1 Kings 3:11

And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
God	אֱלֹהִ֜ים 'E.lo.Him	H430	gods in the ordinary sense · noun, common masculine plural absolute
said	וַיֹּ֨אמֶר vai.Yo.mer	H559	to say (used with great latitude) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
asked	שָׁאַ֜לְתָּ sha.'Al.ta	H7592	to inquire · verb, qal perfect, 2nd person masculine singular
thing	הַדָּבָ֣ר ha.da.Var	H1697	a word · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
asked	שָׁאַ֨לְתָּ sha.'Al.ta	H7592	to inquire · verb, qal perfect, 2nd person masculine singular
long	רַבִּ֗ים ra.Bim	H7227	abundant (in quantity · adjective, masculine plural absolute
life	יָמִ֣ים ya.Mim	H3117	a day (as the warm hours) · noun, common masculine plural absolute
asked	שָׁאַ֤לְתָּ sha.'Al.ta	H7592	to inquire · verb, qal perfect, 2nd person masculine singular
riches	עֹ֔שֶׁר 'O.sher	H6239	wealth · noun, common masculine singular absolute
asked	שָׁאַ֖לְתָּ sha.'Al.ta	H7592	to inquire · verb, qal perfect, 2nd person masculine singular
life	נֶ֣פֶשׁ Ne.fesh	H5315	properly · noun, common feminine singular construct
enemies	אֹיְבֶ֑יךָ 'o.ye.Vei.kha	H341	hating · verb, qal active participle, masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 2nd person masculine singular
asked	וְשָׁאַ֧לְתָּ ve.sha.'Al.ta	H7592	to inquire · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 2nd person masculine singular
understanding	הָבִ֖ין ha.Vin	H995	to separate mentally (or distinguish) · verb, hiphil infinitive construct
discern	לִשְׁמֹ֥עַ lish.Mo.a'	H8085	to hear intelligently (often with implication of attent… · preposition + verb, qal infinitive construct
judgment	מִשְׁפָּֽט mish.Pat	H4941	properly · noun, common masculine singular absolute

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

1 Kings 3:9 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 thi…
James 4:2-3 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
Proverbs 16:31 The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness.
Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh interces…
Psalms 4:6 There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.
Matthew 20:21-22 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Kings 3:5-15

We have here an account of a gracious visit which God paid to Solomon, and the communion he had with God in it, which put a greater honour upon Solomon than all the wealth and power of his kingdom did. I. The circumstances of this visit, Kg1 3:5. 1. The place. It was in Gibeon; that was the great high place, and should have been the only one, because there the tabernacle and the brazen altar were, Ch2 1:3. There Solomon offered his great sacrifices, and there God owned him more than in any other of the high places. The nearer we come to the rule in our worship the more reason we have to expect the tokens of God's presence. Where God records his name, there he will meet us and bless us. 2. Th…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Kings 3:10

the speech pleased the Lord--It was Solomon's waking prayers that God heard and requited, but the acceptance was signified in this vision.

Adam Clarke on 1 Kings 3:9

Give - an understanding heart to judge thy people - He did not ask wisdom in general, but the true science of government. This wisdom he sought, and this wisdom he obtained.

John Gill on 1 Kings 3:11

And God said unto him,.... Being yet in a dream: because thou hast asked this thing; wisdom for government: and hast not asked for thyself long life; which is naturally desired by men, and always reckoned a great temporal blessing, and especially to be wished for by a king living in great pomp and splendour: neither hast asked riches for thyself; to support his grandeur; for though David his father had left him much, yet not for himself, but for the building of the temple: nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; victory over them, and to have it in his power to take away their lives when he pleased; which kings, and especially tyrants, are desirous of, such as are ambitious, haughty, a…

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Dictionary and topics

Gibeon — Hill-city, “one of the royal cities, greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty” (Josh. 10:2). Its inhabitants were Hivites (11:19). It lay within the territory of Benjamin, and became a…
Communion · . — .
Dream · .Of — .Of
Dreams · Mentioned in scripture of: Solomon — Mentioned in scripture of: Solomon
Enemies · Desire not the death of — Desire not the death of
Justice · God: Gives wisdom to execute — God: Gives wisdom to execute
Solomon · His prayer for wisdom, and his vision — His prayer for wisdom, and his vision

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

1 Kings 3:11

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Kings 3:5-15

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Kings 3:10

Adam Clarke on 1 Kings 3:9

John Gill on 1 Kings 3:11

Dictionary and topics

1 Kings 3:11

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Kings 3:5-15

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Kings 3:10

Adam Clarke on 1 Kings 3:9

John Gill on 1 Kings 3:11

Dictionary and topics

Keil & Delitzsch on 1 Kings 3:4-15

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 1 Kings 3:10-12

Rashi on 1 Kings 3:9