On Covering the Head in Worship

I praise you(A) for remembering me in everything(B) and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you.(C) But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ,(D) and the head of the woman is man,[a](E) and the head of Christ is God.(F) Every man who prays or prophesies(G) with his head covered dishonors his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies(H) with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved.(I) For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.

A man ought not to cover his head,[b] since he is the image(J) and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. For man did not come from woman, but woman from man;(K) neither was man created for woman, but woman for man.(L)

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Corinthians 11:3 Or of the wife is her husband
  2. 1 Corinthians 11:7 Or Every man who prays or prophesies with long hair dishonors his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with no covering of hair dishonors her head—she is just like one of the “shorn women.” If a woman has no covering, let her be for now with short hair; but since it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair shorn or shaved, she should grow it again. A man ought not to have long hair

To Honor God

11 1-2 It pleases me that you continue to remember and honor me by keeping up the traditions of the faith I taught you. All actual authority stems from Christ.

3-9 In a marriage relationship, there is authority from Christ to husband, and from husband to wife. The authority of Christ is the authority of God. Any man who speaks with God or about God in a way that shows a lack of respect for the authority of Christ, dishonors Christ. In the same way, a wife who speaks with God in a way that shows a lack of respect for the authority of her husband, dishonors her husband. Worse, she dishonors herself—an ugly sight, like a woman with her head shaved. This is basically the origin of these customs we have of women wearing head coverings in worship, while men take their hats off. By these symbolic acts, men and women, who far too often butt heads with each other, submit their “heads” to the Head: God.

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I praise and appreciate you because you remember me in everything and you firmly hold to the [a]traditions [the substance of my instructions], just as I have passed them on to you. But I want you to understand that Christ is the head (authority over) of every man, and man is the head of woman, and God is the head of Christ. Every man who prays or [b]prophesies with something on his head dishonors his head [and the One who is his head]. And every woman who prays or prophesies when she has her [c]head uncovered disgraces her head; for she is one and the same as the [d]woman whose head is shaved [in disgrace]. If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and [e]if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, she should cover her head. A man ought not have his head covered [during worship], since he is the image and [reflected] glory of God; but the woman is [the expression of] man’s glory.(A) For man does not originate from woman, but woman from man;(B) for indeed man was not created for the sake of woman, but woman for the sake of man.(C)

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Corinthians 11:2 The following discourse covers appropriate conduct and relationships within the church, as well as within church-related activities.
  2. 1 Corinthians 11:4 The references to men or women prophesying (here and v 5) indicate that Paul has church meetings in mind, where the speaker is leading the congregation in prayer or addressing them.
  3. 1 Corinthians 11:5 In public, respectable women wore their hair done up in a modest style. In the Greco-Roman-Jewish culture of the time, hair worn down and loose would suggest a woman of questionable morals.
  4. 1 Corinthians 11:5 Possibly the mark of an adulteress or prostitute, but likely a sign of disgrace for any number of reasons. In one of Aristophanes’ comedies, for example, head shaving is recommended for a woman whose son is cowardly or otherwise worthless.
  5. 1 Corinthians 11:6 There is little doubt that this would appear disgraceful and embarrassing, but Paul is essentially providing his readers a simple way to determine for themselves if a woman should cover her head while prophesying or leading prayer in church.

Advice about Worship

I praise you for always thinking about me and for carefully following the traditions that I handed down to you.

However, I want you to realize that Christ has authority over every man, a husband has authority over his wife, and God has authority over Christ. Every man who covers his head when he prays or speaks what God has revealed dishonors the one who has authority over him. Every woman who prays or speaks what God has revealed and has her head uncovered while she speaks dishonors the one who has authority over her. She is like the woman who has her head shaved. So if a woman doesn’t cover her head, she should cut off her hair. If it’s a disgrace for a woman to cut off her hair or shave her head, she should cover her head. A man should not cover his head. He is God’s image and glory. The woman, however, is man’s glory. Clearly, man wasn’t made from woman but woman from man. Man wasn’t created for woman but woman for man.

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Rules for Worship

I am proud of you, because you always remember me and obey the teachings I gave you. Now I want you to know that Christ is the head of all men, and a man is the head of a woman. But God is the head of Christ. This means that any man who prays or prophesies with something on his head brings shame to his head.

But any woman who prays or prophesies without something on her head brings shame to her head. In fact, she may as well shave her head.[a] A woman should wear something on her head. It is a disgrace for a woman to shave her head or cut her hair. But if she refuses to wear something on her head, let her cut off her hair.

(A) Men were created to be like God and to bring honor to God. This means a man should not wear anything on his head. Women were created to bring honor to men. (B) It was the woman who was made from a man, and not the man who was made from a woman. He wasn't created for her. She was created for him.

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Footnotes

  1. 11.5 she may as well shave her head: A woman's hair was a mark of beauty, and it was shameful for a woman to cut her hair short or to shave her head, so that she looked like a man.