1 Kings · Bible in Basic English
1 Kings 3 Bible in Basic English
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
1 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.
1 Solomon made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt. He took Pharaoh’s daughter and brought her into David’s city until he had finished building his own house, Yahweh’s house, and the wall around Jerusalem.
2 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.
2 However, the people sacrificed in the high places, because there was not yet a house built for Yahweh’s name.
3 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.
3 Solomon loved Yahweh, walking in the statutes of David his father, except that he sacrificed and burned incense in the high places.
4 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.
4 The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place. Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.
5 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.
5 In Gibeon, Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask for what I should give you.”
6 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.
6 Solomon said, “You have shown to your servant David my father great loving kindness, because he walked before you in truth, 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 today.
7 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.
7 Now, Yahweh my God, you have made your servant king instead of David my father. I am just a little child. I don’t know how to go out or come in.
8 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.
8 Your servant is among your people which you have chosen, a great people, that can’t be numbered or counted for multitude.
9 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?
9 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 great people of yours?”
10 Now these words and Solomon's request were pleasing to the Lord.
10 This request pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.
11 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;
11 God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have you asked for riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice,
12 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.
12 behold, I have done according to your word. Behold, I have given you a wise and understanding heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, and after you none will arise like you.
13 And with this I have given you what you made no request for: wealth and honour, so that no king was ever your equal.
13 I have also given you that which you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there will not be any among the kings like you for all your days.
14 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.
14 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.”
15 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.
15 Solomon awoke; and behold, it was a dream. Then he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of Yahweh’s covenant, and offered up burnt offerings, offered peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.
16 Then two loose women of the town came and took their places before the king;
16 Then two women who were prostitutes came to the king, and stood before him.
17 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.
17 The one woman said, “Oh, my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house. I delivered a child with her in the house.
18 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.
18 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.
19 In the night, this woman, sleeping on her child, was the cause of its death.
19 This woman’s child died in the night, because she lay on it.
20 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.
20 She arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me while your servant slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom.
21 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.
21 When I rose in the morning to nurse my child, behold, he was dead; but when I had looked at him in the morning, behold, it was not my son whom I bore.”
22 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.
22 The other woman said, “No! But the living one is my son, and the dead one is your son.” The first one said, “No! But the dead one is your son, and the living one is my son.” They argued like this before the king.
23 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.
23 Then the king said, “One says, ‘This is my son who lives, and your son is the dead one;’ and the other says, ‘No! But your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.’”
24 Then he said, Get me a sword. So they went and put a sword before the king.
24 The king said, “Get me a sword.” So they brought a sword before the king.
25 And the king said, Let the living child be cut in two and one half given to one woman and one to the other.
25 The king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.”
26 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.
26 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 him!” But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours. Divide him.”
27 Then the king made answer and said, Give her the child, and do not put it to death; she is the mother of it.
27 Then the king answered, “Give the first woman the living child, and definitely do not kill him. She is his mother.”
28 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.
28 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.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Pharaoh's daughter (wife of Solomon)
The daughter of Pharaoh king of Egypt, whom Solomon married to seal an alliance and for whom he built a house.
Cited in the guide: 1 Kings 3:1; 1 Kings 7:8; 1 Kings 9:24
Solomon
David's son who built the temple and became famous for God-given wisdom.
Cited in the guide: 1 Kings 1-11; 1 Chron. 3:5; Matt. 1:6-7
Cross references (21)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 1 Kings 9:24; 1 Kings 11:1; 2 Chronicles 8:11; 2 Chronicles 2:1–4; 2 Samuel 5:7
- 2 1 Kings 22:43; 2 Chronicles 33:17; Deuteronomy 12:2–5; Leviticus 26:30; Acts 7:47–49
- 3 1 Corinthians 8:3; Psalm 31:23; Deuteronomy 30:16; Deuteronomy 6:5; 1 Kings 3:6
- 4 2 Chronicles 1:3; 1 Chronicles 16:39; 2 Chronicles 7:5; 2 Chronicles 1:6–12; 1 Chronicles 21:29
- 5 1 Kings 9:2; James 1:5–6; Numbers 12:6; 2 Chronicles 1:7–12; John 14:13–14
- 6 1 Kings 9:4; 1 Kings 1:48; 1 Kings 2:4; 2 Corinthians 9:11; 2 Samuel 7:8–12
- 7 1 Chronicles 29:1; Numbers 27:17; Jeremiah 1:6; Matthew 18:3–4; Daniel 4:32
- 8 Genesis 15:5; Genesis 13:16; 1 Chronicles 21:2; Genesis 22:17; 1 Chronicles 27:23–24
- 9 James 1:5; Hebrews 5:14; Proverbs 16:16; John 5:30; Proverbs 2:3–9
- 10 Proverbs 15:8
- 11 1 Kings 3:9; James 4:2–3; Proverbs 16:31; Romans 8:26; Psalm 4:6
- 12 1 John 5:14–15; Ecclesiastes 1:16; Matthew 12:42; 1 Kings 5:12; 1 Kings 10:23–24
- 13 Ephesians 3:20; Matthew 6:33; Proverbs 3:16; Psalm 84:11–12; Romans 8:32
- 14 Proverbs 3:2; Psalm 91:16; 1 Kings 15:5; Zechariah 3:7; 2 Chronicles 34:2
- 15 Genesis 41:7; 1 Kings 8:65; Esther 1:3; Daniel 5:1; 1 Chronicles 16:1–2
- 16 Exodus 18:16; Judges 11:1; Leviticus 19:29; Joshua 2:1; Numbers 27:2
- 20 John 3:20; Matthew 13:25; Job 24:13–17; Psalm 139:11
- 21 Genesis 21:7; 1 Samuel 1:23
- 25 Proverbs 25:8
- 26 Isaiah 49:15; Jeremiah 31:20; 1 John 3:17; Genesis 43:30; Hosea 11:8
- 28 Colossians 2:3; 1 Kings 3:9–12; Daniel 2:47; 1 Corinthians 1:24; Ecclesiastes 7:19
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
Do thou also therefore ask nothing worldly, but all things spiritual, and thou wilt surely receive. For so Solomon, because he asked what he ought, behold how quickly he received.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)