Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that you would bless me indeed, and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from evil, that it not be to my sorrow! God granted him that which he requested.
 The very substance of the prayer seems to lie in the intensity of the request. There are many varieties of blessing. Some are blessings in name only: they satisfy our wishes for the moment, but permanently disappoint our expectations. They delight the eye, but are dull in the taste. Others are mere temporary blessings: they perish as they are used. Though for awhile they delight the senses, they cannot satisfy the higher cravings of the soul. But, “Oh, that you would bless me!” I know that whoever God blesses shall be blessed. The good thing in the blessing is bestowed with the goodwill of the giver, and shall produce so much good fortune to the recipient that it may well be esteemed as a great blessing, for there is nothing comparable to it. Let the grace of God prompt it, let the choice of God appoint it, let the bounty of God confer it, and then the endowment shall be something very godlike; something worthy of the lips that pronounce the blessing, and truly to be desired by every one who seeks honor that is substantial and enduring. “Oh, that you would bless me!” Think it over, and you will see that there is a depth of meaning in the expression.
