1 Kings 3
1 And Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh's 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.
1 Confirmatum est igitur regnum in manu Salomonis, et affinitate conjunctus est Pharaoni regi Ægypti: accepit namque filiam ejus, et adduxit in civitatem David, donec compleret ædificans domum suam, et domum Domini, et murum Jerusalem per circuitum.
2 Only the people sacrificed in high places, because there was no house built unto the name of the Lord, until those days.
2 Attamen populus immolabat in excelsis: non enim ædificatum erat templum nomini Domini usque in diem illum.
3 And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in high places.
3 Dilexit autem Salomon Dominum, ambulans in præceptis David patris sui, excepto quod in excelsis immolabat, et accendebat thymiama.
4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.
4 Abiit itaque in Gabaon, ut immolaret ibi: illud quippe erat excelsum maximum: mille hostias in holocaustum obtulit Salomon super altare illud in Gabaon.
5 ¶ In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.
5 Apparuit autem Dominus Salomoni per somnium nocte, dicens: Postula quod vis ut dem tibi.
6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
6 Et ait Salomon: Tu fecisti cum servo tuo David patre meo misericordiam magnam, sicut ambulavit in conspectu tuo in veritate et justitia, et recto corde tecum: custodisti ei misericordiam tuam grandem, et dedisti ei filium sedentem super thronum ejus, sicut est hodie.
7 And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.
7 Et nunc Domine Deus, tu regnare fecisti servum tuum pro David patre meo: ego autem sum puer parvulus, et ignorans egressum et introitum meum.
8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
8 Et servus tuus in medio est populi quem elegisti, populi infiniti, qui numerari et supputari non potest præ multitudine.
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 this thy so great a people?
9 Dabis ergo servo tuo cor docile, ut populum tuum judicare possit, et discernere inter bonum et malum. Quis enim poterit judicare populum istum, populum tuum hunc multum?
10 And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.
10 ¶ Placuit ergo sermo coram Domino, quod Salomon postulasset hujuscemodi rem.
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;
11 Et dixit Dominus Salomoni: Quia postulasti verbum hoc, et non petisti tibi dies multos, nec divitias, aut animas inimicorum tuorum, sed postulasti tibi sapientiam ad discernendum judicium:
12 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.
12 ecce feci tibi secundum sermones tuos, et dedi tibi cor sapiens et intelligens, in tantum ut nullus ante te similis tui fuerit, nec post te surrecturus sit.
13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.
13 Sed et hæc quæ non postulasti, dedi tibi: divitias scilicet, et gloriam, ut nemo fuerit similis tui in regibus cunctis retro diebus.
14 And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.
14 Si autem ambulaveris in viis meis, et custodieris præcepta mea et mandata mea, sicut ambulavit pater tuus, longos faciam dies tuos.
15 And Solomon awoke; and, behold, it was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up burnt offerings, and offered peace offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.
15 Igitur evigilavit Salomon, et intellexit quod esset somnium: cumque venisset Jerusalem, stetit coram arca fœderis Domini, et obtulit holocausta, et fecit victimas pacificas, et grande convivium universis famulis suis.
16 ¶ Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto the king, and stood before him.
16 ¶ Tunc venerunt duæ mulieres meretrices ad regem, steteruntque coram eo:
17 And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house.
17 quarum una ait: Obsecro, mi domine: ego et mulier hæc habitabamus in domo una, et peperi apud eam in cubiculo.
18 And it came to pass the third day after that I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also: and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house.
18 Tertia autem die postquam ego peperi, peperit et hæc: et eramus simul, nullusque alius nobiscum in domo, exceptis nobis duabus.
19 And this woman's child died in the night; because she overlaid it.
19 Mortuus est autem filius mulieris hujus nocte: dormiens quippe oppressit eum.
20 And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while thine handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom.
20 Et consurgens intempestæ noctis silentio, tulit filium meum de latere meo, ancillæ tuæ dormientis, et collocavit in sinu suo: suum autem filium, qui erat mortuus, posuit in sinu meo.
21 And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead: but when I had considered it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, which I did bear.
21 Cumque surrexissem mane ut darem lac filio meo, apparuit mortuus: quem diligentius intuens clara luce, deprehendi non esse meum quem genueram.
22 And the other woman said, Nay; but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son. And this said, No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son. Thus they spake before the king.
22 Responditque altera mulier: Non est ita ut dicis, sed filius tuus mortuus est, meus autem vivit. E contrario illa dicebat: Mentiris: filius quippe meus vivit, et filius tuus mortuus est. Atque in hunc modum contendebant coram rege.
23 Then said the king, The one saith, This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living.
23 Tunc rex ait: Hæc dicit: Filius meus vivit, et filius tuus mortuus est: et ista respondit: Non, sed filius tuus mortuus est, meus autem vivit.
24 And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king.
24 Dixit ergo rex: Afferte mihi gladium. Cumque attulissent gladium coram rege,
25 And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.
25 Dividite, inquit, infantem vivum in duas partes, et date dimidiam partem uni, et dimidiam partem alteri.
26 Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it.
26 Dixit autem mulier, cujus filius erat vivus, ad regem (commota sunt quippe viscera ejus super filio suo): Obsecro, domine, date illi infantem vivum, et nolite interficere eum. E contrario illa dicebat: Nec mihi nec tibi sit, sed dividatur.
27 Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof.
27 Respondit rex, et ait: Date huic infantem vivum, et non occidatur: hæc est enim mater ejus.
28 And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.
28 Audivit itaque omnis Israël judicium quod judicasset rex, et timuerunt regem, videntes sapientiam Dei esse in eo ad faciendum judicium.
About the Latin Text
The Latin text displayed here is that of the Clementine Vulgate, as digitized by the Clementine Text Project.