How does a head covering relate to glory and honor?

Overview

• If you haven’t read 1 Corinthians 11 before, it may seem that there’s no connection between a physical piece of cloth and topics like glory & honor.

Answer

• A “symbol” is simply a physical representation of a non-physical reality.

• A small circle-shaped piece of gold doesn’t literally communicate the commitment of marriage. Yet once we understand what a wedding ring is intended to symbolize, then we understand what it means when someone wears one.

• Similarly, the Bible teaches that head covering symbolically highlights God’s glory while symbolically hiding human glory.

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Explanation

1. Men and women were both created in God’s image (Genesis 1:26–27) and in His likeness (Genesis 1:26, Genesis 5:1, James 3:9). God made us “very good” (Genesis 1:31) and Paul teaches that both men and women are glorious (1 Corinthians 11:7)

2. The man (Adam) was God’s first direct human creation, and reflects His headship. The Bible says the man is the “glory of God” (1 Corinthians 11:7).

3. Since the man is the glory of God (and because the “head” of man is Christ), then God teaches that men should not cover their heads when praying or prophesying (1 Corinthians 11:4, 7).

4. Scripture also states that “woman is the glory of man” (1 Corinthians 11:7). Why? Because she was created from man (Adam) and for his sake (1 Corinthians 11:8-9).

5. When a woman wears a wedding ring, it doesn’t symbolize that her finger is married. It means that the woman herself is married. The symbolism works the same with a head covering. Paul speaks of woman herself being covered (1 Corinthians 11:6, 12), not just her head.

6. Paul explains that the reason a man should not be covered is specifically because he is “the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 11:7). And so the women’s situation is the opposite: the reason she should be covered is that she is “the glory of man” (1 Corinthians 11:7). The “glory of man” is symbolically covered.

7. Being covered is the “proper” way for a woman to pray (1 Corinthians 11:13). It is proper for the glory of man to be symbolically covered when communicating with God. It is proper that only the “glory of God” is uncovered.

8. Paul warns that if these symbols are ignored, then believers are “dishonoring” their heads (1 Corinthians 11:4–5). Obviously, this is the opposite of glorifying God.

9. We know that a wedding ring symbolizes the commitment of marriage. So what spiritual reality does the physical head covering symbolize? Likewise, what spiritual reality does men uncovering their heads symbolize? Glory. When communicating with God, only the “glory of Deity” (man) is symbolically uncovered, while the “glory of humanity” (woman) is symbolically veiled.