Shared Word Translation
1 Corinthians 11
Imitate Christ
Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ. Now I praise you because you remember me in everything and hold firmly to the traditions, just as I delivered them to you.
Headship and Worship
But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with something on his head disgraces his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered disgraces her head—it is one and the same as if her head were shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is shameful for a woman to have her hair cut off or be shaved, let her cover her head.
For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. For man was not made from woman, but woman from man. Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. For this reason a woman ought to have authority over her head, because of the angels.
Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor man independent of woman. For just as woman came from man, so also man is born through woman—and all things are from God. Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered?
Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair it is a dishonor to him, but if a woman has long hair it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. But if anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God.
Abuses at the Lord’s Table
But in giving this instruction I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. For in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you; and in part I trust it, for there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you.
When you come together, it is not to eat the Lord’s supper, for in eating, each one goes ahead with their own meal, and one is hungry while another is drunk. What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I do not praise you.
The Tradition of the Supper
For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night when he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Discern the Body
Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be accountable for the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine themselves, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on themselves.
For this reason many among you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we were judging ourselves, we would not be judged. Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
Practical Correction
So then, my sisters and brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. If anyone is hungry, let them eat at home, so that when you come together it will not be for judgment. And the rest I will set in order when I come.