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THE PRAYER OF JABEZ

1 Chronicles 4:9-10

Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez, saying, “I gave birth to him in pain.” 10 Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would 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.” And God granted his request (NIV)

1. Who is Jabez, and how is he described compared to his brothers (v.9)? What is the meaning of his name, and why did his mother give it to him? How might Jabez’s name have shaped his identity or life circumstances?
2. What four specific requests does Jabez make in his prayer (v.10)? Why is it significant that Jabez directly cries out to the God of Israel?
3. What does it mean to ask God for Blessing? What is the difference between worldly success and God’s blessing? What kinds of blessings should Christians seek most?
4. What could “enlarge my territory” mean? What might “territory” mean in a Christian’s life today? Are there areas where you need God to “enlarge your territory”
5. What does God’s hand represent? What does “let Your hand be with me” reveal about dependence on God?
6. How should we understand “keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain”? What kinds of harm should Christians pray against? How do you usually pray about difficulties, do you avoid them, endure them, or bring them honestly to God like Jabez?
7. Why do you think God granted his request? What does this reveal about God’s character? Which part of Jabez’s prayer speaks to you most personally?

The prayer of Jabez

1 Chronicles 4:9-10

⁹ Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez, saying, “I gave birth to him in pain.” ¹⁰ Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would 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.” And God granted his request

Today’s passage is about the prayer of Jabez. Although Jabez is mentioned only briefly in two verses in the Bible, his prayer has continued to encourage and inspire many people even today. When The Prayer of Jabez: Breaking Through to the Blessed Life by Bruce Wilkinson was published in the early 2000s, many people read it. As I prepared today’s sermon, I read it again, and I will share what I learned from this book in today’s message.

Jabez is remembered not because of what he did, but because of the prayer. Many people like his prayer because they think it is a prayer about receiving blessings. In contrast some groups of people criticized because people treat his prayer almost like a spiritual formula for personal prosperity rather than part of a deeper relationship with God. However, I believe that Jabez’s prayer is a good model of depending on God in our lives, and live a blessed life.

Through today’s message, we will look at who Jabez was, what his prayer means, and how that prayer changed his life. I pray that God will bless us through this message so that we also may live a blessed life through prayer to God.

The book of Chronicles was written for the people of Judah who had spent 70 years in Babylonian exile and then returned to their land. Its purpose was to teach them the history of Israel and God’s work throughout that history, to help them regain a sense of identity as God’s chosen people, and to give them comfort and hope.

From chapters 1 through 9, the writer records the genealogy of Israel, filled with many unfamiliar names. It begins with Adam and continues through Abraham, Jacob, and the twelve tribes of Israel. Chapter 3 focuses on the tribe of Judah, tracing the royal line from David and Solomon to Zerubbabel, the leader who returned from exile.

Chapter 4 then continues with further genealogies from the tribe of Judah by listing long and dry genealogies up to verse 8, repeatedly stating who fathered whom and who belonged to whose line. However, in verses 9 and 10, a man named Jabez from the tribe of Judah is suddenly introduced. Interestingly, when Jabez is mentioned, the passage unexpectedly pauses the genealogy to describe his prayer to God, and the content of his prayer is explained in detail. Then, from verse 11, the genealogy resumes as if nothing unusual had happened.

The Bible does not give us detailed or specific information about a man named Jabez. We can’t know about his background exactly who he was, when he was born (some reference: he lived in southern Israel after the conquest of Canaan and during the time of the judges), whose descendant he was.

What we know from the bible is that he prayed to the God of Israel, and that God blessed him in response to his prayer. As mentioned earlier, Jabez was not originally known as an honorable man because of his achievement in his life. Rather, he is remembered in the Bible as a man who became honorable because of the prayer and because God answered his prayer. In fact, this is a very short prayer, but this prayer is so graceful not because the words themselves are excellent, but because it was Jabez the one who offered this prayer to God.

Now, let us see who Jabez is more. The name Jabez means “pain, grief, sorrow and suffering” or “he brings pain”, “he will cause pain”. It doesn’t sound like a positive name and the start of a promising life. If someone asked his name, he answered “my name is pain”, and his friends might make fun of him and call him “Hey, Mr. Pain.”

All babies are born with some level of pain, but I think Jabez mom’s birth pain went beyond the usual. Jabez was not introduced by his father’s name like others in the genealogy, but rather by the meaning of his own name. We cannot know the exact reason, but it seems that from the very beginning he lived with emotional pain and difficult conditions. His life seems to have been full of suffering, sorrow, and hardship, a fatalistic life characterized by pain. So, she named his name “Jabez”.

