Jabez is an obscure figure mentioned only here in the Bible, but he prayed a prayer worth every person’s attention and study. We notice first the summary statement about his prayer: God granted it! Why did God agree to what Jabez asked? What was the reason for God\u2019s blessing? When someone chooses to obey God, the result is that God is excited to do good things for them. There is also another fundamental reason why God blesses His people. David writes of it in Psalm 67:1\u20132:<\/p>\n
\nGod be merciful to us and bless us,
And cause His face to shine upon us,
That Your way may be known on earth,
Your salvation among all nations.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\nThis is the underlying reason God blesses our lives now with His benefits and love; so that the watching world will see it and desire the same for themselves. Notice the psalmist is not saying, “Bless me so that I can be comfortable,” or even, “Bless me so that I can bless others.\u201d Certainly God does bless and gift us so that we might serve and bless others, but still, that is not the underlying, fundamental reason for God\u2019s blessing. God blesses us foremost so that we can display, bring attention to, put on view, who God really is to those who do not know Him. We are blessed so that His goodness, mercy, and love will be recognized and desired by a watching world.<\/p>\n
“LORD, bless us this day that others might see that blessing and ask us about the God we serve.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n
=============================================================<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1 Chronicles 4 KJV<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1<\/sup>\u00a0The sons of Judah; Pharez, Hezron, and Carmi, and Hur, and Shobal.\u00a0\u00a02<\/sup>\u00a0And Reaiah the son of Shobal begat Jahath; and Jahath begat Ahumai, and Lahad. These\u00a0are\u00a0<\/em>the families of the Zorathites.\u00a0\u00a03<\/sup>\u00a0And these\u00a0were of\u00a0<\/em>the father of Etam; Jezreel, and Ishma, and Idbash: and the name of their sister\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>Hazelelponi:\u00a04<\/sup>\u00a0And Penuel the father of Gedor, and Ezer the father of Hushah. These\u00a0are\u00a0<\/em>the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephratah, the father of Beth-lehem. 5<\/sup>\u00a0And Ashur the father of Tekoa had two wives, Helah and Naarah.\u00a06<\/sup>\u00a0And Naarah bare him Ahuzam, and Hepher, and Temeni, and Haahashtari. These\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>the sons of Naarah.\u00a07<\/sup>\u00a0And the sons of Helah\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>, Zereth, and Jezoar, and Ethnan.\u00a08<\/sup>\u00a0And Coz begat Anub, and Zobebah, and the families of Aharhel the son of Harum. 9<\/sup>\u00a0And Jabez was more honourable than his brethren: and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bare him with sorrow.\u00a0\u00a010<\/sup>\u00a0And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep\u00a0me\u00a0<\/em>from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.\u00a0\u00a0 11<\/sup>\u00a0And Chelub the brother of Shuah begat Mehir, which\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>the father of Eshton.\u00a012<\/sup>\u00a0And Eshton begat Beth-rapha, and Paseah, and Tehinnah the father of Ir-nahash. These\u00a0are<\/em>the men of Rechah.\u00a0\u00a013<\/sup>\u00a0And the sons of Kenaz; Othniel, and Seraiah: and the sons of Othniel; Hathath.\u00a0\u00a014<\/sup>\u00a0And Meonothai begat Ophrah: and Seraiah begat Joab, the father of the valley of Charashim; for they were craftsmen.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a015<\/sup>\u00a0And the sons of Caleb the son of Jephunneh; Iru, Elah, and Naam: and the sons of Elah, even Kenaz.\u00a0\u00a016<\/sup>\u00a0And the sons of Jehaleleel; Ziph, and Ziphah, Tiria, and Asareel.\u00a017<\/sup>\u00a0And the sons of Ezra\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>, Jether, and Mered, and Epher, and Jalon: and she bare Miriam, and Shammai, and Ishbah the father of Eshtemoa.\u00a018<\/sup>\u00a0And his wife Jehudijah bare Jered the father of Gedor, and Heber the father of Socho, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah. And these\u00a0are\u00a0<\/em>the sons of Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh, which Mered took.\u00a0\u00a019<\/sup>And the sons of\u00a0his\u00a0<\/em>wife Hodiah the sister of Naham, the father of Keilah the Garmite, and Eshtemoa the Maachathite.