Week 5 Essay ECON120 (24SP)

.docx

School

Regent University *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

120

Subject

Economics

Date

Apr 29, 2024

Type

docx

Pages

4

Uploaded by ChiefHamster1384 on coursehero.com

Week 5 Biblical Integration Braedon Smiley Regent University ECON 120: Microeconomics Professor Lanney Bryans April 2024
Biblical Integration Essay 2 In the reading of I Kings 3:16-28, King Solomon is presented with a dispute between two women, both claiming to be the mother of the presented baby. King Solomon wise in the Lord’s wisdom, proposes a solution, he would have the baby cut in half, giving each woman a piece of their alleged baby. Now this is an egregious resolution that no loving and rational mother would ever want for her child, and thus any mother who agrees to these terms would out herself as the false mother. One woman agrees to this solution, while the other begs King Solomon to give the baby to the other woman, preferring to see the child live with another mother than die. King Solomon then clearly identifies that the mother willing to give up the child, cares more for this baby as it was her true child than the one who agreed to the exchange. King Solomon then gives the baby to the second woman, declaring her the true mother, as she showed willingness to sacrifice her claim to save the baby's life. This situation can be seen as a type of strategic game, where each player (in this case, the two women) has a set of strategies and their payoff depends on the strategy they and the other player choose. The basic idea is: analyzing strategic situations where the best action for each player depends on what others do. This focus has a similarity with the prisoner’s dilemma that suggests that cooperation is difficult to maintain both when cooperation is good (one woman raises a child) and when cooperation is bad (neither woman would raise the cut in half child and removing its potential to life) (Cowen, T., & Tabarrok, 2020). The strategies available to each alleged mother are: 1) Insist the baby is hers 2) Agree to King Solomon's proposal to cut the baby in half or 3) Give up the baby to the other woman. The payoff for each woman depends on her own strategy and the strategy of the other woman. For the true mother, the highest payoff is to have the baby alive and with her. For the false mother, the highest payoff is to have the baby, but if she can't have the baby, she would prefer that neither of them have the baby. King Solomon, acting as the game designer, introduces a new strategy (cutting the baby in half) that changes the payoff structure. This forces the women to reveal their true preferences. The true
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
  • Access to all documents
  • Unlimited textbook solutions
  • 24/7 expert homework help