My mother once told me that she had a very difficult time when she gave birth to me because of my big head, but my parents did not give me a name that meant “pain.” Instead, they named me Seung-ho (承湖), which means “to receive spirit of a great lake,” expressing the hope that I would grow into a great person.

A name is not just a simple label. In the Bible, we see examples like Abram/Abraham and Jacob/Israel and Ben-oni/Benjamin, where a name shows a person’s identity. A name can also show a person's future and God’s purpose/plan for their life.

But let’s look at verse 9a: “Jabez was more honorable than his brothers.” The Bible records that God blessed and honored Jabez. How was Jabez able to change from a life that seemed doomed by his name, a life full of suffering into a life that God saw as honorable? Since there is no detailed record of his life, we can find the answer only in his prayer. He was honored because of his relationship with God expressed through prayer.

Let’s see what kind of prayer Jabez did that led him to such blessing and honor from God. Let’s look at verse 10.  ^“Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would 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.” And God granted his request.”

First of all, Jabez cried out to God earnestly. The Bible says that Jabez “cried out to the God of Israel,” rather than simply “prayed”. This shows that Jabez was not offering a casual or routine prayer, but a deep and sincere cry to God filled with urgency. It is similar to the desperate cries of the blind man Bartimaeus “Son of David, have mercy on me,” (Mark 10:47) Jesus did not ignore such cries; He recognized this kind of earnest prayer as an expression of faith. He earnestly sought the Lord, and his prayer reflected his faith that is pleasing to God.

While I was preparing this Sunday message, I had been reflecting on the prayer of Jabez for the past two to three weeks. I was also preparing a Daily Bread message. At that time, I happened to be assigned Psalm 40, David said “I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.” As I meditated on how God heard David’s desperate prayer in his time of distress, I was able to imagine Jabez’s earnest cry out to God. This does not mean that we are literally shouting loudly. Rather, when we cry out to God with a sincere and whole heart, God responds by looking at our faith, not at the outward loud voice.

Now let us look at the prayer of Jabez. In verse 10 it says, “Oh, that you would 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.”

First, God would bless me. Those who criticize the prayer of Jabez often misunderstand it as a request for personal prosperity or material blessing. We also often tend to think that blessings come from people, good circumstances, money, or success. People believe that reaching a higher position will bring blessing and having more possessions defines a blessed life.

But Jabez clearly understood where true blessing comes from. He sought God’s blessing as the ultimate value in his life. He knew that real blessing is only what God gives to him. He understood that true blessing was not something meant for himself alone; rather, it comes within a relationship with God. The blessing he sought was not a form of prosperity faith that asks blessing to live a comfortable or successful life.

Charles Spurgeon said in his sermon about today’s passage that anything which brings us nearer to Christ and makes us glorify God may be counted a true blessing. Poverty, sickness, depression, conflict, and loneliness—things commonly regarded as curses—may, in God’s providence, become instruments of grace. For through them, God humbles us, purifies our hearts, and shapes us into a more holy and dependent people.

Living as a parent of a child with autism is not easy. As Ryan continues to grow, he becomes more difficult to manage and control at times, and I sometimes find myself worried about how I will be able to take good care of him in the future. But I confess that Ryan has led me to depend more on God and to draw closer to him. In the words of Charles Spurgeon, I believe that even my present circumstances as a parent of special needs child, which lead me to Christ and humble me so that I may give glory to God in even the smallest things, can truly become a real blessing in me, and live blessed life in God.

In this book, “To bless in the biblical sense means to ask for or to impart supernatural favor. When we ask for God’s blessing, we’re not asking for more of what we could get for ourselves. We’re crying out for the wonderful, unlimited goodness that only God has the power to know about or give to us. This kind of richness is what the writer was referring to in Proverbs: “The Lord’s blessing is our greatest wealth; all our work adds nothing to it” (Proverbs 10:22).

He refused to live according to the meaning of his name. Instead, he longed to live a blessed life and sought God’s blessing. He did not try to resolve the reality of being a man of pain/suffering through people. Instead of relying on better circumstances or human help, he turned his eyes to God. He believed that only God could change his life in God’s way.

What about our prayer for true blessing? Actually, we need God’s blessing. The blessing God gives is not limited to material satisfaction or improved circumstances. When we seek God’s blessing as the highest value in life, we can experience a truly blessed life within his will, his power, and his purposes for us. Jabez’s first prayer was simple and clear: he believed that blessing must come from God alone, and that true blessing is found only in God alone.

Second, God would enlarge his territory: The next part of the Jabez’s prayer is a plea for more territory. Here “my territory” does not simply refer to land or possessions. Of course, in those days land and property were closely connected to security and prosperity in one’s life.

