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1 Corinthians

About this book
Chapter 11

1 Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ. 2 I praise you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions just as I passed them on to you. 3 But I want you to know that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ. 4 Any man who prays or prophesies with his head covered disgraces his head. 5 But any woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered disgraces her head, for it is one and the same thing as having a shaved head.⁠ 6 For if a woman will not cover her head, she should cut off her hair. But if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, she should cover her head. 7 For a man should not have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God. But the woman is the glory of the man. 8 For man did not come from woman, but woman from man. 9 Neither was man created for the sake of woman, but woman for man. 10 For this reason a woman should have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.⁠ 11 In any case, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman.⁠ 12 For just as woman came from man, so man comes through woman. But all things come from God. 13 Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace for him, 15 but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. 16 If anyone intends to quarrel about this, we have no other practice, nor do the churches of God. 17 Now in giving the following instruction I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. 18 For in the first place, when you come together as a church I hear there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it. 19 For there must in fact be divisions among you, so that those of you who are approved may be evident. 20 Now when you come together at the same place, you are not really eating the Lord’s Supper. 21 For when it is time to eat, everyone proceeds with his own supper. One is hungry and another becomes drunk.⁠ 22 Do you not have houses so that you can eat and drink? Or are you trying to show contempt for the church of God by shaming those who have nothing? What should I say to you? Should I praise you? I will not praise you for this! 23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which he was betrayed took bread, 24 and after he had given thanks he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, he also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, every time you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 27 For this reason, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.⁠ 28 A person should examine himself first, and in this way let him eat the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For the one who eats and drinks without careful regard for the body eats and drinks judgment against himself.⁠ 30 That is why many of you are weak and sick, and quite a few are dead. 31 But if we examined ourselves, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned with the world. 33 So then, my brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34 If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that when you assemble it does not lead to judgment. I will give directions about other matters when I come.

Texts in conversation

Compare 1 Corinthians 11:10 and Genesis Rabbah 8:8

New Testament · Rabbinic

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Summary

In 1 Corinthians, Paul links women covering their heads in prayer to creation and the presence of angels. Genesis Rabbah also ties creation to the roles of man and woman, showing how gender and worship practices were shaped by similar traditions.

Passages

1 Corinthians 11:10

New Testament
5 But any woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered disgraces her head, for it is one and the same thing as having a shaved head. 6 For if a woman will not cover her head, she should cut off her hair. But if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, she should cover her head. 7 For a man should not have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God. But the woman is the glory of the man. 8 For man did not come from woman, but woman from man. 9 Neither was man created for the sake of woman, but woman for man. 10 For this reason a woman should have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. 11 In any case, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman.
55–57 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Corinthians

Genesis Rabbah 8:8

Rabbinic · Aggadah
Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman said in the name of Rabbi Yonatan: When Moses was writing the Torah, and was writing what was made on each day, when he reached this verse: “And God said: Let us make Man in our image, in our likeness” – he said before Him: ‘Master of the universe, why do you provide the heretics with basis for a claim? This is bewildering.’ He said to him: ‘Just write, and if someone wants to err, let him err.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to Moses: ‘Is it not so regarding this man whom I created, that I will bring forth descendants of greater and lesser status? If someone of greater status is about to seek approval from one of lesser stature than he, but he says: Why do I need to seek approval from one who is of lesser stature than I? One may say to him: Learn from your Creator, as He created the heavenly realms and the earthly realms, but when He came to create man, he consulted with the ministering angels.’
500 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Genesis Rabbah

References

"... It may be added here that other positive statements concerning women in the NT are paralleled in Jewish literature: the injunction to equality in conjugal rights in 1 Cor 7,1-5 is paralleled, e.g., in the Mishnah, Ket 5,7 (on Ex 21,10); and the exercise of prophecy by women in 1 Cor 11,5 is paralleled, of course, in the story of Deborah, Judges 4,4. The question arises whether these parallels could have existed in Judaism as early as NT times, and so have been known to the writers of the NT. It should be made clear that positive proof of their existence in pre-Christian or primitive Christian times is not available. The dating problem that is present in all considerations of the rabbinic parallels to the NT is present in this case, too. The fact is that the rabbinic materials, which contain many parallels to the NT, were not put into writing until the end of the second century. The general opinion of scholars at the present time is that much of the material may have circulated orally a century or two earlier and have been received by the NT writers from the rabbinic tradition, although it is hardly ever possible to demonstrate that this was so in a particular case ... The Genesis Rabbah, a late fifth- or early sixth-century compilation, ascribes the passage to two rabbis who lived ca. 250 and ca. 135 respectively. If the ascriptions are correct, the parallel existed in oral form in the early second century ..."
Madeleine Boucher, “Some Unexplored Parallels to 1 Cor 11,11-12 and Gal 3,28: The NT on the Role of Women,” CBQ 31.1 (1969): 50–58.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Comments

  • Why "because of the angels" ? Some are saying, "so that angels don't lust after women". There must be a better reason for the angels.

    Sharon Shook, April 27, 2024

1 Corinthians 11:10 and Genesis Rabbah 8:8

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