1 Chronicles 4:1 - Meaning and Application

One reason Ezra is especially careful with the tribe of Judah is clear enough. Judah, along with Simeon, Benjamin, and Levi, made up the kingdom of Judah. That kingdom outlasted the other tribes in Canaan, and by Ezra’s time it had also returned from captivity, while most of the other tribes had been lost in Assyria. The most notable person in this section is Jabez. We are not told who his father was, or what time he lived in, but it seems he was the founder of one of the families of Aharhel, mentioned in (1 Chronicles 4:8).

His name has a sad meaning. His mother named him Jabez because, as she said, “I bore him with sorrow” (1 Chronicles 4:9). All children are born with sorrow, since God said, “In sorrow you will bring forth children,” but some births involve much more pain than others. Usually that sorrow is later forgotten in the joy of having the child, but in this case the pain seems to have been so great that it was remembered when the child was circumcised, and the name kept that memory alive.

Perhaps his mother, like Rachel naming Benjamin, was so troubled that she gave him this name in a moment of pain. Or, if she later recovered, she still kept the name for two useful reasons. First, it could remind her to thank God for carrying her through such sorrow. It is good to remember our troubles, so we do not forget the humble thoughts we had in suffering and learn to “rejoice with trembling.” Second, it could remind Jabez what kind of world he had been born into, a world of tears and trouble. The sorrow linked to his name might help make him serious and thoughtful. It would also remind him to love and honor his mother, and to repay her by living in a way that brought her comfort. Children should show this kind of care to their parents (1 Timothy 5:4).

Jabez’s character was excellent. He was “more honorable than his brothers.” God’s grace raised him above them, and God’s providence gave him a place of honor. Others may have done well, but he surpassed them all. His mother’s sorrow was richly repaid, because the son who had cost her most tears brought her the most joy. God often gives gladness in proportion to former griefs (Psalm 90:15).

We are not told exactly why he was held in such honor. It may have been because of wealth, public office, or military success, but it seems most likely that his learning and his godliness were the cause. These are the things that truly honor a person. He may have been known for learning, since the families of scribes lived in Jabez (1 Chronicles 2:55), and the city may have taken its name from him. Jewish tradition says he was a famous teacher of the law who left many followers. His name is mentioned here without explanation, which suggests readers already knew it when Ezra wrote.

Jabez was also a man of prayer. That made him truly honorable, and by prayer he received blessings from God that added to his honor. The surest path to greatness is to be truly good and to pray often. His prayer may have been like Solomon’s prayer for wisdom, offered when he was beginning life’s work. He was setting himself to acknowledge God in all his ways, to live under God’s blessing and protection, and he prospered because of it. Perhaps these were the things he regularly brought before God in private prayer and with his family, as Daniel did. Some think this prayer came at a special time, when he was pressed and threatened by enemies.

He prayed to the God of Israel, not to any false god of the nations. He called on the living and true God, the only One who hears and answers prayer. He also looked to God as the God of Israel, the covenant God of his people, the God with whom Jacob wrestled and prevailed, and from that was called Israel.

His prayer can be understood in two ways. If we follow the margin, it reads like a solemn vow: “If you will bless me indeed...” and the rest is understood. It may be filled out by a promise like Jacob’s, “Then you shall be my God.” Jabez did not spell out every word, perhaps because he feared to trust himself too much, or because he meant to give himself wholly to God. It is as if he handed God a blank page and said, “Lord, if you will bless me and keep me, do with me what you will. I am yours to command.” If we follow the main text, it is the cry of a deep desire: “Oh, that you would bless me!”

The prayer itself had four parts. First, he asked that God would bless him indeed, that is, bless him greatly and richly. He may have been thinking of God’s promise to Abraham, “In blessing I will bless you” (Genesis 22:17). He was asking that Abraham’s blessing would come upon him. Spiritual blessings are the best blessings, and those who receive them are truly blessed. God’s blessings are real and effective, and when he blesses, the blessing is sure.

Second, he asked that God would enlarge his border, meaning that God would prosper his efforts and increase what had been given to him, whether by labor or by war. We too should ask God to enlarge our hearts, so that he may enlarge our place in himself and in the heavenly Canaan.

Third, he prayed that God’s hand would be with him. Moses prayed for Judah that his own hands might be enough for him (Deuteronomy 33:7), but Jabez knew that would not be true unless God’s hand went with him. God’s hand with us, leading us, protecting us, strengthening us, and working in us and for us, is the hand that is truly sufficient.

Fourth, he asked that God would keep him from evil, from the evil of sin, from trouble, and from the harmful plans of his enemies. He asked that they would not hurt him, grieve him, or make him a true man of sorrow, which fits the meaning of his name. In a sense, he prayed, “Father in heaven, deliver me from evil.”

God answered him. The Lord granted what he asked and prospered him in a remarkable way. He gave him success in his work, his studies, his business, and his conflicts with the Canaanites, so that he became more honorable than his brothers. God was ready then to hear prayer, and he is no less ready now.