Prayer for Israel’s Defense Forces
Our father in Shamayim (Heaven),
Rock-fortress and redeemer of Yisra’el —
bless the State of Israel,
the initial sprouting of our redemption.
Shield her beneath the wings of your lovingkindness;
spread over her your Sukkah of peace;[1]
send your light and your truth
to its leaders, officers, and counselors,
and correct them with your good counsel.
Strengthen the defenders of our Holy Land;
grant them, our elo’ah, salvation,
and crown them with victory.
Establish peace in the land,
and everlasting joy for her inhabitants.
Remember our brethren, the whole house of Yisra’el,
in all the lands of their dispersion.
Speedily bring them to Tsiyon, your city,
to Yerushalayim, dwelling of your [spoken] name,
as it is written in the Torah of your servant Mosheh:
“Even if you are dispersed in the uttermost parts of the world,
from there YHVH your elo’ah will gather and fetch you.
YHVH your elo’ah will bring you into the land
which your ancestors possessed,
and you shall possess her;
and Hashem will make you more prosperous
and more numerous
than your ancestors.” (Deuteronomy 30:4-5)
Unite our hearts to love and revere your name,
and to observe all the precepts of your Torah.
Speedily send us your righteous moshiaḥ of the House of David,
to redeem those waiting for your salvation.
Shine forth in your glorious majesty
over all the inhabitants of your world.
Let everything that breathes proclaim:
YHVH, elo’ah of Yisra’el is King;
“their majesty reigns over all.”[2][3]
Amen. Selah.
Prayer for Israel’s Defense Forces
May He who blessed our ancestors Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, bless the members of the Israel’s Defense Forces and it’s security services who stand guard over our land and the cities of our God from the Lebanese border to the Egyptian desert, from the Mediterranean Sea to the approach of the Aravah, and wherever else they are, on land, in air and at sea.
May the Lord make the enemies who arise against us be struck down before them. May the Holy One, blessed be He, protect and deliver them from all trouble and distress, affliction and illness, and send blessing and success to all the work of their hands. May He subdue our enemies under them and crown them with deliverance and victory. And may there be fulfilled in them the verse, “It is the Lord your God who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to deliver you.” And let us say: Amen.
Prayer for Those Being Held in Captivity
May He who blessed our forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, bless, protect and guard those soldiers of the Defense Forces of Israel who are missing and those abducted from the towns in the south, among them children and women, the elderly and the young, taken captive by evildoers, enemies of Your people, desecrators of Your land. As the community prays on their behalf, may The Holy One, blessed is he, be filled with compassion for them, strengthen their hearts and fill their spirits with courage and bring them out from darkness and from the shadow of death, break their bonds and save them from their distress, and return them speedily to the welcoming arms of their families. May they realize the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah: “To proclaim release to the captives, liberation to the imprisoned”. And let us say Amen.
