1 Corinthians 11:16, No Such Custom
When the Apostle Paul urges the Corinthian Christians to honour and adhere to the biblical principles of headship and subordination in the church between the men and the women.
Author: Rev. Lek Aik Wee
1 Corinthians 11:15, It Is Glory to Her
MacArthur observed well, “Men and women have distinctive physiologies in many ways. One of them is in the process of hair growth on the head. Hair develops in three stages—formation and growth, resting, and fallout. The male hormone testosterone speeds up the cycle so that men reach the third stage earlier than women. The female hormone estrogen causes the cycle to remain in stage one for a longer time, causing women’s hair to grow longer than men’s. Women are rarely bald because few even reach stage three. This physiology is reflected in most cultures of the world in the custom of women wearing longer hair than men.”¹
1 Corinthians 11:14, Nature Itself Teach You
Clarke also observes interestingly, “The Nazarites let their hair grow, but it was as a token of humiliation; and it is possible that St. Paul had this in view. There were consequently two reasons why the apostle should condemn this practice: – 1. Because it was a sign of humiliation; 2. Because it was womanish.”
1 Corinthians 11:13, Judge Themselves
He urged the Corinthian Christians to be willing to objectively judge for themselves by a rhetorical question that begs a negative answer. It is not proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered. It was a custom at that time for woman entering into God’s presence veiled. It was a mark of propriety and modesty for the woman to be veiled.
Acts 17:16-34, Declaring the Unknown God
Acts 17:16-34 Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry. Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, and in the market daily with them that met with him. Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoicks, encountered him. And some said, What will this babbler say? other some, He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: because he preached unto them Jesus, and the resurrection. And they took him, and brought him unto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is?
12. The Making of a Christian (1)
Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians Knowing Your Privilege in Christ “The Making of the Christian (1)” (Ephesians 4:17-24) 17 This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of …
Lord’s Day, Vol. 5 No. 19
(1) How Amiable Are Thy Tabernacles
Psalm 84 speaks of the blessedness of the man (v4, 5, 12) who dwells with God in His house. It is a meditation that brings great joy and peace to the heart.
(a) God’s House (v 1-4)
1 How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts! 2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God. 3 Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God. 4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.
God’s house is described as lovely (v1). It satisfies the soul (v2). It is also a place of rest (v3), a place of blessing (v4a) and a place of thanksgiving (v4b).
1 Corinthians 11:11-12, Mutual Dependence
The Apostle Paul exhorts the man to see the mutual dependence between the man and the woman and warns him not to be puffed up because of the prominence that God places upon him because he was created first. The man is in need of the woman’s help as much as the woman is in need of the man’s help. They are the useful one to the other. This is God’s creative order too.
1 Corinthians 11:9-10, The Woman For the Man
William MacDonald observed well, “Because of her position of subordination to man, the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head. The symbol of authority is the head-covering and here it indicates not her own authority but subjection to the authority of her husband.”
1 Corinthians 11:8, For the Man is Not of the Woman
The Apostle Paul reiterates the creation account for our learning that God created the woman out of the rib of Adam as a companion because he was lonely. As such, the emphasis is on the headship of the man in the creative order.