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Solomon's God Given Wisdom - The Books of 1 Kings & 2 Chronicles · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding
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  Speaker 1: exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand
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  Speaker 1: is on the seashore. 1 Kings 4.29 Heavenly Father, I
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  Speaker 1: thank you that you are constantly available for me to
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  Speaker 1: draw from the well of your wisdom. Like Solomon in
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  Speaker 1: today's reading of 1 Kings, I ask that you give
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  Speaker 1: me divine understanding in all matters that pertain to life, business,
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  Speaker 1: and relationships. Because your understanding is greater than mine, as
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  Speaker 1: I tap into this new power source, I'm excited because
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  Speaker 1: I will understand situations like you do. I can now
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  Speaker 1: have access to divine understanding in the matters of business,
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  Speaker 1: even if I'm new to the industry. Increase the understanding
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  Speaker 1: in my life when it comes to leading others and
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  Speaker 1: in the matters of giving advice. May my speech be
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  Speaker 1: seasoned and well-placed. May my actions be calculative and precise.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you, Lord, that because I have opened my heart
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  Speaker 1: to you and your ways, I will never be without
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  Speaker 1: understanding as long as I rest and rely on you.
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  Speaker 1: I declare that I am stepping into the greatest season
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  Speaker 1: of understanding and wisdom in my life. In Jesus' name. Amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for praying with me today. Continue listening for
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  Speaker 1: an incredible Bible story, brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Solomon's God-Given Wisdom In our last story, the great reign
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  Speaker 2: of David came to a close. David ruled over Israel
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  Speaker 2: for forty years. and blessed the entire nation with his bravery, leadership,
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  Speaker 2: and love for God. Now it was Solomon's duty to
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  Speaker 2: rule over Israel with wisdom, mercy, and justice. As his
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  Speaker 2: first act as king, Solomon took care of those who
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  Speaker 2: were loyal to his father and dealt justly with those
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  Speaker 2: who betrayed him. Now we watch the heart of Solomon
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  Speaker 2: connected to the heart of God in a unique way.
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  Speaker 2: His desire for wisdom over riches and influence sparks God's
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  Speaker 2: loyalty and blessing. Inspired by the book of 1 Kings
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  Speaker 2: and 2 Chronicles.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
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  Speaker 3: Bible in a Year. In our last time together, we
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  Speaker 3: heard how David left final words of encouragement and instruction
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  Speaker 3: for Solomon before he died. After David's death, Solomon set
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  Speaker 3: about dealing with those who had betrayed his father and
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  Speaker 3: him and blessing those who proved loyal to Israel and
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  Speaker 3: to its leader. Already we caught glimpses of a man
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  Speaker 3: wise beyond his years, but that was just the beginning.
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  Speaker 3: Today we'll learn how Solomon pursued godly wisdom, choosing it
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  Speaker 3: over wealth and status. God is pleased by the heart
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  Speaker 3: of the young king and blesses him in a very
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  Speaker 3: special way. Solomon's wisdom will become something of renown throughout
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  Speaker 3: his kingdom as he listens to his people and discerns
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  Speaker 3: right from wrong and good from evil. So, let's listen
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  Speaker 3: now to today's scripture.
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  Speaker 2: Solomon sat in the palace courtyard of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.
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  Speaker 2: The hot Egyptian sun beat down on his back, causing
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  Speaker 2: a slight drip of sweat to fall down his neck.
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  Speaker 2: Solomon was there for a very specific purpose— He knew
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  Speaker 2: that in order for Israel to thrive, it could not
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  Speaker 2: just battle other countries. Some alliances had to be made
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  Speaker 2: for the preservation of their culture. So in the heat
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  Speaker 2: of day in the palace of Pharaoh, Solomon married one
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  Speaker 2: of Pharaoh's daughters as a symbol of political union. Trade
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  Speaker 2: with Egypt would prove useful, since Solomon had big plans
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  Speaker 2: to build a great temple for the Lord, just as
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  Speaker 2: his father David dreamed of. Solomon returned from Egypt, ecstatic
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  Speaker 2: at his new union with Egypt. There was something redemptive
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  Speaker 2: about an alliance with past enemies. Solomon felt a sense
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  Speaker 2: of purpose in creating allies instead of enemies. He made
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  Speaker 2: his way to Gibeon to worship God and get guidance
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  Speaker 2: and direction for next steps. He was still a young
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  Speaker 2: man and incredibly inexperienced. He knew that answers were found
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  Speaker 2: at the altar of God. The sun was beginning to
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  Speaker 2: set and Solomon sacrificed 1,000 burnt offerings to the Lord.
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  Speaker 2: Music and incense filled the room as Solomon breathed out
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  Speaker 2: sweet praises to God. A smile fell upon his face
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  Speaker 2: and he returned home. The night was calm and there
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  Speaker 2: was no breeze or sound in all of Israel. The
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  Speaker 2: stars shone brightly and Solomon was deep asleep in his bed.
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  Speaker 2: He shifted slightly in his bed, experiencing a dream more
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  Speaker 2: vivid and real than any other. Solomon stood before the Lord.
