1 Kings 3:24

24 So the king said, "Bring me a sword," and they brought a sword before the king.

1 Kings 3:24 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 3:24

And the king said, bring me a sword
The design of which might not at first appear to the court, and it might be thought strange, and greatly wondered at: what should be the meaning of it: and they brought a sword before the king;
his commands were obeyed.

1 Kings 3:24 In-Context

22 But the other woman said, "No, the living son is mine, and the dead son is yours." The first said, "No, the dead son is yours, and the living son is mine." So they argued before the king.
23 Then the king said, "The one says, "This is my son that is alive, and your son is dead'; while the other says, "Not so! Your son is dead, and my son is the living one.' "
24 So the king said, "Bring me a sword," and they brought a sword before the king.
25 The king said, "Divide the living boy in two; then give half to the one, and half to the other."
26 But the woman whose son was alive said to the king—because compassion for her son burned within her—"Please, my lord, give her the living boy; certainly do not kill him!" The other said, "It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it."
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.