1 Chronicles 4:9 (DBY)

Passage

And Jabez was more honoured than his brethren; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bore him with pain.

Nearby Context

1 Chronicles 4:7 And the sons of Helah: Zereth, and Zohar, and Ethnan.

1 Chronicles 4:8 And Koz begot Anub, and Hazzobebah, and the families of Aharhel the son of Harum.

1 Chronicles 4:9 And Jabez was more honoured than his brethren; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bore him with pain.

1 Chronicles 4:10 And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, Oh that thou wouldest richly bless me, and enlarge my border, and that thy hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God brought about what he had requested.

1 Chronicles 4:11 And Chelub the brother of Shuah begot Mehir, who was the father of Eshton.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "called", "jabez", "honoured", "than", "brethren", "mother", and "name". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "called" and "jabez", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 8's "And Koz begot Anub and Hazzobebah and..." into verse 10's "And Jabez called on the God of...", so "called" and "jabez" belong inside that flow. In 1 Chronicles context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "called" and "jabez" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.