1 Corinthians 11:16

But if any man seemeth to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.

If any man seemeth to be contentious ... This was Paul's way of saying, "Look, we do not intend to argue this question endlessly; the whole matter is already solved by the type of behavior which marks God's churches everywhere." This is grounds for holding that in this whole passage it is decorous conduct with which Paul is concerned, since it touched on the all-important question of the proper submission of women to their husbands, and was also related to the prevailing opinion of the people in that community.

This whole passage affirms the necessity for Christians to have a decent respect for the opinions of mankind, and not to flaunt social customs of any kind merely for the sake of being different. As McGarvey said, "One who follows Christ will find himself conspicuously different from the world, without practicing any tricks of singularity."[35]

QUESTIONS ON THE VERSES ABOVE

If Paul meant "hair," why did he use the word "covered"? The answer is that in the vocabulary of the Old Testament "to uncover the head" was to shave off the hair. When Nadab and Abihu sinned (Leviticus 10:1ff), God commanded Aaron not to "uncover his head" in mourning at their death; and this meant not to cut off his hair (the customary sign of mourning). Job shaved his head when he learned his children were dead (Job 1:20). Many examples of this usage could be cited; but as Echols noted: "Wherever the expression `uncover the head' occurs in the Hebrew Old Testament, it means `remove the hair.'"[36] The culture of that era as well as the environment at Corinth suggests that some of the Corinthian women (in the church) were violating decent rules of conduct, not by discarding the mantle ([@peribolaion]) which there is no evidence that any of them were wearing, but by adopting the cropped hair of Aphrodite's priestesses. It is even likely that some of them had been converted and had neglected to change their hair styles. Furthermore, it must be evident to all who think about it that when Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:4 that a man praying or prophesying with his head "covered" dishonored his head, he simply COULD NOT have referred to any man's wrapping himself up in the type of mantle that was called a veil in those days. That type of veil (or mantle), as far as history reveals, was never worn by men in any circumstance. Therefore the fault Paul sought to correct in 1 Corinthians 11:4 was not that of men veiling themselves like women, but that of sporting indecently long hair.

What was the veil, actually, that was worn in those days? It was a large loose mantle which the woman wrapped around her head and face, leaving only the eyes visible, and sometimes only one eye. The word "veil" used by our translators is extremely misleading. Ruth's veil, for example, held six measures of barley! (Ruth 3:15). Although Hebrew women did not always wear veils, they seem to have done so for harvesting, as in the case of Ruth.

Was the mantle (veil) a symbol of modesty and submission? It came in time to be so considered; but there was certainly a time when such a garment (designed to obscure the person) was considered the attire of a harlot. Note the following:

And she (Tamar) put her widow's garments off, and covered her with a veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place, which is by the way to Timnath; for she saw that Shelah was grown, and she was not given unto him to wife. When Judah saw her, he thought her to be an harlot; because she had covered her face. And he turned in unto her by the way (Genesis 38:14-16).

Is there any word in this whole passage that unmistakably means the type of veil under consideration? Yes, the word [@peribolaion] in 1 Corinthians 11:15 refers to that type of covering; and this is the only word in the whole passage that does so; but this is also the verse where Paul said the Lord had given woman her hair "instead of" any such garment!

What is Paul's subject in these verses? Whatever it was, it could not have been the type of veil or mantle that obscures the person of women, that having been mentioned only once. On the other hand HAIR is mentioned three times, "shaved" or "shorn" is mentioned four times; and, in this light, it appears certain that Paul's subject here was HAIR. One could not speak of a mantle's being shorn or shaved.

How could this passage have been so long misunderstood? Echols' explanation is as good as any. He said:

A clear understanding has been obscured by ambiguous English translations, as well as by established custom. There can be little doubt that the custom itself derived largely from Roman Catholic practice during the Middle ages.[37]

CONCERNING THE LORD'S SUPPER

The balance of this chapter (1 Corinthians 11:17-34) deals with abuses in the Corinthian congregation with regard to the proper observance of the Lord's Supper and the "love feast" which usually preceded it in the primitive church.

[35] J. W. McGarvey, op. cit., p. 110.

[36] Eldred Echols

[37] Eldred Echols