296

ΧΧ.

Reflections on our obligations not to offend others.

SECT. bers was actuated by them! not seeking his own things, but those of others; not pursuing his own interest, but that of many, that they may be saved! Yea, how happy would each particular per23 son be, in such a wise and tender care of the whole, beyond 24-29 what the most eager and successful pursuit of a separate interest can render him!

verse

Let us endeavour to steer in the due medium, between the opposite extremes of an excessive scrupulosity, and a presumptuous rashness; and attend to the various distinguishing circum25-27 stances which will demand a correspondent difference of conduct, in things which may seem to an inattentive eye much the same: not thinking that attention and caution needless, by which 31 the glory of our God, and the edification of our brethren, may be promoted. We may expose ourselves in consequence of this tenderness of conscience, to inconveniences, straits, and contempt; but let us commit all our concerns to that Divine Provi26-28 dence which extends itself to all its works; and rejoice to think, that the earth is the Lord's, and all its fulness: out of which he will not fail to furnish necessary supplies to those who fear him, and are thus solicitous to preserve a conscience void of offence before him. But while we are strictly cautious ourselves, let us not be rash and severe in our censures of others, who stand, or fall, to their own master, and who may in some instances have reasons, to us unknown, for a conduct most different from ours.

O! that Divine grace may teach us all to govern our whole 31 lives by this extensive important maxim, that whether we eat, or drink, or whatsoever we do, we pursue the glory of God! Let us dignify and sanctify all the common actions of life, by per forming them from these high and holy motives; and so turning them into sacrifices of devotion and love. Then shall we 32 not only avoid giving offence to others, but shall conduct ourselves in such a manner, as shall make us burning and shining lights in the world, and extend our sphere of usefulness far be yond that of our personal converse, and perhaps beyond the date of our precarious abode in this transitory world.

Thus glorifying our heavenly Father on earth, and finishing the work he hath given us to do, we may hope through his grace in Christ, to be glorified with him above, and to be brought to a Chap. brighter image of that Saviour, who has set us so perfect an ex xi.1 ample of the temper and conduct here recommended, which

even the blessed apostle Paul followed only with unequal steps.

The apostle blames an indecency in the church of Corinth ;

SECT. XXI.

The apostle sets himself to reform some indecencies which had crept into the church of Corinth; and particularly that of women prophesying with their head uncovered. 1 Cor. XI. 2-16.

1 Cor. XI. 2.

I

1 CORINTHIANS XI. 2.

297

xxi.

Now I praise HAVE just now exhorted you, my breth- SECT. you, brethren, ren, to imitate me, as I endeavour to copy that you remember the me in all things, and example of our blessed Lord. And while keep the ordinances, I am giving you such an exhortation, I ought xi. 2 as I delivered them to express my satisfaction in seeing many of

to you.

1 Cor.

But as to 3

you so ready to comply with it. I praise such
of you therefore, that in all things you are mind-
ful of me, and strenuously retain the charges I
3 But I would have gave, as I committed [them] to you.
you know, that the your inquiring concerning the manner in which
head of every man is
Christ; and the head women should deliver any thing in public,
of the woman, is the when they are by a Divine impulse called to do
man; and the head it; I would have you to know, in order to reg-
of Christ, is God.

ulate your judgment and conduct aright, that
Christ is the head of every man; so that every
Christian should often recollect the relation in
which he hath the honour to stand to him, as
an engagement to observe the strictest deco-
rum in his whole behaviour. And if the dif-
ferent sexes be compared, the head of the wo-
man [is] the man; to whom therefore she ought
to pay a reverent respect, as in the Lord. And
the head of Christ [is] God: Christ, in his me-
diatorial character, acts in subordination to the
Father, who rules by him, and hath constituted
him Sovereign of all worlds, visible and invisi-
ble. And as the Father's glory is interested
in the administration of Christ, so is the glory
of Christ in some measure interested in the
conduct and behaviour of those men whose
more immediate head he is; and I may add, of
those women whose heads such men are.

4 Every man pray.
Now, upon this principle, I may say, in ref- 4
ing, or prophesying, erence to the usages which prevail at this time
in your country; every man, praying or proph-
esying, in a public assembly, whether he give
forth inspired psalms or hymns, or utter pre-
dictions, or common instruction; if he do it

298

xxi.

1 Cor.

Where women prophesied with their head uncovered:

his head.

dishonoureth ber

were shaven.

