After listening to the story of the wanderers, Solomon invited them to come back the next day for a solution, and he himself began to figure out how to detect the thief, forcing him to incriminate himself. When the strangers came to trial, Solomon addressed them with these words:
I heard about you that you are enlightened people, wise and experienced in controversial matters, and I ask you to judge the matter with which one king approached me.
In the country of this king, a young man and a girl grew up next to each other. They fell in love with each other, and the young man said to the girl: “Swear to me that you will not become anyone’s wife until I give my consent.” The girl swore. After some time, she was engaged to another man. After the wedding, when the newlyweds were left alone, the bride told the groom: “I cannot become your wife until I go to my first groom, to whom I swore, and receive his consent to this.”
Having come to the first groom, she said: “Take a large ransom from me in silver and gold and allow me to become the wife of the one with whom I was married.” “Since you remained faithful to your oath,” he replied, “I will not take any ransom. Go, you are free.” And to the young husband, who was right there, he said: “Rejoice in your lot in the world.”
On the way back they were attacked by robbers. Among the robbers there was one old man who, not content with the stolen money and jewelry, demanded lovemaking from a young woman. “Let me,” she begged, turning to the robber, “tell me about one incident from my life.” And she told the story of her first matchmaking and how both her suitors acted. “Think,” she added in conclusion, “that young man who had all the rights to me overcame his passion and did not touch me. You, an old man, should all the more curb yourself. Keep all the silver and gold for yourself, just free me and my husband."
After listening to her story, the robber raised his eyes to the sky and, deeply repenting of what he - standing on the edge of the grave - intended to do, not only set the young couple free, but also returned all the money and jewelry taken from them, down to the last detail.
The king,” added Solomon, “in whose country this incident occurred, asks me which of those involved in this story deserves the highest praise?”
And so, I ask you to help me judge this matter.
“Sir,” answered one of the wanderers, “in my opinion, the bride who remained faithful to her oath deserves the highest praise.”
The second one said:
- The young husband deserves the highest praise, who managed to resist temptation and did not touch her before the first groom freed her from her vow.
What's this! - exclaimed the third of the wanderers. - Most of all, I am surprised at the robber: just think - not only did he not touch the captive, but he gave back the money, all the money that was already in his hands!
And King Solomon said:
- This latter speaks with such delight about money, which he has not even seen, but only heard about; What was he able to do with the money that ended up in his hands?
Class
TESTING THE READER'S ABILITY TO WORK WITH THE TEXT OF A WORK OF ART (2nd quarter)
The young king Solomon once heard an unknown voice in a dream. “Ask me what to give you? – this voice told him. – You must decide your fate. Do you want to become famous on earth for your military exploits? Do you want to buy a lot of gold and become the first rich man? Or conquer all nations? Or live a long, long life?.. Choose - and whatever you want will come true!” Solomon thought about it and, after thinking, answered: “I do not ask for military glory, wealth, or longevity. I don’t want power over all people either. I want one thing: to become wise. Let my heart be reasonable and my mind good, so that I can distinguish between good and evil and be a fair judge.” And a voice said to him: “So be it.” And Solomon became the wisest among people. And because he was a sage, he became a powerful ruler, and acquired countless riches, and all nations were subjugated, and he became famous throughout the world. There was a rumor all over the land about his great intelligence and justice. And people came to him so that he would judge their disputes and litigation. One day two women came to him and brought him a child who was not even a month old. And one woman said: “King!” We both lived in the same house, slept in the same room. I had a son, and so did she. We were alone in the whole house, and there was no one with us. At night, this woman’s son died, and she secretly put him in my bed, and took my son with her. In the morning I woke up and saw her dead child next to me. But then another woman began to shout: “It’s not true!” This is my son alive, and yours is dead! Solomon said: “Give me the sword!” When they brought a sharp sword to the king, Solomon ordered the warrior standing nearby: “Take the child and cut him in two.” And give one half to one woman, and the other half to another. The first woman got scared and screamed: “Don’t kill him, don’t kill him!” I pray you, king, do not order him to be killed! Better give my son to this woman - as long as he stays alive! And the other said: “Your decision is fair, O wise one!” Let neither her nor me get this child! Then Solomon restrained the warrior’s hand and said: “Give the child to the one who took pity on him: she is his mother!” And the child was given to the mother, and she pressed him to her heart. And the deceiver was driven away in shame. Thus did Solomon, the wise and just, judge.
(356 words)
(Retold by V. Smirnova)
Read the biblical legend “The Judgment of Solomon” as retold by V. Smirnova. Complete the tasks. Mark the statements that correspond to the content of the text read.
1. At what time do the events described in the text take place?
A) In very distant times; B) in our time; B) in the recent past.
2. Who was proposed to by an unknown voice in a dream?
A) To a wise ruler; B) a famous warrior; B) to the young king.
A) Choosing a life path; B) predicting the future; B) knowledge of the past.
