27 Then the king answered, "Give her the living child, and in no way kill it. She is its mother."
*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.
Then the king answered and said, give her the living child,
and in no wise slay it,.... That is, to her who desired it might not be slain, but rather be given to her who had no right to it:
she is the mother thereof; which might be strongly concluded from her compassion for it, her eagerness and earnestness to have its life spared, and from the indifference of the other, yea, from her cruelty and barbarity in moving to have it divided.
Solomon saw from this which was the mother of the living child, and handed it over to her.
(Note: Grotius observes on this: "The ἀγχίνοια of Solomon was shown by this to be very great. There is a certain similarity in the account of Ariopharnis, king of the Thracians, who, when three persons claimed to be the sons of the king of the Cimmerii, decided that he was the son who would not obey the command to cast javelins at his father's corpse. The account is given by Diodorus Siculus.")
She is the mother - As is evident from her natural affection to the child, which she had rather have given away from her, than destroyed.
*More commentary available at chapter level.