The Meaning of 1 Kings 3:23 Explained

1 Kings 3:23

KJV: Then said the king, The one saith, This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living.

YLT: And the king saith, 'This one saith, This is my son, the living, and thy son is the dead; and that one saith, Nay, but thy son is the dead, and my son the living.'

Darby: Then said the king, The one says, This that is living is my son, and thy son is the dead; and the other says, No, for thy son is the dead, and my son is the living.

ASV: Then said the king, The one saith, This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living.

Discover 1 Kings 3:23

CONTEXT: What is the Context of 1 Kings 3:23?

MEANING: What does 1 Kings 3:23 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in 1 Kings 3:23 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in 1 Kings 3:23?

What is the context of 1 Kings 3:23?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then said the king, The one saith, This [is] my son that liveth, and thy son [is] the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son [is] the dead, and my son [is] the living.

What does 1 Kings 3:23 Mean?

Context Summary

1 Kings 3:16-28 - A Discerning Judgment

The incident gave convincing proof of the gift of wisdom. This is the most esteemed endowment of an Eastern potentate, who is called upon to arbitrate in cases that defy the labored processes of law and precedent. How could so difficult a case be decided? There were no witnesses on either side. But Solomon appealed to the instincts of a mother's love. The proposal to divide the child at once revealed the mother, who would rather expose herself to a life of anguish than see her child suffer or its life extinguished.

Bishop Hall, commenting on this incident, says, "Truth demands entireness; falsehood is satisfied with less. Satan, who has no right to the heart, is content with a piece of it; God, who made the heart, will have either all or none."

But surely there is a still deeper lesson. When we truly belong to Christ, sharing His nature and having fellowship in His Kingdom, we shall live in quick sympathy with everything that touches His honor. The child of God instinctively winces whenever his Father's character is challenged, or a foul suggestion is made to his own soul. This is evidence of sonship.

1 Kings 3:1-28 - Breaking Three Commandments

From a worldly point of view Naboth might have done a good stroke of business by selling his estate to. Ahab. A royal price and assured favor might have been his-but he had a conscience! Above the persuasive tones of the monarch's offer sounded the voice of God: "The land shall not be sold for ever, for the land is mine." See Leviticus 25:23; Numbers 36:7; Ezekiel 46:18.

Ahab knew perfectly well that Jezebel could not give him the property of another except by foul means, but he took pains not to inquire. Though the direct orders for Naboth's death did not come from him, yet, by his silence, he was an accomplice and an accessory; and divine justice penetrates all such specious excuses. God holds us responsible for wrongs which we do not arrest, though we have the power. The crime was blacker because of the pretext of religion, as suggested by a fast. See also 2 Kings 9:26. The blood of murdered innocence cries to God, and his requital, though delayed, is inevitable. See Revelation 6:9-10. [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Kings 3

¹ Solomon marries Pharaoh's daughter
² High places being in use, Solomon sacrifices at Gibeon
⁵ Solomon at Gibeon, in the choice which God gave him,
¹⁰ preferring wisdom, obtains wisdom, riches, and honor
¹⁶ Solomon's judgment makes him renowned

What do the individual words in 1 Kings 3:23 mean?

And said the king this [one] says this [is] my son who lives and your son [is] the dead one and this [one] says No but your son [is] the dead one and my son [is] the living one -

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ זֹ֣את אֹמֶ֔רֶת זֶה־ בְּנִ֥י הַחַ֖י וּבְנֵ֣ךְ הַמֵּ֑ת וְזֹ֤את אֹמֶ֙רֶת֙ לֹ֣א כִ֔י בְּנֵ֥ךְ הַמֵּ֖ת וּבְנִ֥י הֶחָֽי פ

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר	And said
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular Root: אָמַר Sense: to say, speak, utter.
הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ	the king
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular Root: מֶלֶךְ Sense: king.
זֹ֣את	this [one]
Parse: Pronoun, feminine singular Root: זׄאת Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, such.
אֹמֶ֔רֶת	says
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, feminine singular Root: אָמַר Sense: to say, speak, utter.
זֶה־	this [is]
Parse: Pronoun, masculine singular Root: זֶה Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
בְּנִ֥י	my son
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular Root: בֵּן Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
הַחַ֖י	who lives
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular Root: חַי Sense: living, alive.
וּבְנֵ֣ךְ	and your son [is]
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct, second person feminine singular Root: בֵּן Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
הַמֵּ֑ת	the dead one
Parse: Article, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular Root: מוּת Sense: to die, kill, have one executed.
וְזֹ֤את	and this [one]
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Pronoun, feminine singular Root: זׄאת Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, such.
אֹמֶ֙רֶת֙	says
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, feminine singular Root: אָמַר Sense: to say, speak, utter.
לֹ֣א	No
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle Root: הֲלֹא Sense: not, no.
בְּנֵ֥ךְ	your son [is]
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person feminine singular Root: בֵּן Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
הַמֵּ֖ת	the dead one
Parse: Article, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular Root: מוּת Sense: to die, kill, have one executed.
וּבְנִ֥י	and my son [is]
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular Root: בֵּן Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
הֶחָֽי	the living one
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular Root: חַי Sense: living, alive.
פ	-
Parse: Punctuation

What are the major concepts related to 1 Kings 3:23?

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