1 Kings 3:16-28

Then came there two women, &c.— See Judges 2:1 respecting the word זנות zonoth rendered harlots. Solomon knew at once, that the only sign whereby to discover the true mother, would be her affection and compassionate tenderness for her child; and therefore, in order to distinguish between the two, his business was to make trial of this. And if we suppose, that when he commanded the child to be divided he spake with a sedate countenance and seeming earnestness, as the true mother's petition to the king makes it apparent that he did, then we may suppose further, not only that the two women, but all the people present, with horror and admiration expected the execution of the thing; but when the whole ended in so just a decision, quite contrary to what they looked for, it raised joy in every breast, and gave a more advantageous commendation to the judge. It may not be improper, upon this occasion, to cite an instance or two from prophane history, of a singular address, though much inferior to this, in discovering such secrets as seemed to be past finding out. Suetonius, in his life of Claudius, chap. 15: tells us, that the emperor discovered a woman to be the mother of a young man, whom she would not own for her son, by commanding her to be married to him: the horror of committing incest obliged her to declare the truth. In like manner, Diodorus Siculus relates, that Ariopharnes, king of the Thracians, being appointed to arbitrate between three men, who all pretended to be sons of the king of the Cimmerians, and claimed the succession, found out the true son and heir, by ordering them to shoot each man his arrow into the dead king's body; which one of them refusing to do, he was deemed the lawful claimant. See Patrick and Calmet.