1 Kings 3:4 (WEB)

Passage

The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place. Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.

Nearby Context

1 Kings 3:2 However the people sacrificed in the high places, because there was not yet a house built for Yahweh’s name.

1 Kings 3:3 Solomon loved Yahweh, walking in the statutes of David his father; except that he sacrificed and burned incense in the high places.

1 Kings 3:4 The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place. Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.

1 Kings 3:5 In Gibeon, Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask for what I should give you.”

1 Kings 3:6 Solomon said, “You have shown to your servant David my father great loving kindness, because he walked before you in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with you. You have kept for him this great loving kindness, that you have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is today.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "king", "went", "gibeon", "sacrifice", "great", "high", "place", and "solomon". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "king" and "went", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Solomon loved Yahweh walking in the statutes..." into verse 5's "In Gibeon Yahweh appeared to Solomon in...", so "king" and "went" 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 "king" and "went" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.