1 Kings 3
Holman Christian Standard Bible
The Lord Appears to Solomon
3 Solomon made an alliance[a] with Pharaoh king of Egypt by marrying Pharaoh’s daughter.(A) Solomon brought her to live in the city of David(B) until he finished building his palace,(C) the Lord’s temple,(D) and the wall surrounding Jerusalem.(E) 2 However, the people were sacrificing on the high places,(F) because until that time a temple for the Lord’s name(G) had not been built. 3 Solomon loved the Lord(H) by walking in the statutes of his father David,(I) but he also sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.
4 The king went to Gibeon(J) to sacrifice there because it was the most famous high place. He offered 1,000 burnt offerings on that altar.(K) 5 At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon(L) in a dream at night.(M) God said, “Ask.(N) What should I give you?”
6 And Solomon replied, “You have shown great and faithful love to Your servant, my father David, because he walked before You in faithfulness, righteousness, and[b] integrity. You have continued this great and faithful love for him by giving him a son to sit on his throne,(O) as it is today.(P)
7 “Lord my God, You have now made Your servant king in my father David’s place.(Q) Yet I am just a youth with no experience in leadership.[c](R) 8 Your servant is among Your people You have chosen,(S) a[d] people too numerous to be numbered or counted.(T) 9 So give Your servant an obedient heart to judge(U) Your people and to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?”(V)
10 Now it pleased the Lord that Solomon had requested this. 11 So God said to him, “Because you have requested this and did not ask for long life[e] or riches for yourself,(W) or the death[f] of your enemies, but you asked discernment for yourself to understand justice,(X) 12 I will therefore do what you have asked.(Y) I will give you a wise and understanding heart, so that there has never been anyone like you before and never will be again.(Z) 13 In addition, I will give you what you did not ask for: both riches and honor,(AA) so that no man in any kingdom will be your equal during your entire life.(AB) 14 If you walk in My ways and keep My statutes and commands just as your father David did, I will give you a long life.”(AC)
15 Then Solomon woke up(AD) and realized it had been a dream.(AE) He went to Jerusalem, stood before the ark of the Lord’s covenant,(AF) and offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings.(AG) Then he held a feast(AH) for all his servants.
Solomon’s Wisdom
16 Then two women who were prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.(AI) 17 One woman said, “Please my lord, this woman and I live in the same house, and I had a baby while she was in the house. 18 On the third day after I gave birth, she also had a baby and we were alone. No one else[g] was with us in the house; just the two of us were there. 19 During the night this woman’s son died because she lay on him. 20 She got up in the middle of the night and took my son from my side while your servant was asleep. She laid him at her breast, and she put her dead son in my arms. 21 When I got up in the morning to nurse my son, I discovered he was dead. That morning, when I looked closely at him I realized that he was not the son I gave birth to.”
22 “No,” the other woman said. “My son is the living one; your son is the dead one.”
The first woman said, “No, your son is the dead one; my son is the living one.” So they argued before the king.
23 The king replied, “This woman says, ‘This is my son who is alive, and your son is dead,’ but that woman says, ‘No, your son is dead, and my son is alive.’” 24 The king continued, “Bring me a sword.” So they brought the sword to the king. 25 Solomon said, “Cut the living boy in two and give half to one and half to the other.”
26 The woman whose son was alive spoke to the king because she felt great compassion[h](AJ) for her son. “My lord, give her the living baby,” she said, “but please don’t have him killed!”
But the other one said, “He will not be mine or yours. Cut him in two!”
27 The king responded, “Give the living baby to the first woman, and don’t kill him. She is his mother.” 28 All Israel heard about the judgment the king had given, and they stood in awe of the king because they saw that God’s wisdom(AK) was in him to carry out justice.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 3:1 Lit Solomon made himself a son-in-law
- 1 Kings 3:6 Lit and with You
- 1 Kings 3:7 Lit am a little youth and do not know to go out or come in
- 1 Kings 3:8 Lit chosen many
- 1 Kings 3:11 Lit for many days
- 1 Kings 3:11 Lit life
- 1 Kings 3:18 Lit No stranger
- 1 Kings 3:26 Lit because her compassion grew hot
Melachim Alef 3
Orthodox Jewish Bible
3 And Sh’lomo made an alliance with Pharaoh Melech Mitzrayim, and took Bat Pharaoh as isha, and brought her to Ir Dovid, until he had completed building his Bais (palace), and also the Beis Hashem, and the surrounding chomat Yerushalayim.
