Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
back to:
1 Kings
Book: 1 Kings
Chapter: 3
Overview:
Solomon's
Marriage.
(1-4) His
Vision, His
Prayer for
Wisdom.
(5-15) The
Judgment of
Solomon.
(16-28)
1-4 He that loved the
Lord, should, for his sake, have fixed
his
Love upon one of the
Lord's people.
Solomon was a
Wise Man,
a rich
Man, a great
Man; yet the brightest praise of him, is
that which is the character of all the saints, even the poorest,
"He loved the
Lord." Where
God sows plentifully, he expects to
reap accordingly; and those that truly
Love God and his
Worship,
will not grudge the expenses of their religion. We must never
think that wasted which is laid out in the service of
God.
5-15 Solomon's
Dream was not a common one. While his bodily
powers were locked up in sleep, the powers of his soul were
strengthened; he was enabled to receive the Divine
Vision, and
to make a suitable choice.
God, in like manner, puts us in the
ready way to be happy,
By assuring us we shall have what we
need, and pray for.
Solomon's making such a choice when asleep,
and the powers of reason least active, showed it came from the
Grace of
God. Having a humble sense of his own wants and
weakness, he pleads,
Lord, I am but a little
Child. The more
Wise and considerate men are, the better acquainted they are
with their own weakness, and the more jealous of themselves.
Solomon begs of
God to give him
Wisdom. We must pray for it,
Jas 1:5, that it may help us in our particular
Calling, and
the various occasions we have. Those are accepted of
God, who
prefer spiritual blessings to earthly good. It was a prevailing
Prayer, and prevailed for more than he asked.
God gave him
Wisdom, such as
No other
Prince was ever blessed with; and also
gave him riches and honour. If we make sure of
Wisdom and
Grace,
these will bring outward prosperity with them, or sweeten the
want of it. The way to get spiritual blessings, is to
Wrestle
with
God in
Prayer for them. The way to get earthly blessings,
is to refer ourselves to
God concerning them.
Solomon has
Wisdom
given him, because he did ask it, and wealth, because he did
not.
16-28 An instance of
Solomon's
Wisdom is given. Notice the
difficulty of the case. To find out the true mother, he could
not try which the
Child loved best, and therefore tried which
loved the
Child best: the mother's sincerity will be tried, when
the
Child is in danger. Let parents show their
Love to their
children, especially
By taking care of their souls, and
snatching them as brands out of the burning.
By this and other
instances of the
Wisdom with which
God endued him,
Solomon had
great reputation among his people. This was better to him than
weapons of
War; for this he was both feared and loved.