1 Kings3

King Solomon began his reign by making affinity with Pharaoh and sacrificing in high places, though he loved the Lord. At Gibeon, the Lord appeared to him in a dream and offered him anything he desired. Solomon humbly requested an understanding heart to judge his people, which pleased God, who granted him unparalleled wisdom, riches, and honour. This divine wisdom was immediately demonstrated when he skillfully resolved a dispute between two harlots over a living child, discerning the true mother.

Solomon's Early Reign and Compromises

Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh’s daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the LORD’s house, and the wall of Jerusalem all around.

Only the people sacrificed in the high places, because there was no house built for the LORD’s name until those days.

Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.

The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place. Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.

The Lord Appears to Solomon at Gibeon

In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask what I shall give you.”

Solomon said, “You have shown to your servant David my father great loving kindness, according as he walked before you in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with you. You have kept for him this great loving kindness, that you have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

Now, LORD my God, you have made your servant king instead of David my father. I am but a little child. I don’t know how to go out or come in.

Your servant is in the midst of your people which you have chosen, a great people, that can’t be numbered nor counted for multitude.

Give your servant therefore an understanding heart to judge your people, that I may discern between good and evil; for who is able to judge this your great people?”

The speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.

God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked for yourself long life, neither have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice;

behold, I have done according to your word. Behold, I have given you a wise and an understanding heart; so that there has been no one like you before you, neither after you shall any arise like you.

I have also given you that which you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there shall not be any among the kings like you, all your days.

If you will walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”

Solomon awoke; and behold, it was a dream. Then he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and offered up burnt offerings, offered peace offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.

A Demonstration of Solomon's Wisdom

Then two women who were prostitutes came to the king, and stood before him.

The one woman said, “Oh, my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house. I delivered a child with her in the house.

The third day after I delivered, this woman delivered also. We were together. There was no stranger with us in the house, just us two in the house.

This woman’s child died in the night, because she lay on it.

She arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while your handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom.

When I rose in the morning to nurse my child, behold, it was dead; but when I had looked at it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, whom I bore.”

The other woman said, “No; but the living is my son, and the dead is your son.” This said, “No; but the dead is your son, and the living is my son.” Thus they spoke before the king.

Then the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son who lives, and your son is the dead;’ and the other says, ‘No; but your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.’”

The king said, “Get me a sword.” They brought a sword before the king.

The king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.”

Then the woman whose the living child was spoke to the king, for her heart yearned over her son, and she said, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and in no way kill it!” But the other said, “It shall be neither mine nor yours. Divide it.”

Then the king answered, “Give her the living child, and in no way kill it. She is its mother.”

All Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do justice.

Study Notes for 1 Kings 3

Verse 1

Solomon’s marriage to Pharaoh’s daughter was a politically astute move, cementing an alliance with a major power. However, it violated the Deuteronomic law against marrying foreign women (Deut 7:3), foreshadowing the spiritual compromises that would later undermine his reign.

Verse 2

The 'high places' (Bamot) were local, unauthorized sites of worship and sacrifice. While Solomon was committed to the LORD, the centralization of worship mandated by the Law would not be fully established until the Temple was completed.

Verse 3

This verse presents the paradox of Solomon’s early reign: genuine love for God and observance of David's statutes, yet participation in the unauthorized worship at the high places—a mixture of devotion and syncretistic practice.

Verse 4

Gibeon was the location of the great bronze altar and the Mosaic Tabernacle (2 Chron 1:3), making it a legitimate, though temporary, place for grand public sacrifice before the Temple was built in Jerusalem.

Verse 5

God's appearance in a dream signifies a divinely initiated encounter. The open invitation, 'Ask what I shall give thee,' tests Solomon’s priorities and reveals the desires of his heart.

Verse 6

Solomon begins his prayer by acknowledging God's covenant faithfulness to David, grounding his own status and request in the history of God's grace and his father’s righteous walk.

Verse 7

Referring to himself as 'a little child' signifies Solomon’s genuine humility and his sense of inadequacy for the immense task of ruling Israel, not necessarily his physical age.

Verse 8

Solomon emphasizes the vastness of the people, chosen by God, to underscore that the difficulty lies not just in governing, but in governing righteously a people dedicated to the LORD.

Verse 9

Solomon asks for an 'understanding heart' (Hebrew: *lev shomea*, a listening heart), defining wisdom primarily as moral and judicial discernment necessary to distinguish between right and wrong in judgment.

Verse 11

God’s pleasure stems from Solomon’s selfless request. By prioritizing judicial wisdom over personal gain (long life, riches, vengeance), Solomon aligned his will with God’s purpose for Israel’s king.

Verse 12

God promises not just wisdom, but unparalleled wisdom, establishing Solomon’s reputation as the wisest ruler in history, fulfilling the request beyond expectation.

Verse 13

The unasked-for blessings of 'riches, and honour' demonstrate the principle that when one seeks God’s purposes (righteous judgment) first, material prosperity is often added (cf. Matt 6:33).

Verse 14

The promise of a long reign is conditional, reminding Solomon (and the reader) that success and longevity in the covenant relationship depend entirely upon his continued obedience to God’s statutes, just as David walked.

Verse 15

Upon waking, Solomon immediately traveled to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices before the Ark of the Covenant, transitioning the focus from Gibeon to the designated center of Israelite worship and confirming the divine encounter.

Verse 16

This narrative serves as the immediate proof that God had granted Solomon the promised wisdom. The case involves marginalized women (harlots), emphasizing that true justice must be accessible to all, regardless of social status.

Verse 25

Solomon’s instruction to 'Divide the living child' was a psychological test, designed not for execution but to force the claimants to reveal their true maternal affection and character.

Verse 26

The true mother’s willingness to surrender her claim to save the child’s life (her 'bowels yearned') provided the definitive proof of her genuine love and ownership. The false mother’s indifference confirmed her deceit.

Verse 28

The public recognition that Solomon possessed 'the wisdom of God' legitimized his authority throughout Israel. This act established his reputation for righteous judgment, fulfilling the divine promise made at Gibeon.

Use ← → arrow keys to navigate

1 Kings3

Solomon's Early Reign and Compromises

The Lord Appears to Solomon at Gibeon

A Demonstration of Solomon's Wisdom

Reading Style

Typeface

Font Size 19px

Reading Width 45 chars

Options