However, Jabez’s prayer goes beyond more land or possessions. He was asking God to expand the scope of his life, expand the areas of responsibility he would carry, expand the influence of God’s kingdom through his life. It can be understood as a prayer that he may be used to advance the God’s kingdom and to reach more people with God’s message. For this reason, many biblical scholars describe Jabez as someone who desired to be used more greatly for God’s purposes.

When we look at our lives, because of our limited conditions, we feel we cannot make a greater impact for God through our daily lives. Sometimes we even feel more comfortable within our boundary like repetition of work and home, home and work.

However, God has called us to participate in His work in this world. Even within our limitations, we can pray that He would enlarge our territory by giving us more opportunities and enabling us to accomplish more for His glory. We can broaden the scope of our prayers beyond our own needs to include the people around us, and we can extend our spiritual influence wherever God places us so that people may be touched by His grace and truth.

In this book, when we’re deciding what size territory God has in mind for us, we keep an equation in our heart that adds up something like this:

My abilities + experience + training + my personality and appearance + my past + the expectations of others = my assigned territory.

(People often define the scope of their lives based on these factors—what they are naturally capable of, what they have been taught, the environments they grew up in, and even their past failures, the expectation of others)

In other words, it becomes a “territory determined by human conditions.” This represents a life shaped by my own abilities and circumstances. Within that framework, our territory is inevitably restricted and limited. As a result, we often end up saying things like, “Given my situation, this is all I can do,” or “I don’t have enough ability,” and in doing so, we place limits on ourselves.

However, the prayer of Jabez presents a completely different way. Jabez did not remain bound by the destiny of suffering suggested by his name. Instead of focusing on his circumstances and limitations, he turned to God in prayer. This was not simply a request for more land or possessions, but a prayer asking God to use his life in a greater and more meaningful way.

My willingness and weakness + God’s will and supernatural power = my expanding territory.

The important point here is that our “territory” is no longer determined by human conditions. When God’s will and his supernatural power are added to our weakness and limitations, He can use our lives far beyond what we could ever imagine. Therefore, the prayer of Jabez is that “Lord, use my life to do more. Let me be used more greatly for Your kingdom.” Jabez prayed in this way: “God, let my life not be defined by my present conditions, but let it be expanded through your presence with me.”

In the Bible, Moses was not eloquent in speech, yet God still used him powerfully. Gideon considered himself the least of all, yet God used him and 300 men to defeat the Midianites. Peter was an ordinary fisherman, but in the Holy Spirit he became an apostle who brought many to life in Christ. God works through His power upon our human limitations.

Even in the same way, many of our missionaries had limited language skills or not enough resources, however, as they prayed with a heart for missions and obeyed God’s calling (like Isaiah “Here am I. Send me!”), God opened the way for them to world mission work.

God has blessed NYUBF by expanding our territory of ministry to Columbia University through the start of Sunday worship services from the last year. Some coworkers enlarged their opportunities to serve God’s work by serving GBS and Worship service voluntarily. God has also blessed our young leaders to extend their spiritual influence to our church young people through their shepherding. Therefore, we must not remain within the boundaries of our own limitations, but become people who pray with greater faith, relying on God’s power. May God enlarge our territory so that we may serve more souls, be used as valuable instruments for the expansion of His kingdom.

One more thing, we are able to pray this prayer because God is the one who enlarges our territory. We cannot expand it by our own ability. No matter how hard we try, there are times when our own strength cannot overcome our limitations. However, God can open the ways far beyond what we can imagine. Through the prayer of Jabez, I pray that we may experience God who leads us into a life that is broader than our present situation, with deeper relationship with God.

Third, God’s hand might be with him

Jabez prayed for blessing and asked that his territory would be enlarged. But he did not stop there. He understood that even if he received blessings and his territory expanded, it would mean nothing unless the hands of God was with him.

The “hand of the Lord” is a biblical expression that represents God’s power and presence working in the lives of his people (Joshua 4:24). Moses declared that it was the hand of God that delivered the people of Israel at the Red Sea. After crossing the sea, Moses and the Israelites sang, “Your right hand, Lord, was majestic in power. Your right hand, Lord, shattered the enemy” (Exodus 15:6). In the book of Acts of the Apostles, the remarkable growth of the early church was attributed to one thing: “The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord” (Acts 11:21). In the New Testament, a more specific way of describing God’s hand at work is through “the filling of the Holy Spirit.”

The hand of God leads us, holds us, and protects us. Jabez understood that he absolutely needed the hand of God with him to manage his blessing and his enlarged territory. He acknowledged that he could not do it by his own strength. He knew that a life with hand of God was much more secure and blessed than one depending on human ability alone. When the hand of God is with us, we are able to experience peace even in fearful situations, though difficulties come, we are not destroyed, because God’s hand leads us to the safest place.

