A SONG OF ASCENTS. OF DAVID.
I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the LORD!”
Our feet have been standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem!
Jerusalem— built as a city
that is bound firmly together,
to which the tribes go up,
the tribes of the LORD,
as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the LORD.
There thrones for judgement were set,
the thrones of the house of David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
“May they be secure who love you!
Peace be within your walls
and security within your towers!”
For my brothers and companions’ sake
I will say, “Peace be within you!”
For the sake of the house of the LORD our God,
I will seek your good.
Gracious God and Heavenly Father,
Every Sunday we look forward to going to church to hear the gospel, to pray, to sing songs of praise and thanksgiving to you and to be with your people. It is such a privilege and a blessing for us.
We pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the city of peace when your people came to the temple to be in your presence. Since the Jews’ rejection of Jesus as their Messiah, and the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D., there has been no peace in Jerusalem. Only those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ will truly be at peace with God. And so we pray for the protection and blessing of Christians everywhere, that they may continue to spread the gospel and reach many more for your kingdom. And one day we will all meet in the New Jerusalem, where we will find perfect peace.
In Christ’s name. AMEN