Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
2 Chronicles 1:10 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 10. 10Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy people, that is so great?
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
The idiom describes leading public life and responsibility, not merely physical travel. In 2 Chronicles 1:10, “go out and come in” belongs to the complete movement “Solomon asks for wisdom to govern.”
Read It With
- 2 Chronicles 1:7–13
Read 2 Chronicles 1:10 with 1:7–13. The selected wording supplies one step in the thought unit through its next action, speech, or consequence; the surrounding verses supply the causes, responses, and outcome summarized here: In the divine appearance Solomon grounds his request in mercy to David and asks for wisdom and knowledge to judge a great people; wealth and honor are added.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within “Solomon asks for wisdom to govern,” 2 Chronicles 1:10 advances the thought unit through its next action, speech, or consequence through the wording “Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for….” Its placement is governed by this reviewed relationship: Wisdom is framed as responsibility toward people, not private brilliance, and it tests the meaning of the reign that follows. Solomon's request for governing wisdom responds to public worship and must be tested by the military and commercial accumulation narrated immediately afterward.
Read 2 Chronicles 1:7–13 together
Why these verses belong together: 2 Chronicles 1:7–13 forms the complete movement “Solomon asks for wisdom to govern”: In the divine appearance Solomon grounds his request in mercy to David and asks for wisdom and knowledge to judge a great people; wealth and honor are added.
Verse 7. 7 In that night did God appear unto Solomon, and said unto him, Ask what I shall give thee.
Verse 8. 8 And Solomon said unto God, Thou hast shewed great mercy unto David my father, and hast made me to reign in his stead.
Verse 9. 9 Now, O LORD God, let thy promise unto David my father be established: for thou hast made me king over a people like the dust of the earth in multitude.
Verse 10. 10 Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy people, that is so great?
Verse 11. 11 And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king:
Verse 12. 12 Wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honour, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee, neither shall there any after thee have the like.
Verse 13. 13 Then Solomon came from his journey to the high place that was at Gibeon to Jerusalem, from before the tabernacle of the congregation, and reigned over Israel.
Follow the Context
- In the divine appearance Solomon grounds his request in mercy to David and asks for wisdom and knowledge to judge a great people; wealth and honor are added.
- Wisdom is framed as responsibility toward people, not private brilliance, and it tests the meaning of the reign that follows.
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“go out and come in”
In plain language: The idiom describes leading public life and responsibility, not merely physical travel.
In 2 Chronicles 1:10, “go out and come in” belongs to the complete movement “Solomon asks for wisdom to govern.”
Why it matters: This wording materially sharpens the passage-specific meaning or boundary.
How certain? probableWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
2 Chronicles 1:10 does not permit the wording “Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for…” to be read apart from the selected verse's context. The promise does not guarantee wealth to faithful people, validate prosperity formulas, or make later royal excess morally harmless.
What Remains True
Worship and wisdom remain accountable to covenant, labor, outsiders, resources, and God's freedom; sacred scale never makes royal power or a building immune from review. This unit tests that truth through the narrated movement: In the divine appearance Solomon grounds his request in mercy to David and asks for wisdom and knowledge to judge a great people; wealth and honor are added. In 2 Chronicles 1:10, the concrete line “Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for…” keeps that truth accountable to the narrated evidence.
How It Can Shape Life
- The evidence to keep visible in this verse is “Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for….” When worship, buildings, wealth, or leadership are involved, disclose labor and money, welcome outsiders without stigma, preserve covenant limits, and refuse to measure God's presence by scale or spectacle. This response follows from the unit's own movement: In the divine appearance Solomon grounds his request in mercy to David and asks for wisdom and knowledge to judge a great people; wealth and honor are added.
Teach It Back
Explain why 2 Chronicles 1:10 defines desired wisdom as capacity to lead and judge God's people. Use 1:7–13, paraphrase “Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for…,” state one source or reconstruction limit, identify one person or group power can obscure, and reject one conclusion this verse does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read 2 Chronicles 1:7–13 — Solomon asks for wisdom to governSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
Where care is needed
Chronicles and 1 Kings shape the dream differently; both connect wisdom and rule, but neither version licenses a reconstructed verbatim transcript.
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 KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.
Exact location: 2 Chronicles 1:7–13, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 2 Chronicles
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Hebrew wording, morphology, names, clauses, regnal formulas, temple vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/2Chr.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 1:7–13
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Full Notes: 2 Chronicles
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press; STEP Bible presentation, 2019 edition; current web presentation
Supports: Unit-bounded translation comparisons and only those lexical, textual, grammatical, numerical, historical, and parallel-passage notes attached to these verses.
Exact location: STEP Bible NET2full, 2 Chronicles 1:7–13, verse-attached translation and translator notes
Open source ↗