Kings I 3:11

11 And the Lord said to Samuel, Behold, I execute my words in Israel; whoever hears them, both his ears shall tingle.

Kings I 3:11 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 3:11

And God said unto him
Being yet in a dream:

because thou hast asked this thing;
wisdom for government:

and hast not asked for thyself long life;
which is naturally desired by men, and always reckoned a great temporal blessing, and especially to be wished for by a king living in great pomp and splendour:

neither hast asked riches for thyself;
to support his grandeur; for though David his father had left him much, yet not for himself, but for the building of the temple:

nor hast asked the life of thine enemies;
victory over them, and to have it in his power to take away their lives when he pleased; which kings, and especially tyrants, are desirous of, such as are ambitious, haughty, and revengeful:

but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;
where the right of a cause lay, that so he might make a right judgment of it, and pass a righteous sentence, a sentence not to the injury of any.

Kings I 3:11 In-Context

9 And he said, Return, child, go to sleep; and it shall come to pass if he shall call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak for thy servant hears: and Samuel went and lay down in his place.

10 And the Lord came, and stood, and called him as before: and Samuel said, Speak, for thy servant hears.

11 And the Lord said to Samuel, Behold, I execute my words in Israel; whoever hears them, both his ears shall tingle.

12 In that day I will raise up against Heli all things that I have said against his house; I will begin, and I will make an end.

13 And I have told him that I will be avenged on his house perpetually for the iniquities of his sons, because his sons spoke evil against God, and he did not admonish them.