4. What temptations did the unknown voice offer Solomon? Restore their sequence using numbers.
A) Live a long, long life; B) become famous on earth for military exploits; C) conquer all nations; D) buy a lot of gold and become the first rich man.
6. What meaning does King Solomon put into the words? a wise man?
A) Gifted with great intelligence; B) having extensive life experience; C) with a reasonable heart and a kind mind.
7. Why, for what purpose did King Solomon ask for wisdom?
A) Be a powerful ruler; B) be a fair judge; C) become famous throughout the world.
8. Why and for what purpose did people come to the king?
A) Marvel at his great mind; B) admire his justice; C) judge their disputes and litigation.
9. Identify in the text the beginning of the parable (6 words), which glorified the wisdom of Solomon throughout the centuries.
10. For what purpose in the parable did the king give the order to the soldier to cut the child in two?
A) Determine the mother of the child; B) divide the child equally; B) punish women.
11. Why did Solomon order the child to be given to the first woman?
12. What qualities, in your opinion, should a real mother have?
13. According to Solomon, what should a just judge discern?
14. Explain the meaning of the expression Solomon's solution.
Correct answers to tasks
Before we understand and determine the meaning and meaning of the expression “Judgment of Solomon,” let’s plunge into ancient history and turn to the Bible for help to find out who Solomon was and why he became so famous. And here it should immediately be noted that the name Solomon (Shlomo) is translated from Hebrew as “peacemaker.”
Just one statement about Solomon and his court is worth a lot and it goes like this: “The main thing is wisdom, acquire wisdom and with all your possessions acquire understanding. Appreciate it and it will exalt you.”
King Solomon
Solomon was the third king of Judah, whose reign dates from approximately 967-928 BC. He was also the son of Bathsheba. Even at birth, the prophet Nathan singled him out from all the sons of David, who later became the most intelligent and dispassionate ruler. It was he who built the First on He had a talent for foresight and was very sensitive, so many legends and fairy tales are associated with his name.
Solomon's judgment was always fair and wise. There is a legend that when God appeared to him in a dream and promised to fulfill his every desire, Solomon asked for a reasonable heart in order to correctly judge his people and be able to distinguish between good and evil. Solomon became a peaceful king; during the forty years of his reign there was not a single major war. He was an excellent diplomat, merchant and builder, and under him chariots, cavalry and a merchant fleet appeared in the Jewish army. He strengthened and rebuilt his Jerusalem, which began to drown in luxury and wealth. King Solomon made silver equal to simple stones.
The price of disobedience
But, like any king, he also made mistakes, and therefore after his death his state fell apart. One of the reasons was the king’s construction of temples and pagan idols for his many wives, who were often from different races and religions. He even swore an oath to participate personally in some pagan cults.
The oral Torah Midrash describes that when King Solomon married the daughter of the Egyptian pharaoh, the Archangel Gabriel descended from heaven to earth and stuck his pole into the depths of the sea, on this place Rome was subsequently built, which would later conquer Jerusalem.
The biblical “Book of Kingdoms” says that at the end of his life God again appeared before Solomon and told him that he would tear his kingdom away from him, since he had not fulfilled His covenants and statutes, but during his lifetime he would not do this because of his father. David. After the death of Solomon, his once strong and powerful kingdom fell apart into two weak states of Israel and Judah, which began to fight among themselves.
Solomon's Judgment: Meaning
There is such a popular expression among the people - “Solomon’s court” or “Solomon’s decision”. It implies a quick, witty and at the same time unexpected solution, which helps to deftly get out of some difficult and very controversial situation. This phraseological unit “Judgment of Solomon” is used in the meaning of “quick and wise.”
Examples of Solomon's wise decisions
One day Solomon began to judge two women who could not share a baby between them. They lived in the same house, and almost at the same time they each had a baby. At night, one of the women slept with her child, and he died. Then she took the living child from another and transferred her dead one to her. The next morning a fierce argument arose between the women. So they came to Solomon for judgment. He, having listened to their story, ordered to cut the child in half and distribute the halves to the mothers. One of the women immediately decided: it would be better if no one got it. Another begged not to kill the baby, and immediately allowed another woman to take the child, as long as he remained alive. Having identified her as a real mother, King Solomon immediately ordered the child to be given to this woman.
Pharaoh's Help
One day Solomon took the daughter of Pharaoh as his wife when he was building the Holy of Holies - the temple of his Lord, and one day he decided to send an ambassador to his father-in-law with a request to help him. Pharaoh immediately sent six hundred people who were destined for death according to the horoscope to help Solomon. Thus, he wanted to test the wisdom of the king of Israel. Solomon, seeing them from afar, ordered shrouds to be sewn for them, and then assigned his ambassador to them and told his father-in-law that if he had nothing to bury his dead in, then here are the clothes for them and let him bury them at home.
