Divide, said he, the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.

“Is not that noble judgment of Solomon full of wisdom and justice? Let us see whether it is so. "Two women," it says, "stood before King Solomon, and the one said to him, 'Hear me, my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house, and before the third day we gave birth and bore a son apiece and were together; there was no witness in the house, nor any other woman with us, only we two alone. And her son died this night, because she laid on him, and she arose at midnight, and took my son from my breast and laid him in her bosom, and her dead child she laid at my breast. And I arose in the morning to nurse my child and found him dead. And I examined him at dawn, and behold, it was not my son.' And the other woman said, 'No, but the living is my son, and the dead is your son.' " This was their dispute, in which either tried to claim the living child for herself and denied that the dead one was hers. Then the king commanded a sword to be brought and the infant to be cut in half, and either piece to be given to one, one half to the one, and one half to the other. Then the woman whose the child really was, moved by her feelings, cried out, "Do not divide the child, my lord; rather, let it be given to her and live, and do not kill it." But the other answered: "Let it be neither mine nor hers; divide it." Then the king ordered that the infant should be given to the woman who had said "do not kill it," for, as it says, "her compassion earned over her son."It is not wrong to suppose that the mind of God was in him; for what is hidden from God? What can be more hidden than the witness that lies deep within; into which the mind of the wise king as though to judge a mother's feelings and elicited as it were the voice of a mother's heart? For a mother's feelings were laid bare when she chose that her son should live with another, rather than that he should be killed in his mother's sight. It was therefore a sign of wisdom to distinguish between secret heart thoughts, to draw the truth from hidden springs and to pierce as it were with the sword of the Spirit not only the inward parts of the body but even of the mind and soul. It was the part of justice also that she who had killed her own child should not take away another's but that the real mother should have her own back again. Indeed the Scriptures have declared this. "All Israel," it says, "heard of the judgment that the king had judged, and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was present in judgment." Solomon also himself had asked for wisdom, so that a prudent heart might be given him to hear and to judge with justice.”

“As for the royal judgment between the two of them, it simply admonishes us to fight for the truth and to drive hypocrisy away from the spiritual gift of the church like a spurious mother from another woman's living son and not to let her control the grace granted to others when she could not take care of her own. But let us do this, defending and fighting for the truth without running the risk of division. That decision of the judge, when he ordered the baby to be cut in two, is not meant as a breach of unity but as a test of charity. The name Solomon means peaceable. So a peaceable king does not tear limbs apart that contain the spirit of life in unity and concord. But his threat discovers the true mother, and his judgment sets aside the spurious one. So then, if it comes to this sort of crisis and trial, to prevent the unity of Christian grace from being torn apart, we are taught to say, "Give her the child, only let him live." The true mother, you see, is not concerned about the honor of motherhood but about the well-being of her son. Wherever he may be, his mother's true love will make him more her possession than that of the false claimant.”

“What about Solomon, who in his first judgment manifested the gift of wisdom, which he had received of God, only by making use of falsehood? For in order to get at the truth which was hidden by the woman's lie, even he used the help of a lie most cunningly invented, saying: "Bring me a sword and divide the living child into two parts, and give the one half to the one and the other half to the other." And when this pretended cruelty stirred the heart of the true mother, but was received with approval by her who was not the true mother, then at last by this most sagacious discovery of the truth he pronounced the judgment which every one has felt to have been inspired by God, saying: "Give her the living child and slay it not: she is the mother of it."”

“Then spake the woman, whose the living child was, unto the king,.... In haste, and with great vehemency, lest the executioner should at once dispatch it: (for her bowels yearned upon her son); not being able to bear to see his life taken away: and she said, O my lord: or, "on me (q), my lord"; let the sin, the lie that I have told, be on me, and the punishment of it; she rather chose to be reckoned a liar, and to endure any punishment such an offence deserved, than that her child should be cut asunder: give her the living child, and in no wise slay it; being willing to part with her interest in it, rather than it should be put to death: but the other said, let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it; for as she knew it was not her own, she had no affection for it, nor desire to have it; chose rather to be clear of the expense of keeping and nursing it, and would, by its being put to death, be avenged of her adversary, who had brought this cause before the king. (q) "in me", Montanus; so Abarbinel.”

“Divide the living child in two - This was apparently a very strange decision, and such as nothing could vindicate had it been carried into execution; but Solomon saw that the only way to find out the real mother was by the affection and tenderness which she would necessarily show to her offspring. He plainly saw that the real mother would rather relinquish her claim to her child than see it hewn in pieces before her eyes, while it was probable the pretender would see this with indifference. He therefore orders such a mode of trial as would put the maternal affection of the real mother to the utmost proof; the plan was tried, and it succeeded. This was a proof of his sound judgment, penetration, and acquaintance with human nature; but surely it is not produced as a proof of extraordinary and supernatural wisdom. We have several similar decisions even among heathens. Suetonius, in his life of the Emperor Claudius, cap. xv., whom he celebrates for his wonderful sagacity and penetration on some particular occasions, tells us, that this emperor discovered a woman to be the mother of a certain young man, whom she refused to acknowledge as her son, by commanding her to marry him, the proofs being doubtful on both sides; for, rather than commit this incest, she confessed the truth. His words are: Feminam, non agnoscentem fllium suum, dubia utrinque argumentorum fide, ad confessionem compulit, indicto matrimonio juvenis. Ariopharnes, king of Thrace, being appointed to decide between three young men, who each professed to be the son of the deceased king of the Cimmerians, and claimed the crown in consequence, found out the real son by commanding each to shoot an arrow into the body of the dead king: two of them did this without hesitation, the third refused, and was therefore judged by Ariopharnes to be the real son of the deceased. Grotius, on this place, quotes this relation from Diodorus Siculus; I quote this on his authority, but have not been able to find the place in Diodorus. This is a parallel case to that in the text; a covert appeal was made to the principle of affection; and the truth was discovered, as in the case of the mother of the living child.”

