As a child, I brought home a report card with all S’s, which stood for Satisfactory. My sister, who was five years older than me, had a mixture of A’s and B’s. I thought our report cards proved I was smarter because I had what I thought was the equivalent of all A’s. My older brother then proceeded to offer us a test. He went to my parents’ bookshelf and pulled out a book. He asked me to read a passage. I stumbled, only recognizing a few words. My sister read the passage flawlessly. My brother declared her the smartest.
Lesson learned. His test proved to be wise.
The people in Israel learned a lesson on wisdom from King Solomon. Two women had delivered babies. One baby died when his mother accidentally “lay on him” (1 Kings 3:19). This mother then tried to claim the living baby as her own. The women went to Solomon to ask who should keep the baby. When he heard the complaint, he ordered that the living baby be cut in two so both women could have a half of the child (v. 25).
The woman who was not the mother agreed to this order, but the true mother said, “Give her the living baby! Don’t kill him!” (v. 26). When she spoke up to save the child, Solomon ruled that she was the mother and said to give her the baby (v. 27). Solomon’s God-given wisdom was on full display.
As God helps us, our actions can show others the true wisdom that comes from Him too (Proverbs 2:6).
What decisions do you need wisdom for today? How can you find wisdom?
All-wise God, please give me the wisdom I need to know which way to go.
As King Solomon began his reign, “The Lord appeared to [him] during the night in a dream” and told him, “Ask for whatever you want” (1 Kings 3:5). He asked for “a discerning heart to govern [God’s] people” (v. 9). God granted his request (3:10-14; 4:29-34), and he began well (3:28). Yet his personal life became a shambles due to his habit of marrying women who practiced other religions (11:2). He “loved many foreign women” (v. 1) and “as [he] grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods” (v. 4). Despite what God had given him, he disregarded his own wisdom. Today, we can ask God to direct our paths and help us walk in the way of wisdom.
