1 Kings 3:25
ESV
And the king said, "Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other."
NIV
He then gave an order: "Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other."
NASB
And the king said, 'Cut the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.'
CSB
And the king said, "Cut the living boy in two and give half to one and half to the other."
NLT
Then he said, 'Cut the living child in two, and give half to one woman and half to the other!'
KJV
And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.
NKJV
And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to one, and half to the other.”
What does 1 Kings 3:25 mean?
Two women make the same claim: the other woman accidentally killed her own baby son and stole mine. Whatever lower courts they met with couldn't discern the truth. They've come before King Solomon, the highest judge in the nation, to try their case (1 Kings 3:16–22). Solomon has no evidence to determine the truth, either; both women are unmoving in their claims. The true mother loves her son and must be desperate to have him back; the other woman is wracked with guilt and jealousy. They're both driven by emotion.Solomon changes the emotions. He asks for a sword and suggests that his solution will be to split the baby between them.
Immediately, the women reveal their true desires. In love, the real mother begs the king not to kill the child, but to give him to the other woman. This is a cost she's willing to pay for knowing he's alive. In spiteful jealousy, the other woman tells Solomon that she agrees with the gruesome idea (1 Kings 3:26).
The king stays the hand of the executioner. He tells him to give the child to the woman who wants him to live. All Israel is amazed by how God's wisdom led him to justice (1 Kings 3:27–28).