\u00a0\u00a020<\/sup>\u00a0And the sons of Shimon\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>, Amnon, and Rinnah, Ben-hanan, and Tilon. And the sons of Ishi\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>, Zoheth, and Ben-zoheth. 21<\/sup>\u00a0The sons of Shelah the son of Judah\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>, Er the father of Lecah, and Laadah the father of Mareshah, and the families of the house of them that wrought fine linen, of the house of Ashbea,\u00a022<\/sup>\u00a0And Jokim, and the men of Chozeba, and Joash, and Saraph, who had the dominion in Moab, and Jashubi-lehem. And\u00a0these are\u00a0<\/em>ancient things.\u00a023<\/sup>\u00a0These\u00a0were<\/em>the potters, and those that dwelt among plants and hedges: there they dwelt with the king for his work. 24<\/sup> The sons of Simeon\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>, Nemuel, and Jamin, Jarib, Zerah,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>Shaul:\u00a0\u00a0\u00a025<\/sup>\u00a0Shallum his son, Mibsam his son, Mishma his son.\u00a026<\/sup>\u00a0And the sons of Mishma; Hamuel his son, Zacchur his son, Shimei his son.\u00a027<\/sup>\u00a0And Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters; but his brethren had not many children, neither did all their family multiply, like to the children of Judah.\u00a0\u00a028<\/sup>\u00a0And they dwelt at Beer-sheba, and Moladah, and Hazar-shual,\u00a029<\/sup>\u00a0And at Bilhah, and at Ezem, and at Tolad,\u00a030<\/sup>\u00a0And at Bethuel, and at Hormah, and at Ziklag,\u00a031<\/sup>\u00a0And at Beth-marcaboth, and Hazar-susim, and at Beth-birei, and at Shaaraim. These\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>their cities unto the reign of David.\u00a0\u00a032<\/sup>\u00a0And their villages\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>, Etam, and Ain, Rimmon, and Tochen, and Ashan, five cities:\u00a0\u00a033<\/sup>\u00a0And all their villages that\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>round about the same cities, unto Baal. These\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>their habitations, and their genealogy.\u00a0\u00a034<\/sup>\u00a0And Meshobab, and Jamlech, and Joshah the son of Amaziah,\u00a035<\/sup>\u00a0And Joel, and Jehu the son of Josibiah, the son of Seraiah, the son of Asiel,\u00a036<\/sup>\u00a0And Elioenai, and Jaakobah, and Jeshohaiah, and Asaiah, and Adiel, and Jesimiel, and Benaiah,\u00a037<\/sup>\u00a0And Ziza the son of Shiphi, the son of Allon, the son of Jedaiah, the son of Shimri, the son of Shemaiah;\u00a038<\/sup>These mentioned by\u00a0their\u00a0<\/em>names\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>princes in their families: and the house of their fathers increased greatly.\u00a0 39<\/sup>\u00a0And they went to the entrance of Gedor,\u00a0even\u00a0<\/em>unto the east side of the valley, to seek pasture for their flocks.\u00a040<\/sup>\u00a0And they found fat pasture and good, and the land\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>wide, and quiet, and peaceable; for\u00a0they\u00a0<\/em>of Ham had dwelt there of old.\u00a041<\/sup>\u00a0And these written by name came in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and smote their tents, and the habitations that were found there, and destroyed them utterly unto this day, and dwelt in their rooms: because\u00a0there was\u00a0<\/em>pasture there for their flocks.\u00a042<\/sup>\u00a0And\u00a0some\u00a0<\/em>of them,\u00a0even\u00a0<\/em>of the sons of Simeon, five hundred men, went to mount Seir, having for their captains Pelatiah, and Neariah, and Rephaiah, and Uzziel, the sons of Ishi. 43<\/sup>\u00a0And they smote the rest of the Amalekites that were escaped, and dwelt there unto this day. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jabez is an obscure figure mentioned only here in the Bible, but he prayed a prayer worth every person’s attention and study. We notice first the summary statement about his prayer: God granted it! Why did God agree to what Jabez asked? What was the reason for God\u2019s blessing? When someone chooses to obey God, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6968"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6968"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6968\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16310,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6968\/revisions\/16310"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/packinghouseredlands.org\/devotional\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}