“Other. This sentence manifested the wisdom of Solomon, who knew that the real mother would feel the emotions of parental tenderness. By similar experiments, the truth has sometimes been discovered. Claudius obliged a mother to own her son, by ordering her to take him for a husband. (Seutonius xv.) — The king of Trace told three who pretended to be the sons of the deceased king of the Cimmerians, to shoot an arrow at the corpse; which the real son would not do. (Calmet) (Diod. Sic.) — A native of Mexico, reclaiming a horse which a Spaniard pretended was his, as the judge was under some doubts, the American threw his cloak over the horse’s head, and asked which eye was blind? The Spaniard replied, the right; and thus was detected. (Palafox.) Bible Text & Cross-references: Solomon marrieth Pharao’s daughter. He sacrifices in Gabaon: in the choice which God gave him, he preferreth wisdom. His wise judgment between the two harlots. 1 And* the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon, and he made affinity with Pharao, the king of Egypt: for he took his daughter, and brought her into the city of David: **until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Jerusalem round about. 2 But yet the people sacrificed in the high places: for there was no temple built to the name of the Lord until that day. 3 And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the precepts of David, his father; only he sacrificed in the high places, and burnt incense. 4 He went therefore to Gabaon, to sacrifice there: for that was the great high place: a thousand victims for holocausts, did Solomon offer upon that altar, in Gabaon. 5 And the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, saying : Ask what thou wilt that I should give thee. 6 And Solomon said: Thou hast shewed great mercy to thy servant David, my father, even as he walked before thee in truth, and justice, and an upright heart with thee: and thou hast kept thy great mercy for him, and hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. 7 And now, O Lord God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David, my father: and I am but a child, and know not how to go out and come in; 8 And thy servant is in the midst of the people which thou hast chosen, an immense people, which cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. 9 *Give therefore to thy servant an understanding heart, to judge thy people, and discern between good and evil. For who shall be able to judge this people, thy people, which is so numerous? 10 And the word was pleasing to the Lord, that Solomon had asked such a thing. 11 And the Lord said to Solomon: Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life nor riches, nor the lives of thy enemies, but hast asked for thyself wisdom to discern judgment; 12 Behold I have done for thee according to thy words, and have given thee a wise and understanding heart, in so much that there hath been no one like unto thee, before thee, nor shall arise after thee. 13 *Yea, and the things also which thou didst not ask, I have given thee; to wit, riches and glory: as that no one hath been like unto thee, among the kings, in all days heretofore. 14 And, if thou wilt walk in my ways, and keep my precepts and my commandments, as thy father walked, I will lengthen thy days. 15 And Solomon awaked, and perceived that it was a dream: and when he was come to Jerusalem, he stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered holocausts, and sacrificed victims of peace-offerings, and made a great feast for all his servants. 16 Then there came two women that were harlots, to the king, and stood before him. 17 And one of them said: I beseech thee, my lord, I and this woman dwelt in one house, and I was delivered of a child with her in the chamber. 18 And the third day after that I was delivered, she also was delivered; and we were together, and no other person with us in the house; only we two. 19 And this woman’s child died in the night: for in her sleep she overlaid him. 20 And rising in the dead time of the night, she took my child from my side, while I, thy handmaid, was asleep, and laid it in her bosom: and laid her dead child in my bosom. 21 And when I arose in the morning, to give my child suck, behold it was dead: but considering him more diligently, when it was clear day, I found that it was not mine which I bore. 22 And the other woman answered: It is not so as thou sayest, but thy child is dead, and mine is alive. On the contrary, she said; Thou liest: for my child liveth, and thy child is dead. And in this manner they strove before the king. 23 Then said the king: The one saith, My child is alive, and thy child is dead. And the other answereth: Nay; but thy child is dead, and mine liveth. 24 The king therefore said: Bring me a sword. And when they had brought a sword before the king, 25 Divide, said he, the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. 26 But the woman whose child was alive, said to the king; (for her bowels were moved upon her child) I beseech thee, my lord, give her the child alive, and do not kill it. But the other said: Let it be neither mine nor thine; but divide it. 27 The king answered, and said: Give the living child to this woman, and let it not be killed; for she is the mother thereof. 28 And all Israel heard the judgment which the king had judged, and they feared the king, seeing that the wisdom of God was in him to do judgment.”