Two harlot women came to the king and stood before him. And one woman said:
- Oh, my lord! This woman and I live in the same house. And I gave birth in her presence in this house. On the third day after I gave birth, this woman gave birth too. And we were together, and there was no one else in the house with us; only the two of us were in the house. And the woman's son died at night, because she slept with him. And she arose at night and took my son from me while I, your servant, was sleeping, and laid him to her breast, and she laid her dead son to my breast. In the morning I got up to feed my son, and behold, he was dead. And when I looked at him in the morning, it was not my son whom I gave birth to.
And the other woman said:
- No, my son is alive, and your son is dead.
And she told her:
- No, your son is dead, but mine is alive.
And they said this before the king.
And the king said:
- This one says: “My son is alive, but your son is dead”; and she says: “No, your son is dead, but my son is alive.” “And the king said, “Give me the sword.”
And they brought the sword to the king. And the king said:
“Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other.”
And the woman whose son was alive answered the king, for her whole inside was agitated with pity for her son:
- Oh, my lord! Give her this child alive and do not kill him.
And the other one said:
- Let it be neither for me nor for you, chop it down.
And the king answered and said:
- Give this living child and do not kill him. She is his mother.
And all Israel heard of the judgment, as the king judged; and they began to fear the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to carry out judgment.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru