1 Reis 3

ARC · Chapter 3/22

¹E Salomão se aparentou com Pharaó, rei do Egypto: e tomou a filha de Pharaó, e a trouxe á cidade de David, até que acabasse de edificar a sua casa, e a casa do Senhor, e a muralha de Jerusalem em roda

²Sómente que o povo sacrificava sobre os altos: porque até áquelles dias ainda se não tinha edificado casa ao nome do Senhor.

³E Salomão amava ao Senhor, andando nos estatutos de David seu pae: sómente que nos altos sacrificava, e queimava incenso.

⁴E foi o rei a Gibeon para lá sacrificar, porque aquelle era o alto grande: mil holocaustos sacrificou Salomão n'aquelle altar.

⁵E em Gibeon appareceu o Senhor a Salomão de noite em sonhos: e disse-lhe Deus: Pede o que quizeres que te dê.

⁶E disse Salomão: De grande beneficencia usaste tu com teu servo David meu pae, como tambem elle andou comtigo em verdade, e em justiça, e em rectidão de coração, perante a tua face: e guardaste-lhe esta grande beneficencia, e lhe déste um filho que se assentasse no seu throno, como se vê n'este dia.

⁷Agora pois, ó Senhor meu Deus, tu fizeste reinar a teu servo em logar de David meu pae: e sou ainda menino pequeno; nem sei sair, nem entrar.

⁸E teu servo está no meio do teu povo que elegeste: povo grande, que nem se pode contar, nem numerar, pela sua multidão.

⁹A teu servo pois dá um coração entendido para julgar a teu povo, para que prudentemente discerna entre o bem e o mal: porque quem poderia julgar a este teu tão grande povo?

¹⁰E esta palavra pareceu boa aos olhos do Senhor, de que Salomão pedisse esta coisa.

¹¹E disse-lhe Deus: Porquanto pediste esta coisa, e não pediste para ti riquezas, nem pediste a vida de teus inimigos; mas pediste para ti entendimento, para ouvir causas de juizo;

¹²Eis que fiz segundo as tuas palavras: eis que te dei um coração tão sabio e entendido, que antes de ti teu egual não houve, e depois de ti teu egual se não levantará.

¹³E tambem até o que não pediste te dei, assim riquezas como gloria: que não haja teu egual entre os reis, por todos os teus dias.

¹⁴E, se andares nos meus caminhos, guardando os meus estatutos, e os meus mandamentos, como andou David teu pae, tambem prolongarei os teus dias.

¹⁵E acordou Salomão, e eis que era sonho. E veiu a Jerusalem, e poz-se perante a arca do concerto do Senhor, e sacrificou holocaustos, e preparou sacrificios pacificos, e fez um banquete a todos os seus servos.

¹⁶Então vieram duas mulheres prostitutas ao rei, e se pozeram perante elle.

¹⁷E disse-lhe uma das mulheres: Ah! senhor meu, eu e esta mulher moramos n'uma casa; e pari, morando com ella n'aquella casa.

¹⁸E succedeu que, ao terceiro dia depois do meu parto, pariu tambem esta mulher: estavamos juntas; estranho nenhum estava comnosco na casa, senão nós ambas n'aquella casa.

¹⁹E de noite morreu o filho d'esta mulher, porquanto se deitara sobre elle.

²⁰E levantou-se á meia noite, e me tirou a meu filho do meu lado, dormindo a tua serva, e o deitou no seu seio: e a seu filho morto deitou no meu seio.

²¹E, levantando-me eu pela manhã, para dar de mamar a meu filho, eis que estava morto: mas, attentando pela manhã para elle, eis que não era meu filho, que eu havia parido.

²²Então disse a outra mulher: Não, mas o vivo é meu filho, e teu filho o morto. Porém esta disse: Não, por certo, o morto é teu filho, e meu filho o vivo. Assim fallaram perante o rei

²³Então disse o rei: Esta diz: Este que vive é meu filho, e teu filho o morto; e esta outra diz: Não, por certo; o morto é teu filho e meu filho o vivo.

²⁴Disse mais o rei: Trazei-me uma espada. E trouxeram uma espada diante do rei.

²⁵E disse o rei: Dividi em duas partes o menino vivo: e dae metade a uma, e metade a outra.

²⁶Mas a mulher, cujo filho era o vivo, fallou ao rei (porque as suas entranhas se lhe enterneceram por seu filho), e disse: Ah! senhor meu, dae-lhe o menino vivo, e por modo nenhum o mateis. Porém a outra dizia: Nem teu nem meu seja; dividi-o antes.

²⁷Então respondeu o rei, e disse: Dae a esta o menino vivo, e de maneira nenhuma o mateis, porque esta é sua mãe.

²⁸E todo o Israel ouviu o juizo que julgara o rei, e temeu ao rei: porque viram que havia n'elle a sabedoria de Deus, para fazer justiça.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Solomon, in a dream at Gibeon, asks God for wisdom to govern rather than wealth or power, and God grants him both wisdom and riches. He then demonstrates this wisdom by judging the case of the two mothers disputing a baby.

