The prayer of Jabez

SHOULD YOU ADOPT THE PRAYER OF JABEZ?
An excursus from Judges: The Struggle for Autonomy

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Dr. Paul Manuel—2010

In 2000, Bruce Wilkinson (founder of Walk Thru the Bible Ministries) wrote The Prayer of Jabez: Breaking Through to the Blessed Life, an inspirational and international bestseller.¹ Wilkinson says (p. 86),

I challenge you to make the Jabez prayer for blessing part of the daily fabric of your life. To do that, I encourage you to follow unwaveringly the plan outlined here for the next thirty days. By the end of that time, you'll be noticing significant changes in your life, and the prayer will be on its way to becoming a treasured, lifelong habit.

Should believers make this petition a regular practice with the expectation that God will respond to them as He responded to Jabez? ...This notion is similar to another popular trend, known variously as the "Health and Wealth (or Prosperity) Gospel" and the "Name It and Claim It" approach to prayer, both of which assert that God wants you to be financially successful (even affluent) and that by faith you can realize God's abundant material blessing.

Along with the theological problems that attend such a notion,² this practice violates two principles of biblical interpretation. The first principle is...

• Do not base doctrine on a narrative passage.

Narrative or historical passages provide an accurate account of the events they record, but they do not necessarily offer reliable or applicable instruction about doctrine. For faith and practice we must rely on didactic texts, those the biblical authors intended for teaching, lest we misinterpret and misapply what is written.

• For example, failing to recognize this distinction could make Jesus' admonition to one discipleship candidate a prerequisite for all disciples.³

Matt 19:21 ...sell your possessions and give to the poor.... Then come, follow me.

Jesus' instruction (total divestiture) in this story was for this individual only. There is no evidence that Jesus intended it for other disciples, let alone all disciples.

Do not base doctrine on a narrative passage. The second principle is...

• Do not base doctrine on a single passage.⁴

A proper understanding of what God has revealed in His word must consider the whole counsel of scripture. Focusing on one passage to the neglect of others will give an unbalanced and potentially faulty view of what He intends.

• For example, failing to consider the full range of Jesus' instruction could assume his prohibition of criticism in one verse is a ban on all criticism.

Matt 7:1 Do not judge, or you too will be judged.

Is Jesus condemning criticism (or critical thinking)? ...No, only the superficial or careless kind,⁵ as is clear in something else he said.

John 7:24 Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment.

What Jesus (or any biblical author) states in one place is not necessarily all he has to say on a matter.

Do not base doctrine on a single passage.

Making the prayer of Jabez normative for Christians violates both these interpretive principles. First...

• It is a narrative passage.

The biblical writer records the experience of this saint, which is certainly positive, but does not suggest, as Wilkinson does, that it should be a practice for all believers.⁶ Second...

• It is a single passage.⁷

The Bible includes several other passages that present a different perspective, advocating for us a broader and more nuanced position; whereas Wilkinson's focus on one passage leaves no room for alternatives, suitable to varying situations.⁸

Prayer is neither formulaic nor automatic, where a particular wording guarantees a particular response.⁹ We must develop a "Competence in Prayer"¹⁰ according to the protocols God has established for those who seek an audience with Him.¹¹ These protocols require more than repeating, even sincerely, the (free) prayer of another. In other words, you should not adopt the prayer of Jabez.

For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.