Context Preceding The Ha•phᵊtâr•âhꞋ

The Qir of ShᵊlomꞋoh around Ir Dâ•widꞋ, 1st Century C.E. with Beit ha-Mi•qᵊdâshꞋ ha-Shein•iꞋ (looking north); NaꞋkhal Qi•dᵊrōnꞋ to east (lower right)

By their mutual arrangement, ShᵊlomꞋoh Bën-Dâ•widꞋ in-lawed with Par•ohꞋ Ah-kheper-Ra Setep-en-Amun, marrying one of the Par•ohꞋ 's daughters, whom he brought to Ir Dâ•widꞋ until he finished [1] his baꞋyit, [2] the Beit י‑‑ה and [3] the wall around Yᵊru•shâ•laꞋyim.

Demurring that the am sacrificed on bâm•otꞋ (because there was yet no BaꞋyit constructed to SheimꞋ י‑‑ה).

GivᵊōnꞋ, 10 km (6+ mi.) NW of Yᵊru•shâ•laꞋyim.

Now ShᵊlomꞋoh loved י‑‑ה, walking in the khuq•otꞋ of Dâ•widꞋ, his father – demurring that he sacrificed on bâm•otꞋ. One day, the mëlꞋëkh went to GivᵊōnꞋ to sacrifice there because that was the leading bâm•âhꞋ. ShᵊlomꞋoh sacrificed 1,000 ōl•ōtꞋ on that mi•zᵊbeiꞋakh.

While in GivᵊōnꞋ, ShᵊlomꞋoh dreamed that י‑‑ה appeared to him, saying, "What would you like me to grant you?"

So ShᵊlomꞋoh responded, "Your worker is amidst Your am, whom You have chosen, too many to count. Allow Your worker an empathetic heart to judge-mi•shᵊpâtꞋ of Your am; to understand between good and wrong. For what man can judge-mi•shᵊpâtꞋ of this am kâ•veidꞋ?"

This was a good thing in the Eyes of י‑‑ה so Ël•oh•imꞋ answered his tᵊphil•âhꞋ.

Ha•phᵊtâr•âhꞋ

When ShᵊlomꞋoh woke up he returned to Yᵊru•shâ•laꞋyim and stood in front of the •ronꞋ Bᵊrit A•don•âiꞋ, offering-up ōl•ōtꞋ and making shᵊlâm•imꞋ, culminating in a banquet for all of his workers.

One day, as ShᵊlomꞋoh ha-MëlꞋëkh was convening the Beit Din, two prostitutes brought their cases before him. One of the women explained, "Please a•don•iꞋ, I and this woman live in the same house and we each gave birth to a baby boy; first me, then, 3 days later, she also gave birth to a baby boy. We were together at home. There was no strange man in the house; just the two of us. During the night, she rolled over on her son and inadvertently smothered her baby boy. In the middle of the night, while I slept, she got up and switched sons with me. When I got up in the pre-dawn darkness to nurse my baby, it was dead. But, after daybreak when I could see better, I discovered it wasn't my baby, the baby to whom I gave birth."

"No," the other prostitute argued. "The living boy is my baby! The dead baby is hers." So, each prostitute argued that the living boy was her own baby while the dead baby belonged to the other.

"Get a sword for me!" demanded the mëlꞋëkh. So they brought a sword to him. Then the mëlꞋëkh ordered, "Slice the living boy in two. Give half to one and the other half to the other!"

"Please no, a•don•iꞋ!" wailed the woman whose child was the live boy, for she was overcome with anguish for her son. "Give her the living boy," she pleaded, "but don't kill the child." But the other woman agreed with the mëlꞋëkh: "If I can't have the boy then neither should she. Go ahead, slice him in two!"

So the mëlꞋëkh ordered, "Don't harm the baby! Award the boy to the woman who was willing to give-up the child rather than allow him to be killed! She is the boy's mother."

Word of the mëlꞋëkh's wise mi•shᵊpâtꞋ spread throughout all of Yi•sᵊr•â•eilꞋ; and everyone was in awe of the mëlꞋëkh because they saw that the wisdom of ël•oh•imꞋ was within him to do mi•shᵊpâtꞋ.

So ShᵊlomꞋoh ha-MëlꞋëkh was mëlꞋëkh over all Yi•sᵊr•â•eilꞋ.