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1 Corinthians 11

1Become imitators of me, just as I am of Christ.

2I praise you because you remember me in everything and hold fast to the traditions just as I handed them on to you. 3But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 4Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered shames his head. 5But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered shames her head, for she is one and the same as a woman whose head is shaved. 6For if a woman does not cover herself, she should also cut off her hair. But if it is shameful for a woman to have her hair cut off or shaved, she should cover herself. 7For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is God's image and glory; but woman is man's glory. 8For man is not from woman, but woman from man; 9nor was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10For this reason a woman ought to have authority over her head, because of the angels. 11Nevertheless, in the Lord neither is woman independent of man nor man independent of woman. 12For just as woman is from man, so man comes through woman, and everything is from God. 13Judge for yourselves: is it fitting for a woman to pray to God uncovered? 14Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair, it is a dishonor to him, 15but if a woman wears long hair, it is her glory? For the long hair has been given as a covering. 16But if anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do God's assemblies.

17In giving this instruction, however, I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. 18For first of all, when you come together as an assembly, I hear that there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it. 19For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become visible among you. 20So when you come together in one place, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat, 21for as you eat, each goes ahead with his own supper, and one goes hungry while another is drunk. 22Do you not have homes for eating and drinking? Or do you despise God's assembly and shame those who have nothing? What should I say to you? Should I praise you? In this I do not praise you.

23For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you: the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over, took bread, 24and after giving thanks he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25In the same way he also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26For whenever you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. 27So whoever eats the bread or drinks the Lord's cup in an unworthy manner will be answerable for the Lord's body and blood. 28A person should test himself, and in this way eat from the bread and drink from the cup. 29For the one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself. 30That is why many among you are weak and ill, and quite a few have fallen asleep. 31But if we were discerning ourselves, we would not be judged. 32Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we may not be condemned with the world. 33So, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34If someone is hungry, he should eat at home, so that your coming together may not result in judgment. I will arrange the remaining matters when I come.

Translation notes 6

11:1–3 — Imitation and heads. Verse 1 continues the appeal at the end of chapter 10. “Head” retains the metaphor and its link with literal heads in the following verses; authority, prominence, and source are debated interpretations. “Man” and “woman” can also mean “husband” and “wife.” The creation argument supports the broader wording here, without eliminating marital implications.

11:4–10 — Covering and authority. The passage assumes women pray and prophesy. The precise form of the covering is debated; the translation does not specify a face veil. Verse 10 says that the woman should “have authority,” not explicitly wear a sign of someone else's authority. “Authority over her head” follows that active expression; “authority on her head,” understood as a sign of her authorization, is another serious reading. The angels' role is unexplained.

11:11–16 — Mutual dependence and custom. The reciprocal claims and “everything is from God” remain alongside the preceding asymmetry. Hair is given “as a covering,” also possible “instead of a covering”; its relationship with the earlier covering is disputed. “No such custom” translates the actual expression, not “no other custom.” It may reject contentious behavior or the disputed practice of uncovered prayer; the referent is not explicit.

11:17–22 — The divided meal. “Factions” does not necessarily mean later doctrinal heresies. The disparity between hunger and drunkenness exposes the failure of the shared meal. “Those who have nothing” may mean those lacking food or resources, rather than people without houses.

11:23–26 — The received meal tradition. “Handed over” can include betrayal but does not name an agent. The Greek base does not add “Take, eat” or “broken” to Jesus' words about his body; these occur in other witnesses. “New covenant” is retained without defining how bread, cup, body, and blood are related.

11:27–34 — Discernment and judgment. “In an unworthy manner” describes the manner of participation, not a class of inherently unworthy people. “The body” in verse 29 may refer to Christ's body in the meal, the community as his body, or a relation between these. The base does not add “of the Lord” here. Falling asleep means dying. Judgment, discipline, and condemnation remain distinct; Paul connects the community's illnesses and deaths with this conduct without making a universal claim about every illness. “Brothers” addresses the community, including its women.