1 Kings 3
1 Salomon then made affinitie with Pharaoh King of Egypt, and tooke Pharaohs daughter, and brought her into the citie of Dauid, vntill hee had made an ende of buylding his owne house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Ierusalem round about.
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 Only the people sacrificed in the hie places, because there was no house buylt vnto the name of the Lord, vntill those dayes.
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 And Salomon loued the Lord, walking in the ordinances of Dauid his father: onely he sacrificed and offred incense in the hie places.
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 the King went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the chiefe hie place: a thousand burnt offrings did Salomon offer vpon that altar.
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 In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Salomon in a dreame by night: and God sayd, Aske what I shall giue thee.
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 Salomon sayd, Thou hast shewed vnto thy seruant Dauid my father great mercie, when hee walked before thee in trueth, and in righteousnesse, and in vprightnes of heart with thee: and thou hast kept for him this great mercie, and hast giuen him a sonne, to sit on his throne, as appeareth 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 my God, thou hast made thy seruant King in steade of Dauid my father: and I am but a yong childe, and know not howe to go out and in.
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 thy seruant is in the mids of thy people, which thou hast chosen, euen a great people which cannot be told nor nobred for 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 Giue therefore vnto thy seruant an vnderstanding heart, to iudge thy people, that I may discerne betweene good and bad: for who is able to iudge this thy mightie people?
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 this pleased the Lord well, that Salomon had desired this thing.
Now these words and Solomon's request were pleasing to the Lord.
11 And God sayde vnto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thy selfe long life, neyther hast asked riches for thy selfe, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies, but hast asked for thy selfe vnderstanding to heare iudgement,
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 Beholde, I haue done according to thy wordes: lo, I haue giuen thee a wise and an vnderstanding heart, so that there hath bene none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall arise the like vnto thee.
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 And I haue also giuen thee that, which thou hast not asked, both riches and honour, so that among the Kings there shall be none like vnto thee all thy dayes.
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 thou wilt walke in my wayes, to keepe mine ordinances and my commandements, as thy father Dauid did walke, I will prolong thy dayes.
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 And when Salomon awoke, behold, it was a dreame, and he came to Ierusalem, and stoode before the Arke of the couenant of the Lord, and offred burnt offrings and made peace offrings, and made a feast to all his seruants.
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 came two harlots vnto the King, and stoode before him.
Then two loose women of the town came and took their places before the king;
17 And the one woman sayd, Oh my lorde, I and this woman dwell in one house, and I was deliuered of a childe with her in the house.
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 And the third day after that I was deliuered, this woman was deliuered also: and we were in the house together: no stranger was with vs in the house, saue we twaine.
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 And this womans sonne died in the night: for she ouerlay him.
In the night, this woman, sleeping on her child, was the cause of its death.
20 And she rose at midnight, and tooke my sonne from my side, while thine handmaide slept, and layde him in her bosome, and layde her dead sonne in my bosome.
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 rose in the morning to giue my sonne sucke, beholde, he was dead: and when I had well considered him in the morning, beholde, it was not my sonne, whom I had borne.
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 Then the other woman sayd, Nay, but my sonne liueth, and thy sonne is dead. Againe she sayde, No, but thy sonne is dead, and mine aliue: thus they spake 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 sayde the King, She sayth, This that liueth is my sonne, and the dead is thy sonne: and the other sayth, Nay, but the dead is thy sonne, and the liuing is my sonne.
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 Then the King said, Bring me a sworde: and they brought out a sworde before the King.
Then he said, Get me a sword. So they went and put a sword before the king.
25 And the King sayde, Deuide ye the liuing child in twaine, and giue the one halfe to the one, and the other halfe 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 Then spake the woman, whose the liuing child was, vnto the King, for her compassion was kindled toward her sonne, and she sayde, Oh my lorde, giue her the liuing childe, and slay him not: but the other sayde, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but deuide 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 Then the King answered, and sayde, Giue her the liuing childe, and slay him not: this 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 And all Israel heard the iudgement, which the King had iudged, and they feared the King: for they sawe that the wisedome of God was in him to doe iustice.
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.
