Corinthians 11:3-16 Now I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head — it is just as though her head were shaved. If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved off, she should cover her head. A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man. For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. For this reason, and because of the angels, the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head. In the Lord, however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God. Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. If anyone wants to be contentious about this, we have no other practice — nor do the churches of God.
As we approach today's scriptures, let us keep in mind that Paul is raising questions that have more to do with cultural practices and appearances than spiritual matters of the heart. But he is reminding the Corinthians of God's desire for order and respect within the church so that their actions do not distract from the Good News of the gospel of Christ. When our children were growing up, we told them there was an order of responsibility in our home: Dad was the big boss, then Mom was boss number two. Mom was followed by the children in order of age if the parents were absent from the home, starting with Christine, the oldest, down to Daniel, the youngest. This frustrated Daniel, and he wanted to know who he was the boss of, so we told him he could boss Patches the cat. This was somewhat face-saving for Daniel but not too satisfying for sure. As it is with every organization or business, there is a head, someone at the top. In the vernacular, we say: the buck stops here. In the church, Paul states clearly: the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. This division establishes order and respect, but it does not mean the man is superior to the woman or of more worth. We also know when Paul instructs women to submit to their husbands, he told men, Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. (Ephesians 5:25-28) Doubtless, Paul wanted men to cherish their wives, and in our verses today, Paul maintains that men and women are interconnected: In the Lord, however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. Most importantly, everything comes from God. Therefore, while Paul instructs the church on acceptable behaviors, he reminds them of foundational truths.
The matter of hair and head covering comes from the cultural realities in the middle eastern world of Paul's day. As Paul says at the end of this section, we have no other practice. Paul was talking about practices. Head coverings and hair length meant specific things to the people of Corinth. When Paul speaks of a woman dishonoring herself by praying with her head uncovered, it is just as though her head were shaved, everyone reading this would have known he was referring to women of dishonor in their society. If a woman was unfaithful to her spouse or if she was arrested as a prostitute, her hair was cut very short or her head was shaved. This punishment marked her as a woman worthy of rejection and disrespect. Hair was considered a covering, a veil that was a woman's glory in the society, but males generally cut their hair. A woman's hair was a badge of honor and a sign of respect for God. Paul also refers to angels because of the belief that angels or ministering spirits were present in church services. The people would not want to offend or to disrespect God's representatives. In all these directives, Paul follows the practices and customs of the church, instructing men and women to commit to these accepted guidelines. In doing this, he makes assumptions such as stating: Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? One might question Paul's thinking. What is it in the nature of things that makes long hair a disgrace to a man? But because this idea was firmly established in the church dogma, long hair on a man would have been a disgrace, and that was the very nature of things in the Corinthian church and in the other communities where Paul preached. He wanted the brothers and sisters to follow proper customs and not to offend in any area. We will see this desire from Paul a little later in this letter: Let all things be done decently and in order. (1 Corinthians 14:40) Paul wanted the outside world to see a consistent message of light and Christ-like behavior in the church. Any instruction he gave his brothers and sisters he gave in love with the hope of advancing the cause of Christ, with the purpose of seeing souls saved. He wanted believers to follow the words of Jesus: In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)
Order in the life of a Christian brings glory to God because an orderly life allows people to see who we are and what we have to offer. When Christians engage in disrespectful behavior according to societal standards, their actions and reactions often prevent others from seeing Christ in them. Mom once worked at a bank where she made friends with a Christian lady who was friendly and supportive to her. But as their friendship developed, Mom learned that this person was not well-liked by other employees. They resented her know-it-all attitude and superior way of taking charge. She made others feel they were incompetent. She did not give out compliments and often expressed criticisms, even complaining to the boss about the errors of co-workers. Mom prayed for her friend to have a change of heart. Mom hoped to lead by example as she tried to show Christ's love to the staff and to the customers. This woman was a paradox. She talked about Jesus to Mom one moment, but with the next breath she found fault with the minor mistakes of others. Jesus talked about us bearing fruit. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. (Matthew 7:16-17 & 20) Mom cared for her friend, and she was silent when her friend was critical or Mom tried to say something positive about the person in question. But she could not change the heart of her friend. Only God can change a heart, and we have to bring our hardened hearts to him to be changed by the power of the Holy Spirit. We have to listen to the voice of the Lord to recognize our need of him, to allow him to shape us and to change us into the image of his Son. Just before Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, God looked over the earth, and He was grieved. And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (Genesis 6:5) Yes, that is the unrepentant, impure heart of the lost. But praise the Lord, we have a message of truth and hope. We will follow the outward practices of our church and culture that indicate we are upstanding people, committed to our faith, but our hope is built on Jesus Christ and his righteousness. Serve him today. HE IS YOUR COVERING.
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