September/October 2001

Praying the Prayer of Jabez

Breakthrough to the blessed life? Or just another magical health-wealth incantation?

by Monte Wolverton

It was just a little book, about a little prayer, given by an otherwise obscure man in a little-read part of the Bible.

But the person to whom I was talking held it in awe. "Oh, yes! It's a wonderful thing. Once you read this book, and you begin praying this prayer, it will change your life -- the way you pray -- everything."

Not long after our conversation, I acquired a copy of the book. In it, the author claimed to have prayed this prayer every day for 25 years. And he claimed that God had answered the prayer.

If you prayed this prayer, he further claimed, God would be inclined to bless you, too.

Okay.

Not long after this, another friend told me about a sermon given in his church about the prayer of Jabez. This was not like other prayers in the Bible, the preacher informed his congregation. With other prayers, you had to wait for an answer, whereas using the prayer of Jabez, you got results IMMEDIATELY!

Shortly after that I read an e-mail from a Christian fundraising consultant. He suggested this prayer could be helpful in persuading God to prosper one's Christian ministry.

Few things have hit the evangelical Christian community with the force of The Prayer of Jabez -- Breaking Through to the Blessed Life, by Bruce Wilkinson.

Jabez's simple prayer goes like this: "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" (1 Chronicles 4:10).

It seems to be a nice prayer, from a sincere man. The several times in my life that I have read through the genealogies in Chronicles, I have paused at the prayer of Jabez. It's certainly worth a note in a commentary, or even a sermon or an article (like this one).

But imagine Jabez's amazement if he were to discover that his little prayer has spawned a Prayer of Jabez Journal, a Prayer of Jabez Bible Study, a Prayer of Jabez for Teens, a Prayer of Jabez Leather-Bound Special Edition, Prayer of Jabez tapes, Prayer of Jabez CDs and Prayer of Jabez coffee mugs. Presumably there are more Prayer of Jabez products that I don't know about, and more to come.

A Mercedez Benz

Judith Schulevitz summarizes a secular perspective of the appeal of Jabez in her article, entitled "Lord, Won't you Buy Me a Mercedes Benz," published in the New York Times Book Review on May 20, 2001.

"Jabez's obscurity, textually and socially, makes him an ideal vehicle for the traditional American

Christian narrative of conversion and redemption. Jabez is a biblical everyman, vaguely discontented with his lot and ripe for a turn toward God. As Wilkinson puts it: 'Things started badly for a person no one had ever heard of. He prayed an unusual, one-sentence prayer. Things ended extraordinarily well.' Wilkinson breaks Jabez's prayer into four parts and turns them into steps to be taken toward the good life. And then...he promises that if you take the steps, results will be yours within days."

Indeed. Under the chapter heading "Living Large for God," Wilkinson writes: "If Jabez had worked on Wall Street, he might have prayed, 'Lord, increase the value of my investment portfolios.'"

In the final chapter we are advised to "pray the Jabez prayer every morning...reread this little book once each week...keep a record of the changes in your life."

Such statements in the book prompt reviewer Schulevitz to observe: "A God who diverts his awesome supernatural force for the sole purpose of giving a jump-start to your personal and professional development may seem disconcertingly crass. But a deity who sounds like a motivational speaker at a business luncheon may also be the right deity for an era when mega-churches sprawl across the land and more traditional houses of worship are going into genteel decline. The Jabez prayer grants the supplicant full access to the American cult of success, an adoration of power and material satisfaction untroubled by any sense that the world may be a tragic place or the fear that the enlargement of one's territory might leave others' diminished."

In another review in the Wall Street Journal (May 25, 2001), Damon Linker concludes that The Prayer of Jabez is "New Age self-help with Christian trappings."

In fairness, we must note that much of the book is devoted to applying the Jabez prayer to expand opportunities for Christian ministry and service, and not merely one's own prosperity.

But other questions about the biblical basis behind The Prayer of Jabez linger.

Jabez in the New Testament?

Oddly, all the prayer of Jabez hoopla seems to have been lost on the writers of the New Testament. In all of the apostle Paul's writings, there is not one mention of the prayer of Jabez. Matthew, Mark, Luke, Peter, James, John, Jude and the author of the book of Hebrews are equally silent on this crucial subject.

No wonder these men -- and early Christians in general -- had trouble with persecution and martyrdom.

They weren't praying the prayer of Jabez.

