The Wisdom of Solomon
“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?” I Kings 3:9
If there is one passage in scripture with which many people are familiar, it is the account of Solomon and his decision concerning two women who were claiming the same baby. Even folks who do not read the Bible know about this passage because it reflects a wise judgment concerning a deeply emotional issue.
God had asked Solomon what He would desire from God. He didn’t ask for riches or fame, but for wisdom. Becoming the king of Israel after his father David died, he knew that he would need a vast amount of wisdom and understanding in order to rule the people of Israel. God was pleased with his answer and not only gave him wisdom, but wealth and power. As is usually the case when God grants a special request, an event occurs to test how one will succeed in exercising his ability or talent that God has provided. One would have thought that Solomon’s first test in using this wisdom would have been on the order of a national crisis. However, God put before him a deeply personal and emotional situation, but one for which he would be known as a just and equitable ruler over Israel.
This case involved two prostitutes who both had newborn babies. In the ancient world, a child was a blessing, even to a prostitute. I would suppose that a prostitute’s life was rather dreary and depressing, and having a child of her own would give her happiness and purpose that her livelihood could never provide. (It’s not like today where children are considered burdens by those who seek to destroy their unborn babies through abortion.) One night, one of the women rolled over on her baby and smothered him to death. Realizing what had occurred, she swapped her dead baby for the other mother’s baby while she slept. When the mother of the live baby awoke, she knew that the dead baby by her side was not hers. They went before king Solomon in an effort by the mother of the live baby to seek justice and reclaim her son.
The mother of the live baby explained what had happened, yet the other mother claimed that the live baby was hers. They began to argue back and forth. I believe that Solomon was aware of the identity of the real mother due to her emotional state, but he had to prove it by some method where it would be clear for all to see who was the victim and who was the perpetrator. For him to just declare a decision based on his intuition would have not brought justice nor revealed the truth of the matter. Without evidence, there would have been uncertainty. Solomon, using the exceptional wisdom that God had given him, came up with a plan, a rather drastic plan, but one that would reveal the truth.
Solomon asked for a sword to be brought. I can only imagine what was going through the minds of these two mothers. They may have thought that he was going to kill both of them and give the baby to a stranger. That would have certainly settled the argument, but justice wouldn’t have been carried out. He then asked for the baby to be cut in half with the sword and one half given to each of the mothers. He knew that the real mother would sacrifice her rights and happiness in order to keep the baby safe, and that’s exactly what she did. She said to give the baby to the other woman, but the other woman said to go ahead and divide the baby indicating she was a bitter woman with a very wicked heart. If she couldn’t have the baby, she didn’t want the real mother to have him either. Of course, Solomon gave the baby to his real mother. We are not told of any consequences that the other mother faced, but we would assume that she was punished for her crime.
When news about this case spread throughout the land, it made a tremendous impact upon the people of Israel. They saw him as a righteous and fair king, but one who was firm and not one to be “toyed” with. They realized that God had given him exceptional wisdom in order to make righteous and impartial judgments. Solomon had certainly gained Israel’s respect.