1 Kings 3:22 (YLT)

Passage

And the other woman saith, `Nay, but my son <FI>is<Fi> the living, and thy son the dead;' and this <FI>one<Fi> saith, `Nay, but thy son <FI>is<Fi> the dead, and my son the living.' And they speak before the king.

Nearby Context

1 Kings 3:20 and she riseth in the middle of the night, and taketh my son from beside me--and thy handmaid is asleep--and layeth it in her bosom, and her dead son she hath laid in my bosom;

1 Kings 3:21 and I rise in the morning to suckle my son, and lo, dead; and I consider concerning it in the morning, and lo, it was not my son whom I did bear.'

1 Kings 3:22 And the other woman saith, `Nay, but my son <FI>is<Fi> the living, and thy son the dead;' and this <FI>one<Fi> saith, `Nay, but thy son <FI>is<Fi> the dead, and my son the living.' And they speak before the king.

1 Kings 3:23 And the king saith, `This <FI>one<Fi> saith, This <FI>is<Fi> my son, the living, and thy son <FI>is<Fi> the dead; and that <FI>one<Fi> saith, Nay, but thy son <FI>is<Fi> the dead, and my son the living.'

1 Kings 3:24 And the king saith, `Take for me a sword;' and they bring the sword before the king,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "other", "woman", "saith", "living", and "dead". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "other" and "woman", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 21's "and I rise in the morning to..." into verse 23's "And the king saith This FI one...", so "other" and "woman" 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 "other" and "woman" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.