Summary:
Guzik:
Therefore, women in the Church have two options in their attitude towards their head. They imitate the kind of attitude men have towards Christ: showing a rebelliousness that must be won over. Or, women can imitate the kind of attitude Christ displayed towards God the Father: loving submission to Him as an equal.
i. The idea of headship and authority is important to God. In His great plan for the ages, one great thing God looks for from man is voluntary submission. This is what Jesus showed in His life over and over again, and this is exactly what God looks for from both men and women, though it will be expressed in different ways.
ii. It is essential to understand that being under authority does not equal inferiority. Jesus was totally under the authority of God the Father (John 5:19; 8:28), yet He is equally God (1:1; 8:58; 10:30). When God calls women in the church to recognize the headship of men, it is not because women are unequal or inferior, but because there is a God-ordained order of authority to be respected.
iii. “God is the Head of Christ, not in respect of his essence and Divine nature, but in respect of his office as Mediator; as the man is the head of the woman, not in respect of a different and more excellent essence and nature, (for they are both of the same nature,) but in respect of office and place, as God hath set him over the woman.” (Poole)
Constable: “Today it is not shameful for a woman to have short hair, but it was in Paul’s day. There are many short hairstyles that no one regards as disgraceful. However in Paul’s culture short hair for a woman represented rebellion, and people considered it shameful. Paul used the common reaction to women’s short hair in his day to urge his female readers to wear a head-covering. His point was that since it was shameful for a woman to have short hair it was also shameful for her to have her head uncovered when she prayed or prophesied.”
Bell (Found on Precept Austin): “Bell – One of the biggest problems in the Corinthian church was disorder in the public meetings: Some of the women were assuming more freedom than they should have(11:1-16); There was disorder at the Lord’s Supper(11:17-34); and There was confusion in the use of the spiritual gifts(12-14). The church had been greatly enriched with spiritual gifts, but they were sadly lacking in spiritual graces. (Wiersbe; Outlines of the NT) So, this next section of Corinthians deal w/the orderliness of Christian worship! Paul could have tried to solve these problems by issuing apostolic edicts, but instead he patiently explained with spiritual principles. Paul deals with the 1st of the 3 areas of confusion in their public worship. God’s order in the church is based on 3 fundamentals that Paul considered self-evident: Headship (3-7); Creation (8-12); Nature (13-16).”
Wearing a covering as Amish, Mennonites, and others wear does not mean a woman is a good Christian, a Christian, or even submissive. It is a cultural thing. If a woman is convicted to do so, then it is fine. In the culture of Paul’s day, nearly all women had coverings, but today it is not necessarily. It is the principle of being under God’s authority and protection and the husband’s as well.
1 Corinthians 11:2-12 (WEL) Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the teaching as I handed them down to you. 3 I want you to know that Christ is the head of every man, man is the head of the woman, and God is the head of Christ. 4 Every man praying or prophesying having a covering on his head dishonors his head [authority]. 5 But every woman who prays or prophesies without a covering on her head dishonors her head, for it would be the same as if she were shaved. 6 For if the woman is not veiled, let her be shorn also, but if it is a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be veiled. 7 For indeed a man ought not to veil his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of the man. 8 For the man was not formed from the woman, but the woman was from the man. 9 Neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman was for the man.
V2 Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the teaching as I handed them down to you.
The Corinthians are serious about the Christian life and all the teaching Paul in doctrine, worldview, Law of Christ, way of life, etc.
V3 I want you to know that Christ is the head of every man, man is the head of the woman, and God is the head of Christ.
There is a hierarchal order in God’s creation. The Lord Jesus is the authority of men and women. He is the Lord of all Christian men. In a similar way, the husband is the authority of his wife. The parents are authority over the children at home.
Authority comes with responsibility. Leadership is the shepherd type of leadership. Any man who is a tyrant is either not a Christian or greatly disobeying Jesus’s commands.
It is important to love our spouse according to God’s standards (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a).
A husband should delegate areas of authority to his wife, then more or less let her take care of it. Many delegate the interior of the house to the wife. The kitchen is her workshop, so let her buy the tools she needs.
V4 Every man praying or prophesying having a covering on his head dishonors his head [authority].
The covering here is some cloth, etc., covering the hair. It is a symbol of recognizing authority and under authority.
V5 But every woman who prays or prophesies without a covering on her head dishonors her head, for it would be the same as if she were shaved.
We don’t have the symbol in USA culture (most women anyway), but the principle is still the same. There is an order of authority in the home, the church, society, etc.
V6 For if the woman is not veiled, let her be shorn also, but if it is a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be veiled.
Shorn hair means a butch cut hair cut. Some women have little hair due to genetics, sickness, medical treatment, etc. It is the attitude that God is concerned with. What attitude does one’s hair project?
V7 For indeed a man ought not to veil his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of the man.
In Paul’s culture, this would be very obviously wrong. In modern-day Judaism, many men do cover their hair to various decrees.
V8 For the man was not formed from the woman, but the woman was from the man.
God’s created order in society, marriage, and family.
V9 Neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman was for the man.
The purpose for woman’s creation was to be the assistant, the counselor giving a different perspective on a problem, and companion. It is not as if Adam had all the gifts yet Eve none. To hear and read some people, it almost sounds like that is their belief. However, the truth is that Adam had some gifts and Eve had the rest. To make a good solution, both are needed to find a good solution (Proverbs 15:22 and Proverbs 27:9). Husband and wife should have common goals and work together.
We learn:
• We can take freedom/liberty too far.
• Attitude is important.
• Attitude must be approved attitudes as God defines it.
Questions:
• How is your attitude?
• Does it reflect in your dress and actions?