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  Speaker 2: He could not see him, but knew he was there.
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  Speaker 2: What do you want most? Solomon heard the Lord ask.
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  Speaker 2: Ask and it will be given to you. Solomon paused
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  Speaker 2: for a moment. He looked up and said, You showed
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  Speaker 2: my father faithful love since the beginning. He was honest
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  Speaker 2: and truly faithful to you, and you have continued your
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  Speaker 2: love for him by allowing me to sit on this throne.
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  Speaker 2: Solomon began to choke up, trying to capture the right words. Now,
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  Speaker 2: my God, you have made me king. and I am
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  Speaker 2: like a little child stumbling about. But you have placed
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  Speaker 2: me in the midst of your chosen people. They are
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  Speaker 2: a nation so great and so vast that they cannot
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  Speaker 2: be fully counted. Solomon paused again, this time kneeling before
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  Speaker 2: God with his hands spread open wide. Please give me
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  Speaker 2: an understanding heart and wisdom to govern your people well.
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  Speaker 2: Allow me to know the true difference between right and wrong,
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  Speaker 2: good and evil, curses and blessings. There is no man
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  Speaker 2: that can govern these people without you by their side.
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  Speaker 2: Solomon finished his request and sat at the feet of
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  Speaker 2: God for a long time. The Lord was very pleased
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  Speaker 2: with Solomon's request. He could have asked for riches, success, power,
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  Speaker 2: or victory over enemies. However, Solomon simply asked for a
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  Speaker 2: discerning and loving heart. God replied to Solomon saying, Because
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  Speaker 2: you have asked for wisdom instead of a long life
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  Speaker 2: or wealth, I will give you all you have asked
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  Speaker 2: for and more. The joy of God was palpable, and
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  Speaker 2: Solomon could feel it welling up in his chest. I
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  Speaker 2: will give you a wise heart, and no other ruler
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  Speaker 2: in history will match your mind. I will also give
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  Speaker 2: you more than you have asked for with riches, fame,
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  Speaker 2: and prosperity. All that I ask is that you follow
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  Speaker 2: me with your whole heart as your father did. And
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  Speaker 2: before Solomon could look up at the Lord, he awoke
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  Speaker 2: from his dream. He rose out of his bed and
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  Speaker 2: worshipped God alongside the governors of Israel. Soon after, Solomon
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  Speaker 2: was sitting in his court listening to the needs of
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  Speaker 2: the people. Solomon could feel God already filling his heart
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  Speaker 2: with wisdom and compassion. That day, two prostitutes came to
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  Speaker 2: the king to have their argument settled. One of the
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  Speaker 2: women was holding a newborn child while the other scowled
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  Speaker 2: at her. Solomon could already sense the situation before it unfolded.
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  Speaker 2: The woman not holding the child spoke, saying, Please, my lord,
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  Speaker 2: this woman I live with gave birth to a child
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  Speaker 2: the same week. However, her baby died in the middle
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  Speaker 2: of the night when she rolled over it. She got
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  Speaker 2: up in the middle of the night while I was
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  Speaker 2: asleep and took my child and left the dead child
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  Speaker 2: lying in my arms. Tears began to stream down the
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  Speaker 2: woman's face. When I tried to nurse the child, he
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  Speaker 2: was dead. When I looked closely, I found that it
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  Speaker 2: was not my child but hers. She stole my baby.
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  Speaker 2: The other woman snapped instantly and said, Of course it
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  Speaker 2: was your son. The living child is mine. No, the
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  Speaker 2: other woman yelled. The two of them argued back and
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  Speaker 2: forth before Solomon. He stood there quietly, wondering how he
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  Speaker 2: could truly know who the child belonged to. Solomon had
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  Speaker 2: an idea to discern the hearts of the mothers, but
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  Speaker 2: it would risk him looking like a heartless animal. Nevertheless,
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  Speaker 2: it was the only way to judge the hearts of
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  Speaker 2: these two women. Bring me a sword. Solomon gestured to
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  Speaker 2: his servant. The servant brought him a longsword, and Solomon
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  Speaker 2: stepped closer to the two women and the child. Since
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  Speaker 2: neither of you can agree, I will cut this living
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  Speaker 2: child into two pieces. As Solomon spoke these words, he
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  Speaker 2: looked closely into the eyes of each woman. Of course
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  Speaker 2: he would not harm the child, but he desired to
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  Speaker 2: see the immediate reactions of both women. He only had
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  Speaker 2: a moment to read them both. As the words were
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  Speaker 2: leaving Solomon's lips, one of the women shouted, No, no, no,
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  Speaker 2: my lord, give her the child if it means it
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  Speaker 2: gets to live. Please do not kill him. That sentence
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  Speaker 2: was all Solomon needed to discern who the real mother was,
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  Speaker 2: for the other woman seemed to be more okay with
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  Speaker 2: the idea of killing the child. Of course I will
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  Speaker 2: not kill the child, Solomon said. Give the baby to
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  Speaker 2: this woman who wants him to live. She is clearly
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  Speaker 2: the real mother. The women left, and their story reached
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  Speaker 2: the ears of every Israelite. They knew that Solomon was
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  Speaker 2: a king able to discern truth and justice. Slowly, under
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  Speaker 2: Solomon's rule, a great deal of peace and wealth spread
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  Speaker 2: across the land.
