behold, I have done according to thy word behold, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart, so that there hath been none like unto thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
God answers Solomon's prayer in full, and then gives more than Solomon asked for. Three questions follow. Why did this prayer please God? What is a "wise and discerning mind"? And did the gift secure Solomon's future?
Solomon put himself low, and God set him high. One writer ties this to the way of Christ:
Solomon's answer "pleased the Lord" (v. 10). The Lord grants Solomon what he asked, and is pleased to add what Solomon had not asked for. He gives him the first place in wisdom. He also gives him riches and honour, so that no king in his days would be like him. Solomon's humble dependence put him in first place, as it is written: "Whoever would be great among you must be your servant... whoever would be first among you must be slave of all." It was so with Christ: "even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Where the ESV reads "discerning mind," older translations read "an understanding heart." That heart begins by listening:
He asks the Lord for "an understanding heart," for hearing is the door to discernment and intelligence. To be wise, you must begin by listening to wisdom: "Blessed is the one who listens to me." All true service starts with hearing. Solomon did not know how to "go out or come in"; he could not learn this except by listening.
God gave a wise heart, not a clever mind. That difference shapes every judgment:
You only really learn the mind of God with the heart, not with the intellect... The heart listens. When it has received the lessons it needs, it becomes wise, able to discern between good and evil and to govern the people of God. The heart matters so much in service because no judgment can be according to God unless love is its starting point. We experience this in cases of discipline, in guiding souls, and in caring for saints and assemblies.
God's invitation was open-ended, and His answer overflowed the request:
God appeared to him in the night with the wonderful message, "Ask what I shall give you." It was as though He placed all His resources at the disposal of faith. The young king prays for wisdom and knowledge so that he may care for the flock committed to him. It was a most remarkable prayer for one in his position. The Lord shows His pleasure in it by giving him far more than all he asked or thought.
One writer turns this toward our own responsibilities:
Solomon did not ask for wisdom out of vanity or personal gain. He realised what a tremendous responsibility the Lord had entrusted to him, young and inexperienced as he was... May we too seek wisdom from above to function well in our daily tasks, family needs, and in the responsibilities God entrusts to us among His people! God will delight to honour such prayers. James 1:5-6 assures us that God is pleased to grant wisdom to all who ask Him in faith, with no doubting.
Solomon's own book shows where his wisdom had to stay anchored:
A brief look at the book shows that when God gave Solomon wisdom, it was wisdom from above. His own wisdom, great as it was, was not enough to guide him when he was directed by himself. So we find "the fear of the Lord" connected with wisdom.
A condition follows in the next verse, and that is where the story turns:
In verse 14, as in all the books we are studying, the question of the king's responsibility is raised. "If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days." Solomon could not meet this if. It led to his ruin and to the division of his kingdom.
One writer looks past Solomon to Christ:
Not one question brought to Jesus on earth puzzled Him. He is the true Solomon, the greater than Solomon, and His wisdom could meet and answer every hard question. Nor is it different now, for Christ, risen from the dead and glorified in heaven, "became to us wisdom from God" (1 Cor. 1:30). There is not a question the troubled, anxious sinner can bring to Him that He will not answer in wisdom and in grace.
- Listening — hearing is the door to discernment. All true service starts by listening to wisdom.
- Heart — you learn God's mind with the heart, not the intellect. No judgment is according to God unless love starts it.
- Humility — humble dependence put Solomon in first place. Christ walked the same order: the servant becomes the greatest.
- Overflow — God placed all His resources at the disposal of faith and gave far beyond the prayer. The same offer stands when we ask in faith today.
- Fear of the Lord — wisdom from above still stays under the fear of the Lord. Solomon failed the "if" that came with the gift; the greater than Solomon answers every hard question still.
And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and glory; so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.
God answers Solomon's prayer for an understanding heart. Then He adds two things the young king never mentioned, which raises a question about prayer: why does God give what we never asked for?
God offered Solomon anything he wanted. What he left out matters as much as what he asked for. One writer ties his choice to a principle the Lord Jesus later taught.
He might have asked for long life or riches, or the life of his enemies. Instead he asked for an understanding heart, so that he might rule the people of God well. Our blessed Lord once said: "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." On this principle the Lord dealt with Solomon.
Riches and honour followed humble dependence, not ambition. One writer sees the same order in Christ: the servant's place first, then the highest place of all.
The Lord grants Solomon his request and is pleased to add what Solomon had not requested. He grants him the first place in wisdom. Moreover, He gives him "both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days." Solomon's humble dependence put him in first place, as it is written: "Whoever would be great among you must be your servant." It was so with Christ: "For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." In every respect there is none like Him! Wisdom, power, wealth, the crown of glory and honour — all things shall be His in the day which the Lord shall make.
God's offer to Solomon had no limits. One writer shows what God did with a prayer that put His people before self.
God appeared to him in the night with the wonderful message, "Ask what I shall give you." It was as though He placed all His resources at the disposal of faith. The young king prays for wisdom and knowledge so that he may care for the flock committed to him. It was a most remarkable prayer for one in his position. The Lord shows His pleasure in it by giving him far more than all that he asked or thought.
God gave the riches with no conditions. The next verse adds one. One writer points to the small word that everything else hangs on.
In verse 14, as in all the books we are studying, we meet the question of the king's responsibility. "If you will walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days." Solomon could not meet this if. It led to his ruin and to the division of his kingdom.
Solomon's later life turns the gift into a warning. He got the riches and honour — but not by waiting on God.
We must not always take the gaining and enjoying of promised blessings as a mark of God's approval. Solomon had asked God for wisdom, and to it God added riches and honour. But then he obtained the promised riches and honour by disobedience. He gathered many chariots and horses for himself, which God had forbidden. We need faith for the means as well as the end. That is, we must wait patiently for God Himself to make good to us the very blessings He promised.
Another writer asks what Solomon did with the gift:
Was there no misuse of the abundant riches which the Lord added to him? Were they given so that he might bring horses out of Egypt, have chariots, and take many wives — the very things God had forbidden?
- Asked — Solomon asked for an understanding heart to rule God's people. He left out long life, wealth and the life of his enemies.
- Added — He sought God's interests first, so God added the rest. God put all His resources at the disposal of faith and gave far beyond what Solomon asked.
- Ascended — Humble dependence put Solomon first. It is the pattern of Christ, who came to serve, and to whom wisdom, wealth and honour will belong.
- Attached — God gave the riches outright. He did not give long life the same way: it hung on an "if" of obedience Solomon failed to meet.
- Abused — He later grasped the promised riches and honour by disobedience. We need faith for the means as much as for the end.