Answer
The church in Corinth was experiencing problems of disunity and disorder in their public gatherings. In 1 Corinthians 11, the apostle Paul focuses on the appropriate, God-glorifying behavior of men and women in communal worship. He acknowledges some of the differences between men and women, which should be considered if their worship is to honor God and show off His divine order of authority in the church (verses 2–16). In Paul’s day, one societal custom that distinguished men from women was the length of their hair: “Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him, but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering” (1 Corinthians 11:14–15, ESV).
First, Paul establishes a theological argument based on creation. He points out that Adam was created first, and woman was made from his flesh, indicating God’s divine design for men to exercise spiritual leadership in the home and the local church body under the authority of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 11:3; see also 1 Timothy 2:13). It’s crucial to note that this headship does not imply superiority of men over women in the family or the church. Women are equal to men in God’s eyes (Genesis 1:27; see also Genesis 2:20–24; 5:2; Galatians 3:28), but they are different and have unique, interdependent roles in God’s pattern of relationships within the home and the church (see 1 Corinthians 11:11; Galatians 3:28).
Then, by pointing to customs regarding wearing head coverings and the length of hair, Paul includes a cultural appeal in his theological argument. In first-century Greco-Roman society, respectable women wore long hair and covered their heads with a wrap in public. Prostitutes and other promiscuous women went out in public with their heads uncovered. Thus, wearing a head covering signified a woman’s purity and submission to her husband’s authority.
In New Testament times, a woman who disgraced her husband by committing adultery could have her hair shaved off as prescribed by Roman law. Not covering a woman’s head with long hair or a shawl was considered shameful. You might even say that long hair was “a woman’s pride and joy” (1 Corinthians 11:15, NLT). When she wore long hair and covered her head in worship with a veil, she showed honor and respect to her husband and reverence for God. A woman who discarded her head covering in worship was also likely to be a sexual distraction to men in church. Such behavior would bring dishonor to her husband and God.
Paul stresses the importance of men and women expressing their unique male and female differences. There should be no disgrace in embracing and emphasizing our differences as men and women because doing so brings honor and glory to God and displays the divine pattern of authority in the body of Christ. By wearing a veil and letting their hair grow long, the Corinthian women displayed for humans and angels the glorious truth that in Christ, being female is a God-honoring distinction (see 1 Corinthians 11:10).
The purpose of worship is to glorify God. For the Corinthians, “a woman’s hair is her glory” meant it displayed the value, worth, and beauty of her womanhood (see Song of Solomon 7:5) as it brought glory to God in the church. Today, women express their unique femininity, respect for their husbands, and reverence for God in different ways, but still within contemporary society’s cultural-religious norms and customs. To some degree, hairstyles and clothing are still part of that expression.
Christian men and women ought to be careful to maintain a community of worship that does not dishonor God or the church through unacceptable, shameful practices. The church is God’s beacon to a broken and fallen world. We must never let our freedom in Christ bring criticism and disgrace to the church or hinder the spreading of the gospel message. Everything we do—especially our public worship—should bring glory to God (1 Corinthians 10:31).
