Bible Question: I am trying to understand if a woman must have long hair accrodng to the words of the apostle Paul in the book of 1 corinthians chapter 11. Please help me to understand this passage ina biblical sense |
Bible Answer: The principle Paul is addressing is for a woman to have a covering(vs. 5). Paul says that her hair is her glory and it is given to her for a covering(vs.15). Paul also calls upon nature itself to show us that men should have short hair and women should have long hair. What is long? I know women who never cut their hair and it only grows to their shoulders. My wife has not cut her hair in 14 years and it is still growing now passed her knees. The balance of everything Paul is telling us is that a woman's glorious covering is uncut hair to whatever 'length' it grows. How else would we measure length? Paul is really addressing the issue of shorn(cut)and shaven (shaved) hair. Paul also says that there is power on the woman's head becauseof the angels. Uncut hair shows a sign of submission. Here is a short story I heard from a preacher who was on the foreign mission field. He and the missionary had come across a local witch. She began yelling at these men and then she bent over and hung her hair down and shook it. The missionary then explained that this woman was trying to curse them by her gods and she was multiplying it by her hair. He then said even the devils(fallen angels) know that there is power associated with the womans hair. Hope this helps. Remember God would not put something in the Bible if it was not important. This is not Pauls ideas or some cultural problem this is an authority submission issue. For both men and women hair is important to God that's why it is in the Book. |