Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
1 Kings 4:29 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 29. 29And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
This verse opens the thought unit and establishes its first action or speech: “And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that….” Its responsible meaning belongs to the complete movement “Solomon's wisdom and international fame.”
Wisdom is credited as God's gift, then compared with famous names
This verse is one part of that explanation in 1 Kings 4:29–34. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- 1 Kings 4:29–34
Read 1 Kings 4:29 with 4:29–34. The selected wording supplies one opening in the thought unit and establishes its first action or speech; the surrounding verses supply the causes, responses, and outcome summarized here: Credits God with Solomon's extraordinary wisdom, understanding, and breadth of mind; ends the portrait with people and royal delegations coming from many lands to hear Solomon's wisdom.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within “Solomon's wisdom and international fame,” 1 Kings 4:29 opens the thought unit and establishes its first action or speech through the wording “And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that….” Its placement is governed by this reviewed relationship: 1 Kings 4:22–28 establishes this prior movement: Quantifies the fine flour and meal consumed by Solomon's court each day; names barley and straw for horses and swift animals as another district obligation. 1 Kings 4:29–34 interprets, evaluates, or organizes what the preceding movement has established; that demonstrated relationship, rather than database adjacency alone, explains its placement.
Read 1 Kings 4:29–34 together
Why these verses belong together: Solomon's wisdom and international fame is the complete reviewed scene, prayer, oracle, list, or regnal notice bounded at 4:29–4:34.
Verse 29. 29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore.
Verse 30. 30 And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt.
Verse 31. 31 For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all nations round about.
Verse 32. 32 And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five.
Verse 33. 33 And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes.
Verse 34. 34 And there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his wisdom.
Follow the Context
- Credits God with Solomon's extraordinary wisdom, understanding, and breadth of mind
- Ends the portrait with people and royal delegations coming from many lands to hear Solomon's wisdom
What This Verse Is Not Saying
1 Kings 4:29 does not permit the wording “And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that…” to be read apart from the selected verse's context. The unit does not make wisdom moral infallibility, reduce vulnerable people to illustrations, or promise wealth, health, or success to everyone who asks for discernment.
What Remains True
Discernment serves justice when it hears vulnerable people carefully and remains open to later moral evaluation. This unit tests that truth through credits God with Solomon's extraordinary wisdom, understanding, and breadth of mind; ends the portrait with people and royal delegations coming from many lands to hear Solomon's wisdom. In 1 Kings 4:29, the concrete line “And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that…” keeps that truth accountable to the narrated evidence.
Teach It Back
In 70–220 words, explain 1 Kings 4:29's role in 4:29–34. Paraphrase “And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that…,” identify one agent or affected person, state one material source or historical limit, and name one conclusion the context does not authorize.
Your explanation stays in this browser. It is not sent or saved.
Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read 1 Kings 4:29–34 — Solomon's wisdom and international fameSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage.
Exact location: 1 Kings 4:29–34, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 1 Kings
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Hebrew wording and morphology used for lexical, grammatical, name, clause, and older-English checks; this is not a critical apparatus or historical proof.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/1Kgs.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 4:29–34
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: 1 Kings with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Only printed unit-level translation, lexical, grammatical, textual, historical, and verse-numbering notes; silence is not evidence.
Exact location: NET Bible 1 Kings PDF, printed pp. 591–593, translation and translator notes for 4:29–34
Open source ↗