God's people are to pray for the people of the world, including neighbors, strangers, the nation, and its leaders. The verses in Jeremiah 11, 14, and 15 do not forbid this. They record God telling Jeremiah that in that particular circumstance His will was set and the answer would be no. The repetition of the command shows Jeremiah kept praying, and God still hears and sometimes changes course after fervent prayer. John 17:9 reflects a prayer for the disciples on one occasion, not a ban on praying for others. Later prophets prayed for their unconverted countrymen. Daniel prayed "we have sinned" and God sent Gabriel in answer, and Ezekiel pleaded for mercy on Jerusalem. Jesus wept over Jerusalem, healed and prayed for worldly sinners, commanded prayer for enemies and persecutors as the mark of children of the Father, and asked forgiveness for His killers. Stephen did likewise, and Paul grieved and prayed for Israel's salvation and urged prayers for all men, including kings and all in authority (I Timothy 2:1-5). God also told the captives in Babylon to pray for the city (Jeremiah 29:7). This harmonizes with coming out of the world: God's people reject the world's lifestyle and values but love its people as God does, and they remain a light among them. Today's neighbors are future brothers and sisters in God's Family. Believers should sigh and cry over suffering and evil and beg for God's Kingdom to come.