Solomon's trial of the three brothers
The dying father called his three sons to give his last orders regarding the inheritance. They came to him, and he told them that he had a treasure buried somewhere in the ground, there were three vessels standing on top of each other. Let the eldest go to the top vessel, the middle one to the next, and the youngest to the bottom. When the father died, they dug up the treasure and saw that the first vessel was filled with gold, the second with bones, and the third with earth. The brothers, in horror, began to argue over the gold and could not divide it. It was then that they decided to come to Solomon so that he would justly resolve them
Solomon's court, as always, was very wise; he ordered the gold to be given to the elder brother, livestock and servants to the middle one, and vineyards, grain and fields to the younger one. And he told them that their father was a smart man, since he divided everything between them so competently during his lifetime.
Now I will tell you how Solomon judged wisely and how justly he decided matters. In Jerusalem, two women lived in the same house, even in the same room. Both of them had a small infant. They had no nannies or cradles, and the children slept with their mothers in the same bed. One day one of them put her child too close to her, carelessly pressed him to her chest, so that the child could not breathe, and the poor thing suffocated. At night the woman woke up and looked at her child. And how scared she was when she saw that he wasn’t moving or even breathing! I felt it, but it was cold. Then she realized that the child had died, that she had strangled him.
This woman sees that her neighbor is sleeping. “Wait,” she thinks to herself, “no one will know that I strangled the child. I'll replace him." She slowly crept up to her sleeping neighbor, carefully took her living child from her, and slipped her her dead one. And as if nothing had happened, she went to sleep on her bed with someone else’s living child.
Another woman wakes up in the morning. She takes the baby, wants to breastfeed him and cannot believe her eyes - he is dead. She begins to peer and sees that this is not her child.
Children! Do you understand how much your mothers love you? Look how tenderly, how attentively a kind mother looks at her tiny child. She knows what kind of nose, lips, eyes her child has; she knows where his spot is; She seems to have counted every hair on the baby’s head.
“Give me my child! - she screamed. - Why did you change the child? She stole a living one from me, and slipped me a dead one.” "What you? Come to your senses! - says the woman who strangled her child. “This is my child, and I will never give him to you.”
They argued, argued, quarreled, fought, but the one who stole it did not give the child to the real mother.
What to do? They decided to turn to the young King Solomon, let him decide who to give the child to. They come to the king. They start talking. One says: “This woman accidentally strangled her child last night and, when I was sleeping, she took my living child and put her dead one for me. Sovereign! Tell her to give my child back.” “No,” says the other, “she strangled her child, and now she wants me to give her my living one. Sovereign! Tell her to leave me alone. I won’t give her the child.” “My baby is alive!” - says one. “No, not yours, but mine!” - another argues. “You strangled the child,” says one. "No you!" - the other one answers.
No matter how much the women argued, it was impossible to get a clear understanding of whose child it was. You and I would never have solved this difficult matter. And Solomon decided. “Bring the sword here,” he said to the servant. The servant brought a large sharp sword. “Take a living child,” said Solomon, “cut it in half and give half to each woman; let them not argue.” Don't be afraid, children, don't be afraid! Would Solomon really allow the poor child to be cut to pieces? No! This is what he thought: “A real mother will not let him be cut. She’d rather give it to another woman, as long as her child is alive.” And Solomon guessed right, he was not mistaken.
The woman who strangled her child and dragged away a stranger said: “Let the child be cut up - neither I nor you will get it.” She, you see, didn’t feel sorry for someone else’s child. And the real mother, whose child was replaced, began to ask that he not be killed. “Sir,” she begged with tears, “it’s better to give the child to this woman, just don’t kill him. May he remain alive." This is how Solomon found out which of the women was the real mother. He ordered her to give the child. How she rejoiced and thanked the king!
When the Israelites learned how wisely the young king judged them, they began to respect him. The good ones rejoiced and loved the king, but the evil ones did not like him and were afraid of him.
Solomon's Court
Biblical parable
One day two harlot women came to the king. One of them said:
- Oh my lord! This woman and I live in the same house. I produced offspring here. Three days later this woman also gave birth. We were together, and there was no one else in the house with us; just the two of us. This woman's son died at night because she slept with him. Then she got up at night, took my son from me while I, your servant, was sleeping, and put him to her chest, and laid the dead child to my chest. In the morning I got up to feed my son, but he was lifeless. However, 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 yours is dead.
And she objected to her:
- No, your son is dead, but mine is alive.
So they quarreled before the king.
Then the ruler 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.” Give me the sword.
And they brought a sword to the king. He 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.
King David and the elders worshiping God the Father. Fragment of a fresco depicted on the wall of the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Fürstenzell, Bavaria
And the other one said:
- Let it be neither for me nor for you, chop it down.
Then the king said:
- Give this living child and do not kill him. She is his mother.
And all Israel heard about the judgment, how the king decided the matter; and they began to fear the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to carry out judgment.