1 Corinthians 11:3

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible - 1 Corinthians 11:1-34

Another Corinthian question concerned the position of woman and her true attitude in the exercise of divinely bestowed gifts. He declared that woman's true position is subservience to man. The nature of that subservience, however, the apostle was also very careful to indicate. God is equal with Christ. God co-operates with Christ. God is the Head of Christ. Then follows a touch of purely local color. The women in Corinth itself, whose heads were shaven and went uncovered, were women of shame.... read more

Peter Pett

Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Corinthians 11:2-16

The Status of Men and Women in Ministry When Prophesying and Praying Is To Be Expressed In The Covering or Uncovering of the Head (11:2-16). This question is of great importance in the church, because it deals with the matter of authority, and especially authority in ministry. It is usually misrepresented as though it somehow demeaned women. In fact it exalts women. But in spite of all attempts to modernise it and all attempts to tone down its message, its message does remain inviolable, once... read more

Peter Pett

Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Corinthians 11:2-34

Approach to Worship (11:2-14:40). We now move on to a section which deals with the Christian approach to worship in the light of the particular problems of the Corinthian church. Chapter 11 covers the question of the covering or uncovering of the head in praying and prophesying, and its significance, followed by problems arising at the Christian love feasts and the Lord's Table, including the divisions caused by those problems. Note that it is all about problems arising from un-Christian... read more

Peter Pett

Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Corinthians 11:3

'But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God.' But he is dissatisfied about their attitude towards authority, and especially of that of the women towards the men who are over the church, and possibly at their actual behaviour when prophesying. They were failing to recognise God's order of things revealed at creation. He thus lays down regulations concerning women being 'covered'. As he will make clear this... read more

Arthur Peake

Arthur Peake's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Corinthians 11:2-16

1 Corinthians 11:2-Nehemiah : . Women must be Veiled in the Christian Assemblies.— It is not clear whether this subject was discussed in the church letter.Paul begins, in a way that surprises us after his grave censures, with praise for their steadfast adherence to his teaching and traditions. But he must inform them that the head of every man (as distinguished from woman) is Christ, the head of the woman is man, the head of Christ, God. Woman, Man, Christ, God, form an ascending climax in... read more

Matthew Poole

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible - 1 Corinthians 11:3

The abuse which the apostle is reflecting upon in this and the following verses, is women’s praying or prophesying with their heads uncovered, against which the apostle strongly argues. His argument seems to be this: That the woman in religious services ought to behave herself as a person in subjection to her husband, and accordingly to use such a gesture, as, according to the guise and custom of that country, testified such a subjection; to this purpose he tells us in this verse, that the head... read more

Joseph Exell

Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary - 1 Corinthians 11:1-16

CRITICAL NOTES[1 Corinthians 11:1 belongs to chap. 10, where see. Evans (in Speaker), Stanley, and others divide this chapter at 1 Corinthians 11:16, not 1 Corinthians 11:17, making 1 Corinthians 11:16 introduce the new topic]1 Corinthians 11:2. I praise you … all things.—Not qualified or limited by 1 Corinthians 11:17, which refers to a new point, which had arisen in practice, outside the “all things already delivered,” whether orally, when Paul was at Corinth, or by the (possible) lost... read more

C.I. Scofield

Scofield's Reference Notes - 1 Corinthians 11:3

woman Cf. Genesis 3:16. The woman's veil, or head-covering, is a symbol of this subordination. read more

Chuck Smith

Chuck Smith Bible Commentary - 1 Corinthians 11:1-34

Shall we turn in our Bibles now to I Corinthians 11 .Paul here in the first verse said,Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ ( 1 Corinthians 11:1 ).In the previous verse he spoke about how he was not seeking his own profit, his own glory, but the profit of the whole body of Christ. And then he said, "Be followers of me." The word followers in the Greek is mimetes, in which we get our word mimic. Be mimickers, or be imitators of me. Follow the example that I have set. That is, don't... read more

Joseph Sutcliffe

Sutcliffe's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments - 1 Corinthians 11:1-34

1 Corinthians 11:2 . Keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you. The apostle mentions these twice to the Thessalonians, and nearly in the same words. 2 Thessalonians 2:15; 2 Thessalonians 3:6. What were they? General outlines of order in worship, and rules of private conduct for the members of the churches, whether male or female, married or single. How could the infant church subsist without traditions, that they might walk by the same rule, and mind the same things. These ordinances... read more

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