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that He may teach us His ways and that we may walk in His paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the law and instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (Isa. 2:2–3 AMP)

Can you see how precious Jerusalem is to God? No wonder the Bible says, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! May they prosper who love you [the Holy City].” (Ps. 122:6 AMP)

In Hebrew, the word peace means “to be whole with nothing missing, nothing broken.” That’s how we should pray for Jerusalem. We should pray that it would not be divided but kept intact under the sovereignty of Israel. We should pray that the people in it would be safe and prosperous.

Since Israel’s leaders are keys to these things, I often pray for them as well. These days I pray personally for each one of Israel’s leaders. I also pray for generals and those in Israel’s military.

Let’s not forget to pray often for the peace of Jerusalem!