Introduction

The Two Harlots (by some translations, other translations refer to them as prostitutes or other words along the same line), are discussed in 1 Kings 3:16-28. In most of the discussions I've heard about this passage, the focus is on Solomon's wisdom of how to handle the situation, but on this read, I focused on the women themselves. Who were they, how did they get into this situation, and what should we learn from them (if anything at all)?

The two women featured in this passage are housemates who have baby boys around the same time. One night one of the sons dies, and the mother of that son swaps the babies. The mother of the living son knows immediately what has happened and the two women begin to dispute. Their issue is taken before Solomon for resolution. Solomon's "solution"—it's actually a test disguised as a solution—is to split the living baby in half, giving a piece to each mother. The mother of the dead son agrees to the insanity, while the true mother of the living son forfeits her child to save his life. Solomon recognizes the true mother by her willingness to give up her son to save his life. He then proclaims the true mother as the mother of the baby and grants her custody of the child.

Heritage

We aren't given names for these women let alone family trees detailing their heritage and lineage. However, since they approached Solomon for resolution to their issues, one can assume they were citizens of Israel (and likely living near Jerusalem). This means they were most likely Israelites from one of the 12 Tribes. There is still the possibility that they were foriegners (like Ruth) and simply living in the territory, so we can't say for certain, but I lean toward them being Israelites.

Questions

About the Passage

1. How exactly did the baby die?
2. Was the baby abused?
3. What would Solomon have done if the women had the same reaction to his suggestion (both said yes to cutting the baby in half or both protested)?
4. Why would anyone, mother or not, say yes to cutting a baby in half!?
5. Why did she try to switch the babies? Did they look similar enough that she thought it would work?
6. Did the women know the fathers? Where were they during this ordeal?
7. Were the women friends before this incident?
   • Did they remain roommates?
   • Did the remain friends
8. Did either have more children?
9. Is there spiritual meaning to this story?
10. Are we supposed to be concerned with the women or is the point of the story Solomon's wisdom?
11. Was it normal to go to the king about such issues?
12. What happened to the council of elders Moses created?
    • Was the case too difficult for the elders?
    • Did the legal order change?
13. Where there any other ramifications? Was the death of the child investigated?
14. Were there any witnesses?
15. Were they the only people living in the house?
16. Did they own the house?

If I could talk to them...

I have so many questions about how they ended up in this situation, but the biggest question I have is how anyone is OK with a child being split in half. The mother whose child died and was OK with the living child being split in half is in a thought process I cannot understand (which maybe for the best, honestly). I am curious what was going through her mind; was this some sort of delusion from her grief? I watched a movie where a mother is struggling to care for her child and it similarly leads to a bizarre series of events. Part of me leans toward this as the reason why she behaves this way, but another part of me wonders if drugs were involved. Unfortunately vices tend to go together, and while I'm sure that there are many prostitutes who do not engage in drug use, it seems plausible that this one did.

Along the same lines, I wonder about these two women's friendship. I can't think of a single friend of mine who would answer this question with the affirmative to split a child in half. It seems like despite both being prostitutes, they had very different values and foundations. This made me wonder the following:

• Were they actually friends (or just coworkers)?
• How long had they known each other?
• Why were they living together?
• Was the real mother shocked at her housemate's behavior?

Phototheology

Phototheology is a way of learning the Bible taught by Ivor Myers.[1] I am employing this technique in my weekly Woman of God study journal. The following three prompts are the ones I drew from the card deck while studying the The Two Harlots.

Connect with a historical account from the Bible

The historical account I would connect this to is that of Moses in the wilderness creating a council of elders to help resolve issues such as this. Many of the laws in the Pentateuch were written to help the Israelites navigate disputes among themselves, which is bound to occur in a fallen world. While disputes over maternity are rare, the custody of a child is clearly of great importance and this passage is a reminder that God's ruling is to place the child with the one who cares about the child. This is important for us to remember today when custody disputes are so common.

How does the text relate to events that occurred in Heaven's past?

The first thing association that popped into my head is that the two women fighting over a baby are like the True Church and the Apostate Church fighting to represent (or misrepresent) Christ. Both are described as women in Revelation (The Woman of Revelation 12 and The Whore of Babylon), which further lines to the parallel. This also parallels the fight between Satan and Messiah for the living souls of Earth. In general, this imagery reiterates the overarching Biblical theme of the dead (Satan, idols, the wicked) trying to claim the living only to lose in the end.

Connect the text with the mathematics of the 2300 day prophecy

The 2300 days point to a time when the true Church will be heavily persecuted by a false church. Similarly, the true mother was persecuted (in a sense) by the lying mother. In prophecy the Church is protected and covered by God, King of the Universe. In this story, the woman is protected by Solomon, King of Israel.

Journal Pages

Journal pages from my study on the Two Harlots, done July 9-15, 2025

References & Footnotes

1. Pastor Ivor Myers' Phototheology Game Deck