1 Kings 3
1 Solomon became the son-in-law of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh's daughter as his wife, keeping her in the town of David, till the house he was building for himself, and the house of the Lord and the wall round Jerusalem, were complete.
And Solomon contracted an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt, —and took the daughter of Pharaoh, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of Yahweh, and the wall of Jerusalem, round about.
2 But all this time the people were making their offerings in the high places, because no house had been put up to the name of the Lord till those days.
Save only, that the people were sacrificing in the high places, —because there had not been built a house unto the Name of Yahweh, until those days,
3 And Solomon, in his love for the Lord, kept the laws of David his father; but he made offerings and let them go up in smoke on the high places.
Solomon loved Yahweh, by walking in the statutes of David his father, —save only, that, in the high places, he himself, was sacrificing and offering incense.
4 And the king went to Gibeon to make an offering there, because that was the chief high place: it was Solomon's way to make a thousand burned offerings on that altar.
So then the king went to Gibeon, to sacrifice there, for, that, was the great high place, —a thousand ascending-sacrifices, did Solomon offer up on that altar.
5 In Gibeon, Solomon had a vision of the Lord in a dream by night; and God said to him, Say what I am to give you.
In Gibeon, Yahweh appeared unto Solomon, in a dream by night, —and God said, Ask, what I shall give thee.
6 And Solomon said, Great was your mercy to David my father, as his life before you was true and upright and his heart was true to you; and you have kept for him this greatest mercy, a son to take his place this day.
Then said Solomon—Thou, didst deal, with thy servant David my father, in great lovingkindness, according as he walked before thee, in truth and in righteousness and in uprightness of heart, with thee, —and thou hast kept, for him, this great lovingkindness, that thou hast given unto him a son, to sit upon his throne, as it is this day.
7 And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in the place of David my father; and I am only a young boy, with no knowledge of how to go out or come in.
Now, therefore, O Yahweh my God, thou, hast made thy servant king, instead of David my father, —and, I, am but a little child, I know not how to go out and come in.
8 And your servant has round him the people of your selection, a people so great that they may not be numbered, and no account of them may be given.
And, thy servant, is in the midst of thy people, whom thou hast chosen, —a numerous people, that cannot be numbered or summed up, for multitude.
9 Give your servant, then, a wise heart for judging your people, able to see what is good and what evil; for who is able to be the judge of this great people?
Wilt thou, then, give unto thy servant, a heart that hearkeneth, to judge thy people, to discern between good and bad, —for who is able to judge this thine honoured people?
10 Now these words and Solomon's request were pleasing to the Lord.
And the thing was good in the eyes of the Lord, —that Solomon had asked this thing;
11 And God said to him, Because your request is for this thing, and not for long life for yourself or for wealth or for the destruction of your haters, but for wisdom to be a judge of causes;
And God said unto him—Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself many days, nor asked for thyself riches, nor asked the lives of thine enemies, —but hast asked for thyself discernment, in hearing a cause,
12 I have done as you said: I have given you a wise and far-seeing heart, so that there has never been your equal in the past, and never will there be any like you in the future.
lo! I have done according to thy word, —lo! I have given unto thee a wise and discerning heart, so that, like thee, hath been none, before thee, and, after thee, shall rise up none, like thee.
13 And with this I have given you what you made no request for: wealth and honour, so that no king was ever your equal.
Moreover also, what thou hast not asked, have I given unto thee, both riches and honour, —so that there hath been none, like thee, among the kings, all thy days.
14 And if you go on in my ways, keeping my laws and my orders as your father David did, I will give you a long life.
And, if thou wilt walk in my ways, by keeping my statutes, and my commandments, as, David thy father, walked, then will I lengthen out thy days.
15 And Solomon, awakening, saw that it was a dream; then he came to Jerusalem, where he went before the ark of the agreement of the Lord, offering burned offerings and peace-offerings; and he made a feast for all his servants.
And Solomon awoke, and lo! it was a dream. So he entered into Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and caused to go up ascending-sacrifices and offered peace-offerings, and made a banquet for all his servants.
16 Then two loose women of the town came and took their places before the king;
Then, came there in two unchaste women, unto the king, —and stood before him.
17 And one of them said, O my lord, I and this woman are living in the same house; and I gave birth to a child by her side in the house.
And the one woman said—Pardon, my lord! I and this woman, dwell in one house, —and I gave birth to a child near her, in the house.
18 And three days after the birth of my child, this woman had a child: we were together, no other-person was with us in the house but we two only.
And it came to pass, the third day after I bare, that, this woman also, gave birth to a child, —we two, being together, there was no stranger with us in the house, none but we two in the house.
19 In the night, this woman, sleeping on her child, was the cause of its death.
And this woman’s son died in the night, —because she overlaid it.
20 And she got up in the middle of the night and took my son from my side while your servant was sleeping; and she took it in her arms and put her dead child in my arms.
Then arose she, in the middle of the night, and took my son from beside me, while thy handmaid was sleeping, and laid it in her own besom, —but, her dead son, laid she in, my, bosom.
21 And when I got up to give my child the breast, I saw that it was dead; but in the morning, looking at it with care, I saw that it was not my son.
And, when I arose in the morning, to give suck unto my child, lo! it was dead! but, when I looked at it narrowly in the morning, lo! it was not, my son that I had borne.
22 And the other woman said, No; but the living child is my son and the dead one yours. But the first said, No; the dead child is your son and the living one mine. So they kept on talking before the king.
Then said the other woman—Nay! but, my son, is the, living, and, thy son, the, dead. But, this, one kept on saying—Nay, verily! but, thy son, is the, dead, and, my son, the, living. Thus spake they before the king.
23 Then the king said, One says, The living child is my son, and yours is the dead: and the other says, Not so; but your son is the dead one and mine is the living.
Then said the king, The one woman, is saying, This, is, my son, the one that liveth, and, thy son, is, the one that is dead, —and, the other, is saying, Nay! but, thy son, is, the dead one, and, my son, the, living.
24 Then he said, Get me a sword. So they went and put a sword before the king.
And the king said—Bring me a sword! So they brought a sword before the king.
25 And the king said, Let the living child be cut in two and one half given to one woman and one to the other.
Then said the king, Divide the living child, in twain, —and give half to the one, and half to the other.
26 Then the mother of the living child came forward, for her heart went out to her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the child; do not on any account put it to death. But the other woman said, It will not be mine or yours; let it be cut in two.
Then spake the woman, whose was the living child, unto the king—for tender became her compassions over her son—so she said—Pardon, my lord! Give, her, the living child, and do not, kill, it. But the other kept on saying—Neither mine, nor thine, shall it be, divide it.
27 Then the king made answer and said, Give her the child, and do not put it to death; she is the mother of it.
Then responded the king, and said—Give, her, the living child, ye shall not, kill, it, —she, is its mother.
28 And news of this decision which the king had made went through all Israel; and they had fear of the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to give decisions.
And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had delivered, and they stood in awe before the king, —for they saw, that, the wisdom of God, was in him, to execute justice.