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  Speaker 3: Today's passage begins in the distant but familiar land of Egypt.
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  Speaker 3: Solomon had traveled to the neighboring country with an important mission.
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  Speaker 3: He knew that Israel was not meant to be isolated
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  Speaker 3: and constantly at war with the rest of the world.
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  Speaker 3: God's plan for Israel was for them to bless other
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  Speaker 3: nations also. And what better way to bless another nation
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  Speaker 3: and build peace than with an alliance with a former enemy?
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  Speaker 3: When he returned home, Solomon went to the altar of
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  Speaker 3: God to offer sacrifices. David had taught him in word
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  Speaker 3: and deed that he should honor God above all and
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  Speaker 3: walk with him. And so Solomon went often to God's altar.
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  Speaker 3: One night, God appeared to Solomon in a dream and
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  Speaker 3: asked Solomon what he should give him. There were no conditions, stipulations,
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  Speaker 3: or boundaries to the request. God wanted to know what
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  Speaker 3: Solomon desired most. Solomon's response is remarkable. He first acknowledged
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  Speaker 3: God's greatness, his love, and his steadfastness to David and
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  Speaker 3: to himself. Then he acknowledged his own shortcomings, his youth
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  Speaker 3: and inexperience, and the monumental task before him. Only then
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  Speaker 3: did Solomon make his request. Listen to what he said
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  Speaker 3: in 1 Kings 3, verse 9. Give your servant, therefore,
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  Speaker 3: an understanding mind to govern your people, Solomon did not
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  Speaker 3: ask to be strong and mighty like his father or
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  Speaker 3: rich and famous as many kings sought to become. He
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  Speaker 3: did not ask for a long life or great influence
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  Speaker 3: and power. Solomon asked for a discerning mind and a
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  Speaker 3: heart sensitive to God's guidance. It's no wonder that later
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  Speaker 3: in his life, this man would pin words of advice
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  Speaker 3: for his young men to seek after wisdom like silver
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  Speaker 3: and hidden treasure. He understood that all the wealth, power,
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  Speaker 3: and health and fame in the world would be worthless
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  Speaker 3: without the wisdom to use it properly for God's purposes.
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  Speaker 3: Because he asked for wisdom rather than the other things
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  Speaker 3: one might have expected, God promised to grant him wisdom
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  Speaker 3: unsurpassed in history by any other. but he would also
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  Speaker 3: bless him with wealth and influence and so much more.
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  Speaker 3: And if Solomon would walk in God's ways as his
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  Speaker 3: father David had, God would give him a long and
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  Speaker 3: prosperous life. When Solomon awoke from his dream, he went
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  Speaker 3: to Jerusalem immediately to the Ark of the Covenant, where
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  Speaker 3: he worshiped God with offerings and then prepared a feast
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  Speaker 3: for his servants. It didn't take long for Solomon's wisdom
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  Speaker 3: to be put to the test. One day, two women
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  Speaker 3: appeared before him with an argument. One woman claimed the
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  Speaker 3: other had swapped the dead child for her own living
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  Speaker 3: son and was trying to steal the baby. The other
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  Speaker 3: woman called her a liar. Solomon pondered a solution, and
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  Speaker 3: what he came up with was as shocking as it
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  Speaker 3: was brilliant. He told them that since they could not agree,
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  Speaker 3: he would simply cut the child in half and each
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  Speaker 3: could have one piece. One mother quickly begged him to
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  Speaker 3: spare the baby, to simply give it to the other
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  Speaker 3: woman lest he kill a child. The other woman, however,
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  Speaker 3: insisted that they follow Solomon's proposal and split the child
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  Speaker 3: in two. At that moment, Solomon knew the heart of
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  Speaker 3: a mother would rather lose her child to another than
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  Speaker 3: see him killed. So he ruled in favor of the
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  Speaker 3: first mother. Word of this ruling spread throughout Israel and
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  Speaker 3: the people knew they had a king who could discern
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  Speaker 3: right from wrong and good from evil. This was the
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  Speaker 3: man God chose to rule his people and, as we'll
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  Speaker 3: soon find out, to build his temple also. So let's pray.
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  Speaker 3: Dear God, we thank you for today's scripture, as always,
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  Speaker 3: for your word, which is light and life to our lives.
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  Speaker 3: We pray, O God, that we would always seek your wisdom.
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  Speaker 3: Beyond earthly things, may we ask for eternal things. that
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  Speaker 3: we would know your heart, your will, and discern your
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  Speaker 3: ways for our lives. Thank you for your wisdom, God,
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  Speaker 3: in all that we do. Amen. Thank you for listening
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  Speaker 3: to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Jack Graham
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  Speaker 3: from Dallas, Texas. Download the Pray.com app and make sure
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  Speaker 3: of God out to many, many people. And if you
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  Speaker 3: live the Christian life, be sure to visit jackgraham.org. That's jackgraham.org.