1 Kings 3
1 And so the kingdom was confirmed in the hand of Solomon, and he was joined with Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, by affinity. For he took his daughter, and he led her into the city of David, until he completed building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Jerusalem all around.
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.
2 But still the people immolated in the high places. For no temple had been built to the name of the Lord, even to that day.
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.
3 Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the precepts of David, his father, except that he immolated in the high places, and he burned incense.
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.
4 And so, he went away to Gibeon, so that he might immolate there; for that was the greatest high place. Solomon offered upon that altar, at Gibeon, one thousand victims as holocausts.
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.
5 Then the Lord appeared to Solomon, through a dream in the night, saying, “Request whatever you wish, so that I may give it to you.”
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.
6 And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to your servant David, my father, because he walked in your sight in truth and justice, and with an upright heart before you. And you have kept your great mercy for him, and you have given him a son sitting upon his throne, just as it is this day.
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.
7 And now, O Lord God, you have caused your servant to reign in place of David, my father. But I am a small child, and I am ignorant of my entrance and departure.
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.
8 And your servant is in the midst of the people that you have chosen, an immense people, who are not able to be numbered or counted because of their multitude.
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.
9 Therefore, give to your servant a teachable heart, so that he may be able to judge your people, and to discern between good and evil. For who will be able to judge this people, your people, who are so many?”
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?
10 And the word was pleasing before the Lord, that Solomon had requested this kind of thing.
Now these words and Solomon's request were pleasing to the Lord.
11 And the Lord said to Solomon: “Since you have requested this word, and you have not asked for many days or for wealth for yourself, nor for the lives of your enemies, but instead you have requested for yourself wisdom in order to discern judgment:
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;
12 behold, I have done for you according to your words, and I have given you a wise and understanding heart, so much so that there has been no one like you before you, nor anyone who will rise up after you.
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.
13 But also the things for which you did not ask, I have given to you, namely wealth and glory, so that no one has been like you among the kings in the all days before.
And with this I have given you what you made no request for: wealth and honour, so that no king was ever your equal.
14 And if you will walk in my ways, and keep my precepts and my commandments, just as your father walked, I will lengthen your days.”
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.
15 Then Solomon awakened, and he understood that it was a dream. And when he had arrived in Jerusalem, he stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and he offered holocausts and made victims of peace offerings, and he held a great feast for all his servants.
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.
16 Then two women harlots went to the king, and they stood before him.
Then two loose women of the town came and took their places before the king;
17 And one of them said: “I beg you, my lord, I and this woman were living in one house, and I gave birth, with her in the room.
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.
18 Then, on the third day after I gave birth, she also gave birth. And we were together, with no other person with us in the house, only the two of us.
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.
19 Then this woman’s son died in the night. For while sleeping, she smothered him.
In the night, this woman, sleeping on her child, was the cause of its death.
20 And rising up in the silent depths of the night, she took my son from my side, while I, your handmaid, was sleeping, and she set him in her bosom. Then she placed her dead son in my bosom.
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.
21 And when I had arisen in the morning, so that I might give milk to my son, he appeared to be dead. But gazing upon him more diligently in the light of day, I realized that he was not mine, whom I had born.”
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.
22 And the other woman responded: “It is not such as you say. Instead, your son is dead, but mine is alive.” To the contrary, she said: “You are lying. For my son lives, and your son is dead.” And in this manner, they were contending before the king.
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.
23 Then said the king: “This one says, ‘My son is alive, and your son is dead.’ And the other responds, ‘No, instead your son is dead, but mine lives.’”
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.
24 Therefore the king said, “Bring a sword to me.” And when they had brought a sword before the king,
Then he said, Get me a sword. So they went and put a sword before the king.
25 he said, “Divide the living infant in two parts, and give a half part to the one and a half part to the other.”
And the king said, Let the living child be cut in two and one half given to one woman and one to the other.
26 But the woman, whose son was alive, said to the king, for her heart was moved concerning her son, “I beg you, my lord, give the living infant to her, and do not kill him.” To the contrary, the other said, “Let it be neither for me, nor for you, instead divide it.”
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.
27 The king responded and said: “Give the living infant to this woman, and do not kill it. For she is his mother.”
Then the king made answer and said, Give her the child, and do not put it to death; she is the mother of it.
28 Then all of Israel heard about the judgment that the king had judged, and they feared the king, seeing that the wisdom of God was in him to accomplish judgment.
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.
