Immerse: Messiah - Flipbook - Page 151
10:23–11:14
1 C o ri n thia n s
139
You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for
you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial. Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others.
So you may eat any meat that is sold in the marketplace without raising
questions of conscience. For “the earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.”
If someone who isn’t a believer asks you home for dinner, accept the
invitation if you want to. Eat whatever is offered to you without raising
questions of conscience. (But suppose someone tells you, “This meat was
offered to an idol.” Don’t eat it, out of consideration for the conscience of
the one who told you. It might not be a matter of conscience for you, but
it is for the other person.) For why should my freedom be limited by what
someone else thinks? If I can thank God for the food and enjoy it, why
should I be condemned for eating it?
So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory
of God. Don’t give offense to Jews or Gentiles or the church of God. I,
too, try to please everyone in everything I do. I don’t just do what is best
for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved. And you
should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.
I am so glad that you always keep me in your thoughts, and that you are
following the teachings I passed on to you. But there is one thing I want
you to know: The head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man,
and the head of Christ is God. A man dishonors his head if he covers his
head while praying or prophesying. But a woman dishonors her head if she
prays or prophesies without a covering on her head, for this is the same as
shaving her head. Yes, if she refuses to wear a head covering, she should
cut off all her hair! But since it is shameful for a woman to have her hair
cut or her head shaved, she should wear a covering.
A man should not wear anything on his head when worshiping, for man
is made in God’s image and reflects God’s glory. And woman reflects man’s
glory. For the first man didn’t come from woman, but the first woman
came from man. And man was not made for woman, but woman was made
for man. For this reason, and because the angels are watching, a woman
should wear a covering on her head to show she is under authority.
But among the Lord’s people, women are not independent of men,
and men are not independent of women. For although the first woman
came from man, every other man was born from a woman, and everything
comes from God.
Judge for yourselves. Is it right for a woman to pray to God in public
without covering her head? Isn’t it obvious that it’s disgraceful for a man
