1 Corinthians 11:4-5

1 Corinthians 11:4-5 : the high doctrine just asserted applied to the matter of feminine attire. Since man qua man has no head but Christ, before whom they worship in common, while woman has man to own for her head, he must not and she must be veiled. The regulation is not limited to those of either sex who “pray or prophesy”; but such activity called attention to the apparel, and doubtless it was amongst the more demonstrative women that the impropriety occurred; in the excitement of public speaking the shawl might unconsciously be thrown back. προσευχόμενος κ. τ. λ., “when he (she) prays or prophesies,” in the act of so doing. κατὰ κεφαλῆς ἔχων, “wearing down from the head (a veil”: κάλυμμα understood), the practice being for the woman in going out of the house to throw the upper fold or lappet of her robe over her head so as to cover the brow: see Peplos in the Dict., of Antiq. ἀκατακαλ. τ. κεφαλῇ, “with the head uncovered,” dat [1607] of manner, as χάριτι in 1 Corinthians 10:30. Is it the literal or figurative “head” that is meant as obj [1608] to καταισχύνει ? 1 Corinthians 11:3 requires the latter sense, while the sequel suggests the former; Al [1609] and Ed [1610] think both are intended at once. Hf [1611] is probably right in abiding by the reading ἑαυτῆς (see txtl. note); he supposes that the Ap. purposely broke off the parallelism at the end of 1 Corinthians 11:5, thus sharpening his reproof: the man who wears a veil “puts to shame his head” i.e. Christ, whose lordship he represents (1 Corinthians 11:7); the woman who discards it “puts to shame her own head ” the dishonour done to the dominant sex falls upon herself. That the shame comes home to her is shown by the supporting sentence: ἔν γάρ ἐστιν καὶ τὸ αὐτό (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:8) τῇ ἐξυρημένῃ, “for she is one and the same thing with her that is shaven” (Mr [1612], Ev [1613], Bt [1614], Ed [1615], El [1616]); “It is one and the same thing,” etc. (E.V [1617]), would require τῷ ἐξυρῆσθαι. Amongst Greeks only the hetœrœ, so numerous in Cor [1618], went about unveiled; slave-women wore the shaven head also a punishment of the adulteress (see Wetstein in loc., and cf. Numbers 5:18); with these the Christian woman who emancipates herself from becoming restraints of dress, is in effect identified. To shave the head is to carry out thoroughly its unveiling, to remove nature's as well as fashion's covering (1 Corinthians 11:15).

[1607] dative case.

[1608] grammatical object.

[1609] Alford's Greek Testament.

[1610] T. C. Edwards' Commentary on the First Ep. to the Corinthians.

[1611] J. C. K. von Hofmann's Die heilige Schrift N.T. untersucht, ii. 2 (2te Auflage, 1874).

[1612] Meyer's Critical and Exegetical Commentary (Eng. Trans.).

[1613] T. S. Evans in Speaker's Commentary.

[1614] J. A. Beet's St. Paul's Epp. to the Corinthians (1882).

[1615] T. C. Edwards' Commentary on the First Ep. to the Corinthians.

[1616] C. J. Ellicott's St. Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians.

[1617] English Version.

[1618] Corinth, Corinthian or Corinthians.