The Shalom of Jerusalem

 "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. 

May they prosper who love you."

Psalm 122:6

I love Psalm 122:6. It's a command that comes with a blessing, and who doesn't want a blessing? Israel is frequently in the news--usually as a result of violence done or done to her--so it sounds like a no-brainer. This morning I read the news of new rocket attacks from Gaza and I'm praying for that to cease, but Psalm 122 means more than that.

The Hebrew word here is shalom which does mean peace, but shalom is much more than a cessation from hostilities. Shalom is God's peace, so it's the deluxe package deal which includes health, well-being, sufficient provision, mental and emotional balance, security, contentment and completeness. Shalom is peace between man and man, man and the land and most importantly man and God. So praying for Jerusalem to have peace is a big deal...bigger than getting the rockets to stop or redrawing boundary lines. It's perfection. The perfection we had in the Garden--what God planned for us in the beginning. 

The shalom of Jerusalem is the consummation of all things. It is the return of Jesus to rule and reign over planet Earth as King. We're accustomed to thinking of that in fuzzy metaphysical ways...kind of a comforting allegory. But He is physically coming to take control of the world He died to save as its rightful King. He will govern physical Earth from a physical throne in physical Jerusalem, literal King of the World. 

Shalom is the banishment of evil, sickness, injustice, poverty--even death. It is the inauguration of a ecological restoration project like we've never seen before...the entire planet scoured of all the injuries inflicted upon it. The land will become healthy and whole, restored to Eden's primordial splendor. We will see the world free from blight, made beautiful as it was in the beginning. We will experience Man relating to Man as he was intended to. We will see God face to face. Selah.

The peace of Jerusalem is not something the U.N. can implement through committees or letters of censure. It isn't something that peace missions from the U.S. can accomplish. It's not a matter of getting the right people to sit down together, nor of finding the right words to massage each side into compliance. It's not that Jews and Arabs can't play nicely together; humanity is incapable of playing nicely. The shalom God has for Jerusalem can only come through God's agency because it's God's peace. It will only fully arrive when Yeshua, the Prince of Peace, arrives to put all things right. Hallelujah, He has promised to do just that! When we ask for the peace of Jerusalem, we ask for the return of our perfect, faithful, just and loving King.

Oh Lord, light a fire in my heart for Your will to be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Inhabit my prayers and grant me the gift of urgency to pray and long for the peace of Jerusalem. Maranatha, come quickly Lord Jesus!