You have heard of Adam, Abraham, Moses, David and Paul, but have you heard about Jabez? You have heard of the prayer of Solomon at the dedication of the temple, the prayer of Mannaseh, and the prayer of Jesus for his followers, but have you heard of the prayer of Jabez?

One of the least known characters of the Bible is Jabez. He is found in one of the least read books of the Bible, 1 Chronicles. Only two verses are devoted to this man, yet what is said is remarkable and useful to all of us. Here are the words of the text:

"And Jabez was more honorable than his brethren, and his mother called his name Jabez, because I bare him with sorrow. And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my border, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it be not to my sorrow! And God granted him that which he requested." (1 Chronicles 4:9-10.)

Bruce Wilkinson has made this text and character famous in his messages to many audiences on Jabez and in his book, The Prayer of Jabez, 2000, 92 pages.

This reference to Jabez is found in the midst of a long list of names of people from Adam to the return from Babylonian captivity. More than five hundred names are listed with little said about any of them. It is a genealogy. However, in the midst of all these names, he pauses briefly to say something about one of them. Jabez could be called "the prodigy of the genealogy." What draws his attention to this man? Why recognize him above the rest? What did he do to be given two verses instead of just listing his name like most of the rest?

Biblical names almost always mean something. You can tell the story of mankind just by the names that are given to the various characters of the Bible. Think about Adam (man from red clay), Noah (comfort), Abraham (father of many nations), Solomon (peace), Israel (prince of God), Ichabod (loss of honor), Jesus (save them from their sins), Barabbas (son of a certain man---all of us), etc. Jabez means pain. We are not told why. The circumstances of his birth may have caused the mother to so name him. He may have been breech born, or born in a time of great adversity for the parents, the child’s father may have abandoned the family, the father may have died, or that he would be a person of sorrow in his life, etc. We do not know why he was so named, but we know that it was not a pleasant occasion or a good name. It is worse than naming a boy, Sue! At the end of the prayer, this man asked God to deliver him from evil so that he would be spared sorrow or pain. This may indicate that his name pointed to some future time in his life when he would experience great pain. If so, then he desires to be delivered from it. A name that meant, pain, did not bode well for his future. What was ahead for him? Whatever it meant, he prayed earnestly that such not occur. God heard him and answered his prayer. This short prayer of Jabez is important because the story begins badly for this baby, as a man he prays sincerely to God, and it ends wonderfully. Others knew about his story. The Chronicler, the historian for Israel, knew about it. We can assume that many had talked about his deliverance. It was widely known.

This prayer, in many ways, is similar to the prayer of Mannaseh, the wicked king of Judah. God heard his prayer and delivered him. We do not know what he said, even though some rabbis composed a prayer to supply what inspiration did not see fit to give us. Unlike Mannaseh, we do know what Jabez said. His prayer has four parts and holds great significance.

Oh, that you would bless me indeed! How few pray like this. We usually pray for God to bless others, but not ourselves. It at first glance seems selfish. How would God hear such a prayer? Is it wrong to pray for yourself?

Remember that Jabez began life with this disadvantage of being named, pain. He really did need help from God. He was praying for deliverance from the implications of that name. It is not wrong to pray for deliverance. Jesus taught his disciples to pray, "Forgive us our debts, lead us not into temptation, and deliver us from evil."

What seems so unusual here is the request to be blessed a lot or indeed. Notice that this man did not ask God for riches as his blessing or fame. He left the specific blessing and how God would do it to God Himself. Solomon asked for wisdom to rule God’s people well. This request was answered because Solomon did not ask for riches or fame. He wanted to use it as a blessing for others.

Jabez breaks with the norm here. He did not benignly pray for this brothers, sisters, mother, father, grandfather, grandmother, etc. He prayed something very specific about a great need in his life. He wanted to rise above the mediocre, above what looked like his lot in life by virtue of his name. He wanted something more. He believed that God could and would do something about it. It is easier to pray for missionaries, than to be a missionary. It is easier to send our money to others and let God use them, than it is to ask God to use us. I do not hear many prayers like this one by Jabez. Lord, bless me indeed. Bless me, and while you are at it, Bless me a lot! We are content to just drift along in life and not to rise above the attitude set by others around us.

Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. He had the worse name, but his life was lived better than theirs. Lord, I do not want to just live and die without making a difference. I want to change the world around me. I do not believe in superstition or hints that some bad events in the beginning mean that my life is doomed from the very start. My mother meant well, I am sure, but my life does not have to be filled with sorrow. I believe in God, who is able to do exceedingly and abundantly above all that we ask or think. (Eph. 3:20.) We are too content to say our child-like prayers, And now Lord I lay me down to sleep, etc., and to miss out on the great blessings of the God of heaven and earth. God is able and ready to do so much more with us and through us, if we just ask.

"Ask and it shall be given unto you. . . Give and it shall be given unto you: good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom." (Matt. 7:7, Luke 6:38.)

Translations variously say, Enlarge my territory, my borders, my coasts, etc. We recall that the small land of Canaan was divided into lots according to the families in the twelve tribes of Israel. No one received very much; the space was very limited. Two and one half tribes were given special permission to settle on the east side of the Jordan, but even then, the total amount of land to be divided among so man was small. Jabez may have looked at his inheritance and thought, Is this it? Are these the boundaries of my life and existence? The American frontier was settled by people who wanted plenty of room to grow. They wanted larger boundaries.

Jabez was hedged in by a name given at his birth. Was this his lot in life? Was there no way out, but to be content to allow events to take their course? Jabez did not think so. He believed that God could enlarge his borders, extend his horizons in life, and improve his lot in life.

I am not here promoting discontentment in life, nor am I belittling the role of motherhood or servanthood. I am not suggesting that we abandon our jobs or families to go off in some wild hunt for fulfillment. Jabez left the nature of the blessing up to God, how it would be done, and when. He did not seek for fortune or fame. He wanted help from God to overcome the boundaries of his life. Few people have the courage to pray as this honorable man. Most are content to drift along and live spiritually unfulfilled lives. The only way to escape the emptiness that many feel is to ask God to fill your life and to expand the boundaries of your life. Then you will be so blessed that the emptiness and confinement of life will give way to "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. . . He prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies; he anoints my head with oil; my cup runneth over." (Psalm 23.)

If God expands your borders, there will come with it a sense that you cannot handle the extended opportunities of service. You might feel that you are the wrong man for the job. Moses lived for forty years in a desert, then God called him to do a monumental job. He felt overwhelmed by it and asked God to permit Aaron his brother to assist him. Moses may have had a right to his fears. He had lived outside of the society of Egypt for a long time. He may have forgotten some of the skills of communication, especially with the Pharaoh. He needed God’s help.

Jabez cried out for God to be with him. If his life avoided sorrow and confinement, he knew that he needed the hand of God. The "hand of God" refers to the power of God, the work of God, and the presence of God.

Doing God’s work requires the power and help of God. The early church could not have been successful unless God worked with them. "And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned unto the Lord." (Acts 11:21.) Jesus promised the apostles as they went into all the world with the Gospel that he would be with them. (Matt. 28:18-20.) Unless God is with us, all our labors will be in vain. We will not be able to convert the least of sinners without the power of the Gospel. (Rom. 1:16.)

Evil and sorrow are found together in man’s life. If sin is present, there will be sadness and sorrow. No wonder, Jabez was known for being more noble than his brothers. He sought for purity of life. Should we not more often pray that God will keep from evil? Jesus taught his disciples to pray, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." (Matt. 6:13.)

If you pray for expanded borders, opportunities of service, a more noble life, you will be treading upon Satan’s desires and pushing him further back. Satan will surely resist. You will need the help of God to be kept from evil. A noble life can be destroyed by only a few moments of reckless folly. Sin can destroy in a few moments what it took years to build in your reputation, in your character, and in your relationships with others.

The record of all the prayers in the Bible reveal that if we request things that are noble and good, God will readily hear. We should "launch out into the deep" and trust God. (Luke 5:4.)