The Judgment of Solomon

Two women, identified as harlots, appeared before King Solomon in Jerusalem to present a legal dispute. The first woman testified that both women had given birth to infants within three days of each other while living in the same house. According to her testimony, no one else was present in the house at the time of these births (1 Kings 3:17-18). She alleged that the other woman’s son died during the night because she lay on him, and that the woman subsequently swapped the dead child for the living child while the first woman slept. The text does not say how the first woman became certain of the swap, other than that she observed the dead child in the morning and realized it was not her own son (1 Kings 3:19-21).

The second woman denied these allegations, claiming that the living child was hers and the dead one belonged to the first woman. Solomon repeated their conflicting claims and requested a sword. He then commanded that the living child be divided in two, with half to be given to each woman (1 Kings 3:22-25). The text does not say whether Solomon intended to carry out the order or if it was a calculated test of maternal instinct. Upon hearing the command, the woman who was the mother of the living child pleaded for the king to give the baby to the other woman rather than slay it, while the other woman stated that the child should be neither hers nor the first woman’s, but divided (1 Kings 3:26).

Solomon concluded the proceedings by ordering that the living child be given to the first woman who had pleaded for its life, identifying her as the true mother. He commanded that the child should not be slain (1 Kings 3:27). The text does not say what happened to the woman whose child had died, nor does it provide the names of the women or the infants involved in the case. The judgment was delivered publicly, and all Israel heard of the decree Solomon had rendered (1 Kings 3:28).