The deep significance of the prayer of Jabez also seems to have escaped the notice of Ignatius, Polycarp, Justin Martyr, Clement, Eusebius, Ambrose, Augustine and the other early church fathers.

None of the great historical church councils seem to have endorsed or encouraged the prayer of Jabez.

Likewise, the shocking truth of the prayer of Jabez seems to have bypassed John Calvin and Martin Luther. So far as I know, there is no mention of Jabez, with the exception of their commentaries and Luther's Bible translation, which, of course, had to cover Jabez along with the rest of the Chronicles genealogies (but perhaps Calvin and Luther covered Jabez in their sermons, most of which have been lost to history).

The Roman Catholic church does not venerate any saints named Jabez. The prayer of Jabez did not make the final cut for The Book of Common Prayer, long a foundation of worship in the Episcopal tradition. Nor is Jabez included in the liturgical calendars of any of the established Christian denominations.

None of the great Christian creeds mentions Jabez. I am not aware of any traditional Christian hymns that feature Jabez (although I'm sure that by now Jabez' prayer has been set to music and is either available on cassette, CD or downloadable from Napster).

And last, but certainly not least, our Lord himself seems to have been unaware of the importance of the Jabez prayer, as he gave it no mention in his recorded earthly ministry. Apparently, he too missed out.

But I'm wasting ink here. The fact that Jabez is not the focus of traditional Christian theology will in no way deter the Jabez boosters, I'm sure.

More Jabez-like Stuff

Okay. Let's say Jabez is the man of the hour. Let's say that the prayer of Jabez is an appropriate model for 21st-century Christians. Shouldn't we, then, be looking for more Jabez-like stuff in the Bible? Aren't there other little-known statements by other obscure Old Testament characters that are equally worthy of our attention?

For instance, what about the little-known Taunt of Zebul, found in Judges 9:38: "Where is your big talk now?" This is an extremely useful phrase. I can think of many times when I could have used this, especially in the context of competitive sports.

Or what about the Exclamation of Eglon, King of Moab, in Judges 3:19? "Quiet!" I have found this little-known biblical phrase to come in very handy, especially on days when our rat terrier, Kirby, is in a barky mood. I do not advise using this phrase on one's spouse, however.

Or what about Jonah's prayer in Jonah 2:2-9? Rarely do I hear anyone quoting it. Now there was a guy in a bad situation who got immediate results. Maybe we should be praying his prayer.

Someday, someone will discover the untapped riches in these little-read passages of the Old Testament.

Until then we will have to be content with reciting the prayer of Jabez every morning.

Jabez in Perspective

The point is that while the story of Jabez is interesting and instructive (as is any passage in the Bible), it is not central to the gospel. Its significance should therefore be overshadowed by those passages that deal directly with the gospel.

Further, it's just not biblically sound to think that Christians will always be free from trials. As Paul put it, "Anyone who wants to live all out for Christ is in for a lot of trouble; there's no getting around it" (2 Timothy 3:12, The Message).

Then is it wrong to recite the prayer of Jabez? Is it wrong to ask God to provide for us? Should we ignore the prayer of Jabez? No, of course not, to all three questions.

But we should put Jabez's prayer in its proper perspective. That would not include the large amounts of hype that have recently been applied to it. There is, after all, a reason why it is tucked away in a relatively obscure part of the Bible.

Jabez' prayer may have been an appropriate example for his time. The Israelites were in the process of securing and settling their new land, as God had commanded them. Enlarging of borders, physical prosperity and security were important for the growing Israelite nation in a different way than they are for us now.

Further, the books of 1 and 2 Chronicles were originally written for Israelites returning from exile in Babylon. These books provide a summary of Israelite history and genealogy, and give encouragement and a sense of purpose to the returning exiles who were resettling the land and re-establishing a culture. Jabez' prayer held meaning for these people, as a reminder that it is God who enlarges territories and protects from evil.

But we live in New Testament times. Jesus has given us a better example of prayer, in Matthew 6:9-13. This prayer is the one to which New Testament believers should be looking as a model.

We encounter a major problem when we attempt to apply the prayer of Jabez as a model prayer for New Testament times.

It is a sincere prayer of a God-fearing man. It deserved a footnote in the genealogies of the Old Testament -- nothing more, nothing less.

Let's not tarnish this simple and beautiful passage of Scripture by using it in a way God never intended.

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