1 Corinthians 11:10 - Printer Friendly

ESV: That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

NIV: It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her own head, because of the angels.

NASB: Therefore the woman should have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

CSB: This is why a woman should have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

NLT: For this reason, and because the angels are watching, a woman should wear a covering on her head to show she is under authority.

KJV: For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels.

NKJV: For this reason the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

Translation and context are complex for this verse. As a result, it has been subject to many different interpretations. This statement follows Paul's teaching that woman is the glory of man—or that a wife is the glory of her husband. Men in the Corinthian church must not cover their heads during prayer and prophesying in public worship. Because of what a covered head signifies in that culture, men should pray without head coverings, because they are the glory of God. Women must cover up their glory, represented by their heads in this era, because it belongs to their husbands.

Now Paul adds this is why a woman, or wife, should have authority on her head when praying or prophesying in a public church service. Some scholars read this to mean that a woman should have a symbol of her husband's or father's authority over her. Others understand it to mean that woman should use her own "authority over herself" or self-control to cover her glory—her head, in this case—while in public.

In either case, women should cover their glory while praying or prophesying in a church service because of the angels. That statement from Paul leads to suggestions from Bible scholars that range far and wide. Most conclude that Paul means angels observe our public worship services. Since they are watching, it is important for women to be appropriate in covering their glory and not dishonoring their husbands.

It bears repeating that most interpreters believe the specific issue of a woman covering her head to preserve her glory for her husband was related to the social standards of the time. Paul is relaying specific application of a universal principle: modesty. Christians may live in widely varied cultures, with variant standards of dress and fashion. All believers should appropriately "cover their glory" in public worship services according to conscience and the standards for modesty in their own era.

First Corinthians 11:2–16 describes Paul's correction of an inappropriate practice of some women in the Corinthian church. Contrary to social norms of that era, they were not wearing head coverings when praying or prophesying before the church. Paul insists that both women and men consider what their chosen appearance implies about their relationship with God. Cultural details may vary, but the principle does not: Christian men and women ought to be ''respectable'' in their manners and dress. In parallel, this teaching also touches on the concept of spiritual leadership.

Paul confronts two issues the church in Corinth was failing to practice correctly. First, some women were not wearing head coverings while praying or prophesying in their meetings. Paul insisted they must do so, and that men must not, based on mankind's relationship to God and the social implications of that covering. Second, Paul describes the reasons for observing the Lord's Supper and how it should be done. The Corinthian Christians had brought God's judgment on themselves for practicing communion in a way which dishonored Christ's sacrifice for sin and humiliated the poor among them.

After concluding his teaching on meat offered to idols, Paul turns to two issues the church in Corinth was getting wrong. The first was head coverings when praying or prophesying in their meetings. Differences between men and women in that regard are because of both spiritual and social reasons. Paul also corrects the disastrous way in which they were practicing the observance of the Lord's Supper. They were dishonoring Christ's sacrifice for sin as well as the poor in the body of Christ, the church. Despite having more to say on communion, Paul will move on to the topic of spiritual gifts in chapter 12.

First Corinthians is one of the more practical books of the New Testament. Paul writes to a church immersed in a city associated with trade, but also with corruption and immorality. These believers are struggling to properly apply spiritual gifts and to resist the ungodly practices of the surrounding culture. Paul's letter gives instructions for real-life concerns such as marriage and spirituality. He also deals with the importance of unity and gives one of the Bible's more well-known descriptions of love in chapter 13.