"Give your servant therefore an understanding heart to judge your people, that I may discern between good and evil; for who is able to judge this great people?'" — Solomon's *request* is the heart of the chapter: *tenah le-avdekha lev shomea'* (give your servant an understanding heart). The phrase *lev shomea'* literally means "a hearing heart," suggesting a heart that *listens* and *discerns*. The purpose is *judging the people* (*lishpot et-amkha*) and *discerning between good and evil* (*lehavin beyn tov le-ra*). The rhetorical question—*ki mi yachol lishpot et-am-gadol ha-zeh?* (who is able to judge this great people?)—emphasizes the *impossibility* of the task without divine aid. Solomon's request is not for wealth, longevity, or military victory but for *wisdom* (*chokhma*)—the capacity to judge justly.

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