1 Corinthians 11:13 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

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1 Corinthians 11:13

Comments

Where else does the apostle say something quite like that? Judge in yourselves. Paul! You usually give us an authoritative statement. God says, you must do this; God says you must do that. Scripture says, you must do this, and so on. Now you are saying to us, ‘Judge in yourselves.’ Because the principle of the man being leader in the marriage is a permanent principle, but the clothing which symbolises this fact may change. One is permanent the other is according to culture. ‘Judge in yourselves. Is it comely’, is it fitting, is it appropriate, ‘that a woman should pray without her head covered? The resounding answer in Corinth is, ‘No, it is not fitting. She should have the symbolism of being number two in the marriage.’ But in the west in the 21st-century, it is quite comely, because the headgear has changed his message. Our duty is to honour the principal that the men lead in marriage and the church, and we wear whatever the clothing is that symbolises that. So our responsibility, obviously, is not to cross dress: that would be sinful, nor to even incline to it: for women to wear very masculine clothes, and for men to wear effeminate clothes. Look at the symbolism. Fifty years ago, if a woman wore trousers, she would be saying something. ‘I am not number two; I am a feminist; I am in charge. Look at me; I can express myself.’ Today, she would not be saying anything like that. It is very commonplace and normal; there is no message now. So it depends. In some countries, in many African countries, the head covering still has a message, and it would be right and proper to adopt it, because the apostle says, ‘Judge for yourselves.’ What is the message of clothing for your time and for your land? You must observe it. You do not want to send out a wrong message by your clothing. I am a Christian, you want to say. I honour the Lord; I obey him. I will not wear something which suggests the opposite of what the Lord desires. That is the responsibility for us, the important thing.

Application

Remember the rule of God in marriage. Oh that Christian husbands and wives were really bound together in love and mutual respect and appreciation, the wife deferring gladly to the husband, as and when necessary, his helper his support; the husband, with full respect and acknowledgement and understanding of his wife, exercising his leadership – as Christ exercised his life and leadership – with gentleness and love and affection.

Questions

Interestingly, that is what John Calvin said. In his commentary on these passages – and he lived in an age where the ladies needed to wear head coverings, and it did have symbolism; it did have a message – quite candidly, he says in so many words, this is cultural. It is a principle, a permanent principle while time lasts, that there are roles distributed to men and women. But the clothing which symbolises it may change. The Westminster confession of faith doesn't actually say the same, but it practically does, because in the passage where it discusses this and it says, ‘Some things are cultural’, in so many words, one of the proof texts, lo and behold, is this very passage. So the Westminster confession identifies the headgear as cultural. So does the Augsburg confession of the Lutheran Church. So does the famous Geneva Bible – the translation of the Bible, first of all, of course, in Latin and in French and then in English. That was the Bible of the Puritans, or most of them. It has a little footnote, and it indicates this is according to the time and the country: it is cultural. And that is how we consider it today. The principle behind it is binding. The headgear is according to the message of clothing in the time and country in which we live.

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1 Corinthians 11:13 Commentary and Bible Study