“Then the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So they brought a sword before the king. And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to one, and half to the other. Then the woman whose son was living spoke to the king, for she yearned with compassion for her son; and she said, “O my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him!” But the other said, “Let him be neither mine nor yours, but divide him.” So the king answered and said, “Give the first woman the living child, and by no means kill him; she is his mother.” And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice” (1Kg 3:24-28)
Divine wisdom will establish you as a man (woman) of God! People will fear your God and gladly submit to you. This is true leadership; not thru manipulation or display of wealth. But by the power of the Holy Spirit! This is a wonderful story! Two women fighting over a baby. Try to imagine that! Solomon was faced with a major dilemma. His decision would affect not only these two mothers but the child as well. What if he made the wrong decision and gave the child to the wrong mother? How could he possibly know what to do? God gave Solomon the wisdom he had asked for and with this wisdom, Solomon did an amazing thing.
Imagine the tenseness of the moment. A newborn child laid before Solomon and he calls for a sword. Who in their right mind would bring a sword near a baby? Then he commanded one of his soldiers to cut the child in half and divide it between the two mothers. Why did Solomon do this? Was he out of his mind? He knew the women’s response would reveal the child’s identity. In the presence of life and death, all men drop their hypocrisy. Before the hour of death, men may deceive themselves and others. The power of ‘419’ works when death is not around. But once death looks you face to face, truth comes out. I am a doctor and I have seen this again and again. Dying people become honest and are ready to repent and change. This is the truth!
Solomon never intended to kill the child. He only wanted to see how the women would respond. He knew that there was no way the true mother would let her child be killed. Though giving up her son was painful, she was willing to do so if it meant saving his life. But the mother whose child had died responded differently. “Let him be neither mine nor yours, but divide him.” Her insensitivity to the child’s well-being revealed that she was not the real mother.
As I consider this story about Solomon’s wisdom, I see something else that is very important. The wisdom he received from God gave him great confidence and courage. He needed that to be a king. He was a young man and inexperienced in the politics of the royal chambers. But he prayed for wisdom and God granted him that. It was wisdom that he used to rule as a king among men. Wisdom is not sold in the market. Wisdom comes from God!
What is the lesson for us? Pray that God will give you His wisdom so that you see all things thru His perspective. Then, you will never be intimidated by the strength of others. Human eyes and ears can easily deceive. No school on earth teaches you how to overcome all fears and obstacles. It has to be the Holy Spirit! Remember that wisdom is applied knowledge. You need to know the Word of God so that the Holy Spirit helps you to apply it in practical living! All efforts invested in the study of the Bible and prayer shall be rewarded with a higher level of authority, faith, confidence and courage! May it be so to you! In Jesus’ name! This is my prayer for you this morning!

This is one of the thrones of Pharaoh in ancient Egypt. This throne is more than 4000 years old. It was made of acacia wood covered with gold. I took this picture inside the Egypt Museum of History in Cairo.