1 Kings 3

And 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 house of the LORD, and the wall of Jerusalem round about.

Solomon formed a close bond with Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and married his daughter. He brought her to the city of David and kept her there until he finished building his own home, God's temple, and the protective wall around Jerusalem.

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

People only offered sacrifices on hilltops, as there was no dedicated house for the Lord during those times.

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

Solomon deeply loved God, following his father David's righteous path. The one exception was that he still offered sacrifices and burned incense at the hilltop shrines.

And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.

The king journeyed to Gibeon, a place of great spiritual significance, to offer his sacrifices. Solomon, in his deep reverence, presented a thousand burnt offerings on the altar there.

In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.

In the quiet town of Gibeon, as Solomon slept, God visited his dreams. With a gentle voice, God asked, "What gift do you desire from me, Solomon?"

And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, 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 kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

Solomon expressed, "You've shown immense kindness to my father David, honoring his truthful, righteous, and sincere devotion to you. You've blessed him with a son, me, to continue his reign. I am deeply grateful for this."

And now, O LORD 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 or come in.

Now, my God, you've made me king in my father David's place. Yet, I feel like a small child, unsure of how to handle this, unsure of how to navigate this world.

And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.

I stand humbly among your chosen ones, a vast sea of people too numerous to count or measure.

Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?

Please grant me, your servant, a heart full of wisdom to lead your people. Help me distinguish right from wrong, for who is able to govern such a vast multitude?

And the speech pleased the LORD, that Solomon had asked this thing.

The Lord was deeply moved and delighted by Solomon's humble request.

And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;

God told him, "You've asked not for personal gain, wealth, or the downfall of your enemies, but for wisdom to make fair decisions. This pleases me."

Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.

Look, I've done as you asked. I've gifted you a heart full of wisdom and understanding. There's never been anyone like you before, and there will never be anyone like you again.

And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.

I've blessed you with wealth and respect, things you didn't even ask for. No other king will ever match your greatness in your lifetime.

And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.

If you choose to follow my path, obeying my rules just like your father David did, then I promise to bless you with a long life.

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

Solomon woke up, realizing it was all a dream. He journeyed to Jerusalem, stood before the sacred ark of the covenant, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. Then he held a grand feast for all his servants.

Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto the king, and stood before him.

Two women, both prostitutes, approached the king with a heavy heart and stood before him, their eyes filled with desperation.

And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house.

One woman pleaded, "My lord, this woman and I live together. I gave birth while she was with me in the house."

And it came to pass the third day after that I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also: and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house.

Three days after I gave birth, she too had her baby. It was just the two of us in the house, no one else was there.

And this woman’s child died in the night; because she overlaid it.

In the stillness of the night, this woman's child tragically passed away, for she had unintentionally smothered it.

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

In the quiet of midnight, she stealthily took my son from my side as I slept, cradled him in her arms, and left her lifeless child in his place.

And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead: but when I had considered it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, which I did bear.

When I woke up to feed my baby, I found him lifeless. But as dawn broke, I realized, this wasn't the child I had given birth to.

And the other woman said, Nay; but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son. And this said, No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son. Thus they spake before the king.

The second woman protested vehemently, "No! The living child is mine, and the dead one is yours." The first woman retorted, "That's not true! The dead child is yours, and the living one is mine." Their heated argument unfolded before the king.

Then said the king, The one saith, This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living.

The king declared, "One woman claims, 'My son lives, and yours is dead.' But the other insists, 'No, your son is dead, and mine is alive.'"

And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king.

With a commanding voice, the king demanded, "Fetch me a sword." Without hesitation, a sword was presented to the king.

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

The king declared, "Split the living child in two, each of you shall receive a half."

Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it.

The mother of the living child, overwhelmed with love and fear, pleaded with the king, "Please, give her my child, just don't harm him." The other woman coldly suggested, "If I can't have him, then neither should you. Split him in half."

Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof.

Then the king declared, "Hand the living child to her. Do not harm it, for she is its mother."

And 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 judgment.

When all of Israel learned about the king's wise decision, they were awed and respected him more. They realized that he was guided by God's wisdom in making fair judgments.