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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0; maximum-scale=1.0; user-scalable=0;"/><title>1 Kings 3 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/1_kings/3.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmcc/1_kings/3-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com/catholic">Bible</a> > <a href="../">NRSVCE</a> > 1 Kings 3</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../1_kings/2.htm" title="1 Kings 2">◄</a> 1 Kings 3 <a href="../1_kings/4.htm" title="1 Kings 4">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition</td><td width="1%" valign="top"></td></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><div class="text-html"> <h3><span id="en" class="text">Solomon’s Prayer for Wisdom</span></h3><p class="chapter-1"><span class="text"><span class="versenum">1</span>Solomon made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt; he took Pharaoh’s daughter and brought her into the city of David, until he had finished building his own house and the house of the <span style="font-variant: small-caps" class="small-caps">Lord</span> and the wall around Jerusalem. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">2</span>The people were sacrificing at the high places, however, because no house had yet been built for the name of the <span style="font-variant: small-caps" class="small-caps">Lord</span>.</span></p> <p><span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">3</span>Solomon loved the <span style="font-variant: small-caps" class="small-caps">Lord</span>, walking in the statutes of his father David; only, he sacrificed and offered incense at the high places. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">4</span>The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the principal high place; Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">5</span>At Gibeon the <span style="font-variant: small-caps" class="small-caps">Lord</span> appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask what I should give you.” </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">6</span>And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father David, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you; and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love, and have given him a son to sit on his throne today. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">7</span>And now, O <span style="font-variant: small-caps" class="small-caps">Lord</span> my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">8</span>And your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great people, so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">9</span>Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?”</span></p> <p><span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">10</span>It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">11</span>God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">12</span>I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">13</span>I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall compare with you. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">14</span>If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your life.”</span></p> <p><span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">15</span>Then Solomon awoke; it had been a dream. He came to Jerusalem where he stood before the ark of the covenant of the <span style="font-variant: small-caps" class="small-caps">Lord</span>. He offered up burnt offerings and offerings of well-being, and provided a feast for all his servants.</span></p> <h3><span id="en" class="text">Solomon’s Wisdom in Judgment</span></h3><p><span class="text"><span class="versenum">16</span>Later, two women who were prostitutes came to the king and stood before him. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">17</span>The one woman said, “Please, my lord, this woman and I live in the same house; and I gave birth while she was in the house. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">18</span>Then on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. We were together; there was no one else with us in the house, only the two of us were in the house. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">19</span>Then this woman’s son died in the night, because she lay on him. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">20</span>She got up in the middle of the night and took my son from beside me while your servant slept. She laid him at her breast, and laid her dead son at my breast. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">21</span>When I rose in the morning to nurse my son, I saw that he was dead; but when I looked at him closely in the morning, clearly it was not the son I had borne.” </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">22</span>But the other woman said, “No, the living son is mine, and the dead son is yours.” The first said, “No, the dead son is yours, and the living son is mine.” So they argued before the king.</span></p> <p><span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">23</span>Then the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son that is alive, and your son is dead’; while the other says, ‘Not so! Your son is dead, and my son is the living one.’” </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">24</span>So the king said, “Bring me a sword,” and they brought a sword before the king. </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">25</span>The king said, “Divide the living boy in two; then give half to the one, and half to the other.” </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">26</span>But the woman whose son was alive said to the king—because compassion for her son burned within her—“Please, my lord, give her the living boy; certainly do not kill him!” The other said, “It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it.” </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">27</span>Then the king responded: “Give the first woman the living boy; do not kill him. She is his mother.” </span> <span id="en" class="text"><span class="versenum">28</span>All Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered; and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him, to execute justice.</span></p> </div></div></div></div></div> </div> </div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. 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