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our standing in grad before God is con cerned there is no distinction whatever between the man and the woman (Gal. 3:28), had taken the ground that there was no difference between man and woman in the matter of rule and order. The result of this stand on their part was that womanly modesty and reserve and retire ment and subordination seemed in actual peril. This had led to unseemliness in mat ters of dress. The women thought that in, the matter of dressing their heads they had a right to do just as the men did. Paul shows them that they were wrong by bring ing forward the fact that, while Christ was equal with God and one with God, never theless, his position was that of subordi nation to that of God the Father (Phil. 2:6; John 10:30; cf. John 14:28). Just so, Paul says, though the woman is equal to the man and one with the man (Eph. 5:31), nevertheless, her position is that of subordi nation to the man. There should be a recognition of this fact of her subordina tion to the man even in the mode of her dress. To this end the woman should have a covering (v. 4), “a sign of authority” (v. 10 R. V.), upon her head when she prayed or prophesied. Of course by the head covering Paul did not have in mind the great hat or showy bonnet such as women oftentimes now wear, which is usu ally not a sign of subordination at all, but rather a sign of parade and vanity. Better no covering at all in the church or choir than that. What Paul had in mind was the veil or head dress, a simple, unostentatious, modest sign of the woman’s subjection to the man. It comes out incidentally in this passage that Paul regarded it as right for the woman under some circumstances to pray or prophesy in the church gathering; for he gives directions how she should do it. That he is not speaking of the woman’s praying or prophesying at home, in private, is evident from the context (vs. 16, 17; cf. Acts 2:18; 21:9). For the man to wear a Covering, a sign of subjection, when he prayed or prophesied was to dis honor (rather, put to shame) his head; for
the man’s rightful place is not that of sub jection or subordination. But on the other hand for the woman not to wear a cover ing was to dishonor (put to shame) her head, for her rightful, divinely appointed place is that of subjection or subordination. The man in the place of subjection is out of his place, and the woman when she is not in the place of subjection is out of her place. The woman’s long hair is her nat ural covering and sign of subjection or subordination, and the artificial covering is the one she voluntarily adopts as a token of her own assent to her position of sub jection. If she is not willing to take the voluntary sign let her also be shorn of the natural sign, that is, the long hair. If that would be an unbecoming or disgraceful thing, then let her wear a covering also.' The man “is the image and glory of God,” that is, his relation to God is direct and immediate; but the woman’s glory is reflected from the man, she “is the glory of the man,” her original relation to God was indirect and mediate (Gen. 2:18). Of course, in the realm of grace the woman comes into direct communion with God, but still her position is one of dependence and subordination. We may not like this, but this is the way God has seen fit to arrange this matter; both nature and scripture teach this. To try to put woman in the place of leadership is to fight against both the Word of God (1 Tim. 2;11, 12) and the nature of things. This is not at all to say that women are not often far better and wiser than men; it is simply to recognize their God- given position. Man has oftentimes tried, both in the church and in the world, to improve on God’s ordinance in this matter, but this attempt of man to improve on God’s ordinance has always resulted in disaster and in great evil, especially to women. Sunday, Nov. 18 . i Cor. i i : 8 -io. The first woman was made “out of” man The word translated, both in the authorized and revised version, “of” in v. 8 is more
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