Explanation

This is the defining portrait of Solomon's reign: his fame for wisdom is born from a conscious choice to prioritize discernment over personal gain. The judgment of the two women became a universal symbol of wise justice — Solomon had no way of knowing who was lying, but he recognized that true motherly love would reveal itself through willingness to give up the child to save her. The practical lesson is that genuine wisdom often comes from understanding human nature and people's hearts, not just from rules and laws.

Fun facts

Gibeon, where Solomon had the dream, was still a 'high place' for sacrifice before the temple was built, a practice tolerated during this transitional period even among kings faithful to God.
The phrase 'understanding heart,' used in Solomon's request, is literally 'a hearing heart' in Hebrew — suggesting that biblical wisdom is tied to the ability to listen well before judging.

Verse-by-verse explanation

1 Reis 3:1Solomon seals a political alliance by marrying Pharaoh’s daughter, king of Egypt, and brings her to Jerusalem while he is still finishing his palace, the Temple, and the city wall.
1 Reis 3:2The high places were local shrines, built on hills and elevated spots, used for sacrifice before the Temple existed — at this point they were still tolerated, even by kings considered good. Later, once the Temple is finished, continuing to use the high places starts being counted as a failing, even for the most praised kings.
1 Reis 3:3Solomon loved God and followed in David’s footsteps, but the text notes a qualification: he still offered sacrifices and burned incense at the high places — because the Temple did not exist yet.
1 Reis 3:4A thousand animals sacrificed in a single session is a figure meant for display, the kind ancient Near Eastern kings used to show off power and devotion at the same time. It is not necessarily an exact count, but a way of saying that Solomon began his reign in grand style.
1 Reis 3:5At Gibeon, God appears to Solomon at night in a dream, and makes an open offer: “Ask what I shall give thee.”
1 Reis 3:6Solomon begins by giving thanks: God was kind to David because he walked in faithfulness and righteousness, and because of that gave him a son to sit on the throne, which is happening right now.
1 Reis 3:7Solomon describes himself as a child who still does not know how “to go out or come in” — a humble way of saying he feels unprepared to govern.
1 Reis 3:8Solomon notes that he is in the midst of an enormous people, chosen by God, too many even to count.
1 Reis 3:9Solomon’s request is not for intelligence in general, but for discernment to judge — the most concrete and most demanded function of an ancient king was settling disputes between his subjects. That is exactly what the story of the two mothers, right after this, puts to the test.
1 Reis 3:10God is pleased with Solomon’s request — not riches, not vengeance, but wisdom to judge well.
1 Reis 3:11God acknowledges what Solomon did NOT ask for: not long life, not riches, not the death of his enemies — only understanding to do justice.
1 Reis 3:12God grants exactly what was asked: He gives Solomon a heart so wise and understanding that no one before or after him will ever equal it.
1 Reis 3:13Besides the wisdom he asked for, God adds wealth and honor as a bonus, promising that no king will ever compare to Solomon as long as he lives.
1 Reis 3:14The promise comes with a condition: if Solomon walks in God’s ways as David did, he too will have a long life.
1 Reis 3:15Solomon wakes up and realizes it was a dream; he returns to Jerusalem, stands before the ark, offers sacrifices, and holds a feast for all his servants.
1 Reis 3:16Two women, prostitutes, come before the king with a dispute to settle — the setting for Solomon’s most famous judgment.
1 Reis 3:17One of them explains: they live in the same house, and she gave birth while living there with the other woman.
1 Reis 3:18Three days later the other woman also had a baby; they were alone in the house, with no one else present.
1 Reis 3:19The other woman’s son died in the night because she lay on top of him by accident.
1 Reis 3:20She got up in the middle of the night, swapped the dead child for the other woman’s living child while the mother slept — and kept the living one for herself.
1 Reis 3:21In the morning, when she went to nurse him, the first woman found the child dead; but looking closely in the light of day, she saw that it was not the son she had given birth to.
1 Reis 3:22The other woman denies everything: she says the living one is her son and the dead one is the other’s — and the two argue in front of the king without reaching an agreement.
1 Reis 3:23The king sums up the dispute: one says the living child is hers and the dead one is the other’s; the other swears the opposite.
1 Reis 3:24Solomon asks for a sword to be brought — the first step of the test that will reveal who the real mother is.
1 Reis 3:25With no documents, tests, or reliable witnesses, the only way to find the true mother was to watch the reaction to the threat of cutting the child in two. Whoever truly loves gives up custody to save the child’s life, and this story becomes a showcase for Solomon’s wisdom right at the start of his reign.
1 Reis 3:26The true mother, her heart aching for her son, begs that he not be killed and would rather give him to the other woman; but the false one says, “Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it.”
1 Reis 3:27Solomon gives the verdict: give the living child to the woman who pleaded for his life, because that reaction proves she is the true mother.
1 Reis 3:28All Israel hears about this judgment and comes to fear the king, realizing that there was wisdom from God in him to do justice.