1 Chronicles 4:9-10 "Jabez was honored more than his brothers; and his mother named him Jabez..."

"Jabez was honored more than his brothers; and his mother named him Jabez, saying ‘because I bore him in pain.’ Jabez called on 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 hurt and harm!’" (1 Chronicles 4:9-10 NRSV)

Comment:

Jabez is mentioned in the Bible only in this brief passage, as one of the many descendants of Judah. The name in Hebrew means “man of pain” or “man of sorrow,” hence his mother's choice of Jabez to describe the outcome of a painful birth. Charles Fillmore, in his Metaphysical Bible Dictionary describes the energy of Jabez as a realization of the pain caused by ignorant and misguided choices. It is out of this realization, then, that the succinct prayer issues. In its one extended sentence, it calls on God as the Lord of his being to lift him from the ignorance of divine order out of which “evil” choices come, causing pain both as a personal life experience and as a contribution to collective consciousness.   Although the prayer sounds rather beseeching in English translation, it is actually strong and affirmative. It's like ordering off a menu—not in hopes that you might get what you order but in confident expectation that you will. There are four courses in this spiritual meal. "Bless me"—keep me aware of the divinity within me. "Enlarge my life"—help me to remember and express my infinite spiritual purpose, instead of focusing on the challenges of my limited human existence. "That your hand might be with me"—be my Source in all things. "Keep me from hurt and harm"—since negative energies come from negative choices, help me to see the loving, God-ordained possibility in every challenge.   Blessings!

Rev. Ed