2 However HaAm were sacrificing in the high places, because there was no Bayit built unto the Shem of Hashem in those days.
3 And Sh’lomo loved Hashem, walking in the chukkot Dovid Aviv; however he was sacrificing and burning ketoret at the high places.
4 And HaMelech went to Giveon to sacrifice there; for that was the bamah hagedolah (the great high place); a thousand olot did Sh’lomo offer upon that mizbe’ach.
5 In Giveon Hashem appeared to Sh’lomo in a chalom halailah; Elohim said, Ask what I should give thee.
6 And Sh’lomo said, Thou hast showed unto Thy eved Dovid Avi chesed gadol (great mercy), according as he walked before Thee in emes, and in tzedakah, and in yesharah levav (uprightness of heart) with Thee; and Thou hast been shomer to preserve this chesed hagadol for him, that Thou hast given him Ben [Dovid] to sit on his kisse, as is this day.
7 And now, Hashem Elohai, Thou hast made Thy eved Melech in the place of Dovid Avi; and I am but a na’ar katon (little child); I know not how to go out or come in.
8 And Thy eved is in the midst of Thy people which Thou hast chosen, an Am Rav, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
9 Give therefore Thy eved a lev shome’a (discerning heart, mind) to govern Thy people, that I may discern between tov and rav; for who is sufficient to judge this Thy so great a people?
10 And the davar was pleasing in the eyes of Adonoi, that Sh’lomo had made request of this davar.
11 And Elohim said unto him, Because thou hast made request of this davar, and hast not requested for thyself yamim rabbim; neither hast requested osher for thyself, nor hast requested the nefesh of thine oyevim; but hast requested for thyself binah to comprehend mishpat;
12 Hinei, I have done according to thy devarim; hinei, I have given thee a discerning lev chacham; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not requested, both osher, and kavod; so that there shall not be any among the Melachim like unto thee all thy yamim.
14 And if thou wilt walk in My derakhim, to be shomer over My chukkot and My mitzvot, as Dovid Avicha did walk, then I will lengthen thy yamim.
15 And Sh’lomo awoke; and, hinei, it was a chalom! And he returned to Yerushalayim, and stood before the Aron Brit Adonoi, and offered up olot, and offered shelamim, and made a mishteh (feast) for all his avadim.
16 Then came there two nashim, that were zonot (harlots, prostitutes) unto HaMelech, and stood before him.
17 And the one isha said, O adoni, I and this isha dwell in one bayit; and I was delivered of child with her babayit (in the house).
18 And it came to pass the Yom HaShelishi after that I was delivered, that this isha was delivered also: and we were together; there was no zar (stranger, outsider) with us babayit, except we two babayit.
19 And this ben haisha died in the lailah; because she had lain upon him.
20 And she arose in the middle of the lailah, and took beni (my son) from beside me, while thine amah (handmaid) slept, and laid it in her kheyk (bosom), and laid her ben hamet (dead son) in my kheyk.
21 And when I rose in the boker to nurse beni, hinei, met! (dead!) But when I had examined him in the boker, hinei, he was not beni I bore!
22 And the isha ha’acheret (other woman) said, Lo (no); but hachai (the living) is beni (my son), and hamet (the dead) is the ben of yours. But this one said, Lo (no), the ben of yours is hamet (the dead [one]), and beni is hachai! Thus they went on arguing before HaMelech!
23 Then said HaMelech, The one saith, This is beni (my son) hachai (the living [one]), and thy ben is hamet (the dead [one]); and the other saith, Lo; but the ben of yours is hamet, and beni is hachai.
24 And HaMelech said, Bring me a cherev. And they brought the cherev before HaMelech.
25 And HaMelech said, Cut the yeled hachai in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.
26 Then spoke unto HaMelech the isha whose was the ben hachai, for her rachamim yearned for her ben, and she said, O adoni, give her the yeled hachai, and in no wise put him to death. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but cut him in two!
27 Then HaMelech answered and said, Give her the yeled hachai, and in no wise put him to death; she is immo (his mother).
28 And kol Yisroel heard of the mishpat (judgment) in which HaMelech had given verdict; and they feared HaMelech; for they saw that the chochmat Elohim was within him, to administer mishpat (justice).
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