So the writer says That’s why you could call God’s hand on you “the touch of greatness.” You do not become great; you become dependent on the strong hand of God. Your surrendered need (thing we can’t do) turns into His unlimited opportunity And God becomes great through you.

Through this prayer, we can see that both his vision and his dependence on God were growing together. In the same way, May God help us to pray like Jabez in whatever we do: “Lord, let Your hand be with me.”

Fourth, God would keep him from evil so that he will be free from pain

Lastly, Jabez prayed, “Keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.”

Jabez, whose name means “pain” or “grief” had experienced much hardship in his life. In his prayer, he earnestly asked God that he would not fall back into a place of suffering again, and that he would not be overwhelmed again by burdensome grief and anxiety. Instead of seeking solutions from others or relying on worldly methods to overcome his painful reality, he turned to God in prayer.

We also often encounter unexpected trials and difficulties—health issues, concerns about the future, financial struggles, and challenges related to our children. In such moments, we too should pray like Jabez. What is important is that we pray God’s help before trials come, before anxiety takes hold of our hearts.

Personally, I pray daily for my children, asking, “Protect them from harm and danger.” For Ryan, I specifically pray for protection from physical harm and danger. For Sophie(sensitive girl), especially I pray for protection from spiritual and mental harm and danger. I really thank God who has protected them as I prayed so far.

However, when we look at the KJV, unlike the NIV, it translates the phrase as “You would keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me.” The Hebrew word used in the original text is ra‘ (רַע), which carries a broad meaning that can include evil, harm, trouble, and suffering.

In this sense, the prayer can be understood as: “Lord, let your hand be with me so that I will not walk in the path of evil and sin, and protect me from the pain as consequences of my sin.” It is a prayer asking God to keep us from temptation and from doing evil, so that sin does not bring pain into our lives.

This is a prayer asking to be delivered from all harm, pain, and evil influences in his life, even after receiving God’s blessing. He acknowledged that he could not overcome temptation and sin by his own strength, and therefore earnestly sought the Lord’s protection and deliverance.

Let me share it from this book. Most Christians seem to pray solely for strength to endure temptations—for victory over the attacks of our raging adversary Satan. Somehow, we don’t think to ask God simply to keep us away from temptation and keep the devil at bay in our lives. The most effective war against sin is to pray that we will not have to fight. Jesus’ prayer not about how to fight, he prayed “And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” (Matthew 6:13).

We do not know what kinds of suffering or temptations may come our way. We cannot know what will happen tomorrow or what situations may shake us. That is why we must pray: “Keep me from harm (from evil), so that I will be free from pain.” God is the One who hears and answers our prayer.

Conclusion: “Jabez was more honorable than his brothers.”

Here, “More honorable” describes what God thinks; it’s not credit we take for ourselves. It reflects honor from God’s perspective. This does not mean that Jabez was a perfect man. In fact, we do not know much about his achievements at all.

In 1 Chronicles 4, many leaders’ name from the tribe of Judah recorded even though they were not from the royal line. While there might have been other people who were more capable or influential, it is Jabez who is highlighted in the genealogy because he sought God in prayer.

In that sense, “more honorable” can be understood as “a man of prayer,”. His prayer becomes the key evidence that he did not live bound by the meaning of his name “pain” but instead lived as one who was honored by God above his brothers.

Jabez stepped beyond the limitations of his name and his circumstances and came before God in prayer. This prayer changed his life. He only asked for blessing from God, for his territory to be enlarged, and for God’s hand to be with him so that he would be protected from trouble and free from pain. This is the power of prayer. God heard him. His prayer moved the heart of God, and as a result, his life was transformed from fatalistic life among people to honorable life in God.

The account of Jabez in the Bible ends with these words: “So God granted him what he requested.” In the end, the prayer of Jabez we have studied today is not about seeking good luck, nor is it a request for blessings or greater possessions. Rather, it is a humble prayer from a weak human being who has sinned before God, a prayer that earnestly seeks God’s help and blessing in his life.

Today’s message shows us how precious prayer is to God. Jabez was not a famous man, nor did he leave behind any remarkable achievements, like a great national leader. But he prayed, and God answered him. God desires us to pray in the same way. God works powerfully through those who fully depend on Him in prayer. I invited you our morning prayer meeting, it is good and meaningful time we can be fully depend on God through our earnest prayer.

When we face overwhelming circumstances and difficulties, we can have deeper relationship with God through prayer. God heard the prayer of Jabez then, and He still hears and answers our prayers today. May our lives also be used more widely, just as Jabez’s life was, as we pray to God.

Let me read the closing words from this book for my message:
“God will release His miraculous power in your life now. And for all eternity, He will lavish on you His honor and delight. Amen.”