In the Bible we find that «The prayer of Jabez» is one of the best known in the Old Testament. It is only 2 verses. 1 Chronicles 4:9-10 (ESV) says: “Jabez was more honorable than his brothers; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!” And God granted what he asked.“
The blessing for us means spiritual and material favors, having as a motive a selfless love. It is up to God to seal it and grant it to those who trust his promises. This little prayer is an example of how we should pray to God correctly. It is a lesson for our lives today. In these verses of the book of Chronicles we see what is the key to how we should ask God and how He can, with certainty, grant our wishes. Jabez is not recognized for a heroic act, but he is known for his requests to God, He is in his life as a priority, He is the center of his life, everything revolves around him. The book of Chronicles is one of the least read in the Bible, some feel it a bit boring in the first nine chapters, since it only refers to the descendants of the Jewish people. It was written after the captivity to update the information of the families returning to Israel. For them it was important not to forget their genealogy and Jabez, is within the line of Judah, one of the twelve patriarchs, another one is King David, as well as Jesus of Nazareth.
This genealogy is impressive, because there are pagan and foreign characters like Rahab and Ruth the Moabite.
From the Old Testament we observe how we can find Jesus Christ in each book, he extended his hands to the despised, gentiles and foreigners. The message of salvation is for everyone, it does not matter if in the past we suffered contempt from childhood, like the example of Jabez, whom his mother gives a name whose meaning is: anguish, pain and affliction. The heart of a child can be marked by this situation. But in the life of Jabez, a man who believed God, it was different, he changed his lament into a dance. His leadership transcends his brothers. That name with a negative meaning that his mother gave him, makes him an exemplary man in the society of that time.
Jabez, is admired and analyzed for his prayer to God, full of faith and with solid content. He understood that the wealth that is worth is spiritual wealth, that it is not devalued or moldy, it puts God in the first place, verse 10 of the New International Version (NIV) says: bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain. There are four requests that break our way of praying. God has blessings that we have not claimed and we find in the Bible. We have a purpose in life to exalt, worship and bless his name. So, let’s seek his blessings every day, let’s change the way we pray to him and always remember the prayer of Jabez, the man who had faith and to whom God granted his request.
