And God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to listen to justice,
1 Kings 3:9 So give Your slave a listening heart to judge Your people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this glorious people of Yours?”
1 Kings 3:10 And it was pleasing in the sight of the Lord that Solomon had asked this thing.
1 Kings 3:11 And God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to listen to justice,
1 Kings 3:12 behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you.
1 Kings 3:13 I have also given you what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there will not be any among the kings like you all your days.
The verse centers on "said", "asked", "yourself", "long", "life", and "riches". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "said" and "asked", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 10's "And it was pleasing in the sight..." into verse 12's "behold I have done according to your...", so "said" and "asked" 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 "said" and "asked" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.