Reading for June 8th

Read 1 Kings 3
In verses 1-15 Solomon's gift of wisdom.
In verse 1 a marriage alliance was a treaty sealed with with a marriage, a common practice in the ancient Near East.
This verse anticipates 11.1, where foreign women prove to be Solomon's undoing.
In verses 2-4 high places were raised platforms where worship took place.
They are usually condemned in the Bible.
But these verses explain that the use of them during Solomon's early reign, especially his use of one at Gibeon, was permissible since the temple had not yet been built.
Solomon's actions here may be a dream incubation- a way of seeking divine revelation through a dream by petitioning a deity and then sleeping at that god's shrine.
In verses 5-9 Solomon's reference to himself as a little child 9v.7) expresses his feelings of being overwhelmed by his responsibility as king and is not to be taken literally.
He requests an understanding mind in order to govern (lit- judge) the numerous people of Israel.
In verse 10-14 the Lord grants Solomon's request and promises him wealth as well.
Thus, Solomon's traditional wisdom and magnificence are explained as gifts from God.
In verses 16-28 is an illustration of Solomon's wisdom
The king served as a kind of supreme court, and it was his responsibility to see that justice was equitably disbursed in the land.
This seemingly impossible case shows Solomon's great wisdom in judgment.
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