1 Corinthians 11 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

1 Corinthians 11

11:1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

Head Coverings

2 Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you. 3 But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife¹ is her husband,² and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, 5 but every wife³ who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven. 6 For if a wife will not cover her head, then she should cut her hair short. But since it is disgraceful for a wife to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her cover her head. 7 For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man. 8 For man was not made from woman, but woman from man. 9 Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10 That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.⁴ 11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; 12 for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God. 13 Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a wife to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him, 15 but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. 16 If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor do the churches of God.

The Lord’s Supper

17 But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. 18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part,⁵ 19 for there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. 20 When you come together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat. 21 For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.

23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for⁶ you. Do this in remembrance of me.”⁷ 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.⁸ 31 But if we judged⁹ ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined¹⁰ so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

33 So then, my brothers,¹¹ when you come together to eat, wait for¹² one another—34 if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home—so that when you come together it will not be for judgment. About the other things I will give directions when I come.

Footnotes

[1] 11:3 Greek gunē. This term may refer to a woman or a wife, depending on the context
[2] 11:3 Greek anēr. This term may refer to a man or a husband, depending on the context
[3] 11:5 In verses 5–13, the Greek word gunē is translated wife in verses that deal with wearing a veil, a sign of being married in first-century culture
[4] 11:10 Or messengers, that is, people sent to observe and report
[5] 11:18 Or I believe a certain report
[6] 11:24 Some manuscripts broken for
[7] 11:24 Or as my memorial; also verse 25
[8] 11:30 Greek have fallen asleep (as in 15:6, 20)
[9] 11:31 Or discerned
[10] 11:32 Or when we are judged we are being disciplined by the Lord
[11] 11:33 Or brothers and sisters
[12] 11:33 Or share with

Commentary

v1-2: Verses linking the teaching of chapters 10 and 11; the command to imitate the godly; there is a commendation for those who obey the godly; and there must be a proper respect for those over us in the Lord. Leaders have a special responsibility to imitate Christ.

v3: Godly authority in the church;

indicating that some women were usurping male authority (see also 14.34-35);
reflecting the order of the Godhead (John 10.30);
giving proper respect and honour to all (John 8.49,54);
demonstrating a unity of purpose (John 4.34);
demonstrating submission of one to another (John 7.16).
The head of the woman is man; man is not better than women, but man carries authority, and woman is the glory of man. The woman must reflect the character of men, just as the man must reflect the character of Christ, for Christ perfectly reflected the character of Christ.

v4: The man is not to cover His head, Christ, also v7.

At the time, a Jew often used a prayer cloth to cover his head whilst praying. Paul seems to refer to this practice.

v5-6: The woman in the meeting must not dishonour her head, the man, just as the man must not dishonour Christ. At the time a Jewsih woman, accused of adultery, would have her hair shorn or shaved. This sign indicated that she has dishonoured the daughters of Israel.

v8-9: Woman was created from the man, and created for the man; the man is effectively incomplete without the woman.

v10: The head covering is a symbol of authority, a testimony to the angels of the reality of redemption, for they are ignorant of such things; the truths of v3 are outside their experience.

v13-15: The argument also refers to the culture of the day, that a woman in Corinth would have had her hair long.

v16: These things are not intended to promote contention. Presumably, where the women serve God in their proper place, then such teaching will be different; Paul is here addressing a specific issue in a specific place.

v17: I do not praise you; compare v22 and contrast v2. Some things were worthy of commendation, other things were worthy of criticism. This is true also of other N.T. letters. When God speaks to us, He may speak with both commendation and criticism; we must be submissive, and hear both.

When the Corinthians met together, the result was breaking down not building up. This matter had to be dealt with, as the meeting was important, see 14.19.

v18: Divisions within the church contribute to it breaking down.

v19: We are not all alike; difference do demonstrate God's approval of some, esp. those who are leaders in the church.

v20-22: Wrong and selfish attitudes in worship. The most precious time, the Lord's Supper, was reduced to a time of drunkenness and chaos and gluttony and selfishness. Paul said they were not eating the Lord's Supper, since they had destroyed its character. Through their behaviour they despised the church.

v23-26: Paul recalls the simplicity and purity of the message given to him by the Lord Himself. Paul speaks with authority as an apostle of Jesus Christ, and insists that the bread and wine were instituted by Him. Paul's words here have certain implications;

Jesus is alive, for dead men do not speak;
We must teach all things, Matt 28.19-20;
The Lord's Supper proclaims His death;
The Lord's Supper demonstrates His risen life, and our lives must match that;
The Lord's Supper repeatedly promises the Lord's return.
Again, we see references to Jesus Christ as "the Lord"; He must be free to have total authority in His church.

v27: In speaking of those who eat and drink in an unworthy manner, Paul refers to deliberate disobedience. No Christian is perfect, and we all receive bread and wine as sinners forgiven by grace.

v28: We must examine ourselves, repent of bad attitudes, and then come and eat. We must judge ourselves (v31), recognising what is godly and what is not.

v29: The Lord's body, a reference in Christ and to the church. We honour Christ Himself as we share in the bread and wine; it is a celebration by His church of Him. A failure to do that brings judgment.

v30: There are real consequences for sins, for God is not mocked.

v31: We must sort ourselves out in humility first, and then eat.

v32: Receive the discipline of the Lord, and we know that we shall not be condemned with the world.

v33-34: The Lord's Supper is not to be our meal, for we eat at home. It is the sharing of the precious things of Christ. This is not a general prohibition of shared meals, but rather then need to put first things first.