Whenever Christian leaders call for collective and national repentance, this passage is quoted. Coming together as a people to seek God's mercy, like the Ninevites of Jonah and the Hebrew exiles of Ezra, is a wonderful start - but it is what we do individually the other 364 days that will really make the difference.
The promise of this verse was given to Solomon at the dedication of the first temple. In his prayer, Solomon referred to every repentant man knowing "the plague of his own heart" and coming to God on that basis (1 Ki. 8:38). Confessing our country's sins only has meaning if we also turn from the sins in our own lives. The men of Ezra's day did more than just lament their failure. They got down to business and did something about it, one person at a time, even though it meant giving up what was very important to them (Ezra 10:13, 10:19).
While we all hope to see our respective countries turned to righteousness, God's plan is ultimately more about individuals than nations. In Heaven, there will be no Russia, no China, no India, no United States. There will only be millions of redeemed souls "out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation" (Rev. 5:9). All of these will have one thing in common: They obeyed the God who "commands all men everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30).
All Scripture references from KJV. Commentary ©2012 Hitchcock Family Ministry. Unaltered text may be reproduced freely without financial gain. Original commentary and Scripture song available at http://www.freescripturesongs.org/if-my-people-which-are-called-by-my-name.