Elisha Intervenes for His Servant

Elisha Intervenes for his Servant
Fear gripped Elisha’s servant when he saw the huge army that was confronting them. He cried out to Elisha. Elisha then made a puzzling statement revealing to his servant that there were more with them than with the enemy. Elisha prayed, asking God to open his servant’s eyes so he could see what was not visible to the human eye. It may be possible that there are invisible forces around today that we cannot see.

“And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! How shall we do? And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.” (II Kings 6:15-18)

Ezra's Intervention Prayer for the Remnant

After being in exile for seventy years, a remnant of the people of Israel returned with Ezra back to Jerusalem.

Ezra became upset when it was discovered that the majority of the people had contaminated themselves and had married with those who worshipped other gods and had become involved with the gods of the people who had taken them captive. Ezra prayed a prayer of repentance for the people.

Ezra's Prayer of Repentance

“And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness; and having rent my garment and my mantle, I fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the LORD my God, And said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up unto the heavens. Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this day; and for our iniquities have we, our kings, and our priests, been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to confusion of face, as it is this day.

And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage. For we were bondmen; yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath extended mercy unto us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God, and to repair the desolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem. And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? for we have forsaken thy commandments, Which thou hast commanded by thy servants the prophets, saying, The land, unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land with the filthiness of the people of the lands, with their abominations, which have filled it from one end to another with their uncleanness. Now therefore give not your daughters unto their sons, neither take their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace or their wealth for ever: that ye may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your children for ever. And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliverance as this; Should we again break thy commandments, and join in affinity with the people of these abominations? wouldest not thou be angry with us till thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant nor escaping? O LORD God of Israel, thou art righteous: for we remain yet escaped, as it is this day: behold, we are before thee in our trespasses: for we cannot stand before thee because of this." (Ezra 9:5-15)

Jeremiah's Rejected Prayer of Intervention

Jeremiah's Rejected Prayer of Intervention
After the people of Jerusalem had fallen to the king of Babylon, there was still a small amount of citizens left in the land. They went to Jeremiah and asked him to pray for them and tell them what God wanted them to do next. They agreed to do whatever the Lord told them to do, but, as you can see in these scriptures, they did not listen. They already knew what they were going to do and they were just hoping that God would agree with them. They brought a catastrophe upon themselves. Sometimes we, as they, refuse to accept the answer we get.

"Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest, came near, And said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the LORD thy God, even for all this remnant; (for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us:) That the LORD thy God may shew us the way wherein we may walk, and the thing that we may do. Then Jeremiah the prophet said unto them, I have heard you; behold, I will pray unto the LORD your God according to your words; and it shall come to pass, that whatsoever thing the LORD shall answer you, I will declare it unto you; I will keep nothing back from you. Then they said to Jeremiah, The LORD be a true and faithful witness between us, if we do not even according to all things for the which the LORD thy God shall send thee to us. Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of the LORD our God.

"And it came to pass after ten days, that the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah. Then called he Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces which were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest, And said unto them, Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto whom ye sent me to present your supplication before him; If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up: for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you. Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom ye are afraid; be not afraid of him, saith the LORD: for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand. And I will shew mercies unto you, that he may have mercy upon you, and cause you to return to your own land. But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, neither obey the voice of the LORD your God, Saying, No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor have hunger of bread; and there will we dwell: And now therefore hear the word of the LORD, ye remnant of Judah; Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there; Then it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye feared, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye were afraid, shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die. So shall it be with all the men that set their faces to go into Egypt to sojourn there; they shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring upon them. For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; As mine anger and my fury hath been poured forth upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem; so shall my fury be poured forth upon you, when ye shall enter into Egypt: and ye shall be an execration, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach; and ye shall see this place no more.

"The LORD hath said concerning you, O ye remnant of Judah; Go ye not into Egypt: know certainly that I have admonished you this day. For ye dissembled in your hearts, when ye sent me unto the LORD your God, saying, Pray for us unto the LORD our God; and according unto all that the LORD our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it. And now I have this day declared it to you;" (Jeremiah 42:1-21)

The Result of the Intervention

As we see, the people did not listen to the answer but chose instead to go to Egypt as is pointed out in the second half of verse 21. It must have broken Jeremiah's heart that they would not listen to him any more than those who had not listened to him and were taken into captivity. The discouraged Jeremiah, speaking in verse 42:21 (2nd part) and 22, said, "but ye have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God, nor any thing for the which he hath sent me unto you. Now therefore know certainly that ye shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither ye desire to go and to sojourn."

Job's Intervention for His Friends

Job’s Intervention for His Friends
The entire book of Job consists of three of Job’s so-called friends attempting to advise Job with their long drawn out words of insight and wisdom. Finally, God intervenes in the situation and speaks to the three so-called friends, making it clear that they have not spoken the truth concerning Job. God then said he will have Job pray for them; and for Job’s sake, he will accept it. It appears that, by putting the three friends' ability to be forgiven in the hands and at the mercy of Job, God avenges Job.

“And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath. Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you: for him will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right, like my servant Job. So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did according as the LORD commanded them: the LORD also accepted Job.

And the LORD turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before.” (Job 42:7-10)

Job's persistence, patience and trust in God through much suffering were greatly rewarded in the end. He was given double the blessings he'd had before. This should encourage us all to not give up. Jesus promised in Luke 18 that our Father would swiftly avenge us.
"And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth? (Luke 18:7-8)

Man of God's Intervention for King Jeroboam

King Jeroboam’s hand withered up when he attempted to grab an unnamed man of God, because he didn't like what the man said. Even after assaulting him, King Jeroboam begged the man of God to pray for him, which the man of God did.

“And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, which had cried against the altar in Bethel, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him. The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD.

And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the LORD, and the king's hand was restored him again, and became as it was before.” (I Kings 13:4-6)

Moses' Intervention for the People

Moses' Intervention for the People
Poor, but much loved of God; Moses continually intervened for his people after leading them out of Egypt. There had been no group of people in history that had witnessed God in such a way as this group of people but, shortly after the Lord had given them a victory over the Canaanites, they became discouraged over the lack of water and food and complained to God and Moses.

“And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread, neither is there any water, and our soul loatheth this light bread.”(Numbers 21:5)

This did not go over well with the Lord, as indicated in the next verse. “And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Isreal died." (Numbers 21:6)

The people then cried out to Moses to pray for them. “Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.” (Numbers 21:7)

God’s Answer to Moses

"And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived." (Numbers 21:8-9)

The actions of those who came out of Egypt are no worse then the rebellion of most of us today. How quickly we doubt, become fearful and give up the minute things are not appearing to go our way. May this be an example to us.

Paul's Intervention for Publius

Paul’s Intervention for Publius
Paul and nearly three hundred others temporally escaped imprisonment in Rome and were stranded when the ship they were on wrecked on the Island of Malta.
A man of high stature on the Island, Publius, had a father who was very ill with a fever. Paul intervened by laying hands on him and praying.

"In the same quarters were possessions of the chief man of the island, whose name was Publius; who received us, and lodged us three days courteously. And it came to pass, that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux: to whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid hands on him, and he was healed.” (Acts 28:7-9)

Publius' father was healed.