1 Kings 3:5 (DRB)

Passage

And the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, saying: Ask what thou wilt that I should give thee.

Nearby Context

1 Kings 3:3 And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the precepts of David, his father; only he sacrificed in the high places, and burnt incense.

1 Kings 3:4 He went therefore to Gabaon, to sacrifice there: for that was the great high place: a thousand victims for holocausts, did Solomon offer upon that altar, in Gabaon.

1 Kings 3:5 And the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, saying: Ask what thou wilt that I should give thee.

1 Kings 3:6 And Solomon said: Thou hast shewed great mercy to thy servant David, my father, even as he walked before thee in truth, and justice, and an upright heart with thee: and thou hast kept thy great mercy for him, and hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

1 Kings 3:7 And now, O Lord God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David, my father: and I am but a child, and know not how to go out and come in;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "lord", "appeared", "solomon", "dream", "night", "saying", "thou", and "wilt". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "lord" and "appeared", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "He went therefore to Gabaon to sacrifice..." into verse 6's "And Solomon said Thou hast shewed great...", so "lord" and "appeared" belong inside that flow. In 1 Kings context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "lord" and "appeared" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.