Solomon's Wisdom  (1 Kings chp 3)


Solomon - the second son of David and Bathsheba - lived in David's city.  He built a palace, the Temple, and a city wall.  Although he was loyal to God, he still offered sacrifices on many altars - most notably at Gibeon, where the most famous altar was.  When he was there, he had a dream in which he asked God for the gift of wisdom, so that he might be able to tell the difference between good and evil, and be a fair ruler of his people.  Thanks to this honourable request, God granted Solomon not only great wisdom, but great wealth as well.

One day, two prostitutes came to the king.  Both lived in the same house, and had given birth within three days of each other.  But one of the children had died in the night when the mother had rolled over and smothered it, and she had swapped the babies around.  However, the dishonest mother refused to admit this, and said that hers was actually the living baby.  To settle the argument, Solomon asked for a sword, and said that he would cut the living baby in half - then each mother could have a share in the child.  He knew that the true mother would not allow harm to come to her child, whereas the other would not be concerned.  Whilst the dishonest mother thought that this represented a good solution, the true mother spoke up when she saw the sword, and begged Solomon to give the child to the other woman rather than murder it.  By this, Solomon recognised the identity of the true mother, and returned the baby to her.  The people of Israel respected him all the more, as a result of this.


Themes

  • Successful King - Solomon was a politician (marrying the King of Egypt's daughter in order to make an alliance with the country), he was religious, he was ambitious, but he was also humble enough to ask for the gift of wisdom (he was probably young - early twenties?)
  • Wisdom - Solomon hadn't asked for wealth or honour, but the wisdom to make him a fair ruler of his people.  As a result of this sensible request, he was rewarded with wealth too!
  • Honesty - one mother honest, the other dishonest.  Solomon was able to verify which was which.
  • Popularity - his fair judgement made the young Solomon even more popular with his subjects.

Contemporary Issues

  • What is true wisdom?
  • Role of monarch today.

 

Revision


In which city did Solomon live?




What was Solomon building?

 



Where did Solomon go in order to offer sacrifices, and how is this place described?

 

 

In what ways might Solomon's method of solving the arguments between the prostitutes be considered as being wise?


What do you understand by the word "wisdom" in today's world?  Note one or two examples of famous people who you believe are/were wise, and explain why this is.





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