1 Ahemfo 3
1 Salomo ne Misraimhene Farao yɛɛ apam, nam so waree ne babea. Ɔde no bɛtenaa Dawid kurom, kosii sɛ osii nʼahemfi sii Awurade Asɔredan, na ɔtoo Yerusalem ho fasu nso wiei.
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 Saa bere no mu, na Israelfo bɔ afɔre wɔ sorɔnsorɔmmea, efisɛ na wonsii asɔredan, mfaa Awurade din ntoo so ɛ.
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 Salomo kyerɛɛ ne dɔ a ɔwɔ ma Awurade, efisɛ na ɔnam nʼagya Dawid nkyerɛkyerɛ anammɔn so pɛpɛɛpɛ. Mmom na ɔbɔ afɔre wɔ sorɔnsorɔmmea hɔ, hyew aduhuam wɔ hɔ nso.
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 Gibeon na na afɔremuka no mu atitiriw wɔ, ɛhɔ na Salomo kɔbɔɔ ɔhyew afɔre apem wɔ afɔremuka so.
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 Anadwo no, Awurade daa ne ho adi kyerɛɛ Salomo wɔ dae mu. Onyankopɔn ka kyerɛɛ no se, “Dɛn na wopɛ? Bisa na mede bɛma wo.”
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 Salomo kae se, “Woada adɔe kɛse pa ara adi akyerɛ mʼagya Dawid, efisɛ na odi wo nokware, yɛ ɔtreneeni a ne koma mu nso da hɔ. Woatoa so ayɛ no saa adɔe kɛse yi ara, na nnɛ yi ara, woama no ɔbabarima sɛ ɔntena nʼahengua nso so.
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 “Afei, Awurade, me Nyankopɔn, woasi wʼakoa ɔhene, sɛ minsi mʼagya Dawid anan mu, nanso meyɛ abofra ketewaa bi a minnim sɛnea mesi ayɛ mʼadwuma.
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 Ɛha na wʼakoa abedu wɔ nnipa a woapaw wɔn no mu; nnipa a wɔn dodow nti, obi ntumi nkan wɔn.
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 Ɛno nti, ma wʼakoa nhumu koma a obetumi de adi wo nkurɔfo so, na obetumi ahu papa ne bɔne ntam nsonoe. Na hena koraa na ɔno nko ara betumi adi saa ɔman a wodi mu, a wɔyɛ wo de yi so?”
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 Awurade ani sɔɔ Salomo mmuae no, na nʼani gyee sɛ obisaa nyansa.
Now these words and Solomon's request were pleasing to the Lord.
11 Enti Awurade buae se, “Esiane sɛ woabisa nyansa a wode bedi me manfo so, na woammisa nkwa tenten anaa sika amma wo ho anaa woammisa sɛ wo tamfo bi nwu no nti,
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 mede nea woabisa no bɛma wo. Mɛma wo nyansa ne ntease a obiara nnyaa bi da, na obiara nso renya bi da.
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 Na nea woammisa no nso, mede bɛka wo ho—sika ne anuonyam. Na ɔhene biara a ɔwɔ wiase nso rentumi mfa ne ho nto wo ho, wo nkwa nna nyinaa mu.
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 Na sɛ wudi mʼakyi, na wudi me mmara so sɛ wʼagya Dawid a, mɛma wo nkwa tenten.”
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 Na Salomo nyanee, na ohuu sɛ ɛyɛ dae. Ɔkɔɔ Yerusalem kogyinaa Awurade Apam Adaka no anim, na ɔbɔɔ ɔhyew afɔre ne asomdwoe afɔre. Na ohyiaa ne mpanyimfo nyinaa, too wɔn pon.
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 Akyiri no, mmea nguamanfo baanu bi baa ɔhene no nkyɛn, pɛɛ sɛ ɔka wɔn asɛm bi ma wɔn.
Then two loose women of the town came and took their places before the king;
17 Wɔn mu baako fitii ase se, “Me wura, mesrɛ wo meka se, saa ɔbea yi ne me te fi koro mu. Mewoo ɔba bere a ɔne me te fie hɔ.
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 Nnansa akyi no, ɔno nso woo ba. Na yɛn nko ara na yɛte fie hɔ a obiara nka yɛn baanu no ho.
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 “Nanso anadwo no, ɔpere kɔdaa ne ba no so, kum no.
In the night, this woman, sleeping on her child, was the cause of its death.
20 Na ɔsɔree anadwo no faa me ba fii me nkyɛn bere a mada no. Ɔde ne ba a wawu no too me basa so, na ɔfaa me de no kɔtoo ne nkyɛn, ma ɔdae.
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 Ade kyee a mepɛɛ sɛ mema me ba no nufu no, na wawu. Nanso anim tetew kakra a mehwɛɛ abofra no yiye no, mihuu sɛ ɛnyɛ me ba no koraa.”
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 Ɛhɔ ara na ɔbea baako no gyee hwanyan kae se, “Abofra a wawu no yɛ wo ba no, ɛnna nea onwui no nso yɛ me de no.” Ɛnna ɔbea a odi kan no nso se, “Dabi da, nea wawu no yɛ wo ba no, na nea onwui no nso yɛ me de no.” Enti wɔtwee asɛm no saa ara wɔ ɔhene no anim.
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 Ɔhene no kae se, “Momma yɛmpɛ asɛm no mu nokware yiye. Mo baanu nyinaa, obiara se abofra a onwui no yɛ ne dea, na abofra a wawu no de, ɔnyɛ obiara dea.
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 “Sɛ saa na ɛte de a, mommrɛ me afoa.” Enti wɔde afoa brɛɛ ɔhene no.
Then he said, Get me a sword. So they went and put a sword before the king.
25 Afei, ɔkae se, “Mompae abofra a onwui no mu abien, na momfa fa mma mmea no mu biara.”
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 Na ɔbea a nokware, ɔyɛ abofra a ɔte ase no na a ɔpɛ ne ba yi asɛm yiye no teɛteɛɛ mu se, “Ao! Dabi me wura! Fa abofra no ma no. Mesrɛ wo nkum no!” Nanso ɔbea baako no kae se, “Eye, ɛbɛbɔ yɛn baanu nyinaa. Kyɛ ne mu ma yɛn!”
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 Ɛhɔ na ɔhene no kae se, “Munnkum no, na mmom, momfa abofra no mma ɔbea a ɔpɛ sɛ abofra no tena ase no, na ɔno ne ne na no.”
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 Ɔhene yi atemmu no trɛw faa Israel mmaa nyinaa, na ɔmanfo no ho dwiriw wɔn wɔ nyansa a Onyankopɔn de ama no, a ɛma no bu atɛntrenee no ho.
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.
