1 Kings 3:12
in 1 Kings 3behold, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has never been nor will ever be another like you.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
behold, I have done according to thy word: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there hath been none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
KJV
Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
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This verse in 1 Kings 3
Commentary
8 notes on this verseProverbs are words of exhortation that serve the whole path of life. They serve as guides and signs for those who are seeking their way to God by reviving them when they become tired by the length of the road. These, moreover, are the proverbs of "Solomon," that is to say, the "peacemaker," who, in truth, is Christ the Savior.
This site's exposition
the speech pleased the Lord
on 1 Kings 3:10-12
The speech pleases the Lord because of what Solomon did not ask: not long life, not riches, not the life of his enemies, three requests any king in the ancient world might have reached for first. Because the request excluded self-interest, God grants what was asked and adds what a lesser prayer would have sought on its own. Verse 12's superlative, none like thee before thee, neither after thee, describes wisdom given, not yet the character that will keep it, and the book's later chapters test how long the gift outlasts the reign.
This site's exposition
a wise and discerning heart
Albert Barnes calls the wise and discerning heart practical wisdom, the kind that knows what is in man, and he notes that Christ names one greater than Solomon. Adam Clarke asks whether the gift hung on the condition to walk in God’s ways in verse 14. Hippolytus called Solomon the peacemaker, a name of Christ.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Since the narrative [of the book of Kings] is accurate in the facts, nobody can have any doubt that Solomon received his noble sovereignty, his elevated thought and extraordinary power as a gift from God, thus it is evident that no one among those kings …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Behold, I have done according to thy words,....
He fitted him for all that great work to which he had called him, gave him such a right understanding of the law which he was to judge by, and the cases he was to judge of, that he was unequalled for a clear head, a solid judgment, and a piercing eye.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart - I have given thee a capacious mind, one capable of knowing much: make a proper use of thy powers, under the direction of my Spirit, and thou shalt excel in wisdom all that have gone before thee; neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. But, query, Was not all this conditional? If he should walk in his ways, and keep his statutes and commandments, 1Ki 3:14. Was it not to depend upon his proper use of initiatory inspirations? Did he ever receive all this wisdom?
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
A wise and an understanding heart - Solomon’s wisdom seems to have been both moral and intellectual (see 1Ki 4:29-34). But it was moral wisdom alone which he requested, and which was promised him. The terms translated “wise” and “understanding,” both denote practical wisdom. (See Gen 41:33, Gen 41:39; Deu 4:6; Pro 1:2, etc.) Neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee - i. e. in the knowledge of what was in man, and in the wisdom to direct men’s goings, he was to be the wisest of “all” mere men. In such wisdom the world would know one only “greater than Solomon” Mat 12:42; Luk 11:31.
The words behind it
18 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הִנֵּ֥ה | hineh | here! | H2009 → | 843 times |
| עָשִׂ֖יתִי | ʾasiti | I do | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| כִּדְבָרֶ֑יךָ | kidvareikha | according to words your | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| הִנֵּ֣ה׀ | hineh | here! | H2009 → | 843 times |
| נָתַ֣תִּי | natati | I give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| לְךָ֗ | lekha | to you | ||
| לֵ֚ב | lev | a heart | H3820 → | 595 times |
| חָכָ֣ם | chakham | wise | H2450 → | 138 times |
| וְנָב֔וֹן | venavon | and understanding | H995 → | 170 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֤ר | ʾasher | that | H834 → | 5497 times |
| כָּמ֙וֹךָ֙ | kamokha | like you | H3644 → | 143 times |
| לֹא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| הָיָ֣ה | hayah | anyone has been | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לְפָנֶ֔יךָ | lefaneikha | <to> before you | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| וְאַחֲרֶ֖יךָ | veachareikha | and after you | H310 → | 715 times |
| לֹא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יָק֥וּם | yakum | anyone will arise | H6965 → | 628 times |
| כָּמֽוֹךָ׃ | kamokha | like you | H3644 → | 143 times |
הִנֵּ֥הhere!
hinehH2009 →843 times
עָשִׂ֖יתִיI do
ʾasitiH6213 →2628 times
כִּדְבָרֶ֑יךָaccording to words your
kidvareikhaH1697 →1440 times
הִנֵּ֣ה׀here!
hinehH2009 →843 times
נָתַ֣תִּיI give
natatiH5414 →2011 times
לְךָ֗to you
lekha
לֵ֚בa heart
levH3820 →595 times
חָכָ֣םwise
chakhamH2450 →138 times
וְנָב֔וֹןand understanding
venavonH995 →170 times
אֲשֶׁ֤רthat
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
כָּמ֙וֹךָ֙like you
kamokhaH3644 →143 times
לֹא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
הָיָ֣הanyone has been
hayahH1961 →3559 times
לְפָנֶ֔יךָ<to> before you
lefaneikhaH6440 →2123 times
וְאַחֲרֶ֖יךָand after you
veachareikhaH310 →715 times
לֹא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
יָק֥וּםanyone will arise
yakumH6965 →628 times
כָּמֽוֹךָ׃like you
kamokhaH3644 →143 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Matthew 12:42The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and now One…
it leads to
- 1 Kings 10:1–13
Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with difficult questions.
- 2 Chronicles 9:1–12
Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon, she came to test him with difficult questions. She arrived in Jerusalem with a very large caravan—with camels bearing spices, gold in…
- Luke 11:31–32
The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon,…
- Hebrews 1:2–4
But in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe.
- John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- 1 Kings 10:1–13
Through
Ecclesiastes 1:16I said to myself, “Behold, I have grown and increased in wisdom beyond all those before me who were over Jerusalem, and my mind has observed a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.”
it leads to
- Ecclesiastes 2:9
So I became great and surpassed all in Jerusalem who had preceded me; and my wisdom remained with me.
- 1 Kings 4:30
Solomon’s wisdom was greater than that of all the men of the East, greater than all the wisdom of Egypt.
- 1 Kings 10:7
But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told to me. Your wisdom and prosperity have far exceeded the report I…
- Ecclesiastes 2:9
Where this verse is studied
By subject
Wisdom35 verses
On this page
About 1 Kings
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ephrem the Syrian, ON THE FIRST BOOK OF KINGS 3:12; F. W. Farrar, The First Book of Kings (Expositor's Bible); Hippolytus of Rome, FRAGMENT ON PROVERBS; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.