SECT. with [his] head covered, acting therein contrary having his head cov to the received rules of decency among us, he ered, dishonoureth in a degree, dishonours Christ his head, as bexi. 5 having unworthy his relation to him. And on 5 But every wo. the other hand, every woman, praying or prophe- man that prayeth, or sying, under such inspiration as above, with prophesieth, with [her] head unveiled, dishonoureth man, who is her head uncovered, her head, by behaving in such a manner as head for that is eis indecent in an assembly consisting of so ven all one as if she many men as are usually present on these occasions: for I may say, that it is in this respect the same as if she were shaved: shaving her head is only taking off the natural covering, and exposing it bare; which is so shameful a thing, that you know it has often been inflicted as a proper kind of punishment, on women of the most abandoned character; and it is scandalous, that any thing like this should be used in your Christian assemblies; and this too, by persons pretending to extraordinary characters 6 and assistances. I may therefore say, if a wo- 6 For if the wo. man will not be veiled, let her even be shorn; but man be not covered, let her also be sborn: if it be apparently shameful for a woman to have but if it be a shame her hair shorn, or shaved off, let her keep as for a woman to be far as possible from so disagreeable an appear. shorn or shaven, let ance; and have her head covered with a proper veil, at the times, and in the circumstances of 7 which we now speak. For a man indeed ought 7 For a man innot to have [his] head covered as being the im- deed ought not to mediate image and glory of God: and made in cover his head, forhis likeness as the first copy of its kind, before image and glory of woman was created. It is decent therefore, God but the wothat he should appear with the marks of that man is the glory of superiority which he indeed bears: but the the man. woman should forbear it; and it is enough to say of her, that she is the glory of the man: to whom God hath done no inconsiderable honour,

her be covered.

asmuch as he is the

Every man praying, &c. with his head tation of the custom prevailing in the syn. covered, dishonoureth [his] head.] It was certainly, (as Dr. Whitby, and others, have proved,) the custom among the Greeks and Romans, as well as the Jews, to appear in worshipping assemblies with their head covered; and it is certain the Jewish priests wore a kind of turban, when ministering in the temple. But it seems, that the Corinthian men wore a veil, out of regard to Pharisaical traditions, and in imi

agogues; which therefore the apostle disapproved. The women seem to have worn their hair dishevelled, when praying by Divine inspiration; (which seems to have been the only case in which they could regularly pray in public :) this made them resemble those pagan priestesses, who pretended to be actuated by their gods; the apostle therefore with great propriety discourages it.

which is not agreeable to her state of inferiority:

but the woman of the man.

299

1 Cor.

as well as favour, in making so excellent and SECT. amiable a creature for his benefit and comfort. xxi. 'Yet still her state of subjection to him should be remembered, and it is very expedient she xi. 7 should appear in public with some tacit acFor the man is not, in g 8 For the man is knowledgment of it. not of the woman; the first production of his nature, taken out of the woman; but as we read in the sacred history, (Gen. ii. 21-23,) the woman out of the Neither [was] the man created for the 9 9 Neither was the man. man created for the sake of the woman, to accommodate and assist woman; but the woher; but the woman for the sake of the man, that man for the man. he might have an help meet for him, which before he found not in the whole creation. On this account therefore, as 10 10 For this cause (Gen. ii. 20.) ought the woman to well as for the other reasons I have mentioned have power on her head, because of the above, the woman ought to have upon [her] head a veil, as a token of her being under the powerb and subjection of the man and so much the rather should she wear it in worshipping assemblies, because of the angels, who are especially present there, and before whom we ought to be exceedingly careful that nothing pass which may be indecent and irregular, and unlike that perfect order and profound humility with which they worship in the Divine pres

angels.

ence.

insnared by the beauty of women; and it
is more grossly absurd still to suppose with
Tertullian, (de Vet. Virg. $7,) that there
was any room to apprehend it could be
a snare to celestial spirits; (which mistake
seemed to be grounded on the wild inter-
pretation of Gen. vi. 2, so generally re-
ceived among the fathers.) Dr. Whitby
understands it of evil angels, and thinks
it refers to the punishment which Eve in-
curred, (Gen. iii. 16,) for hearkening to
the suggestions of Satan. A late ingeni-
ous writer by azov, understands spies;
who he supposes came into Christian as-
semblies to make ill natured remarks, and
so would be glad to blaze abroad any in-
decencies they might observe there. (See
Mr. Gough's Diss. in loc.) I have not room
to canvass all these; but only add in sup-
port of the sense, which, as least excep-
tionable, I have followed, that the pres-
ence of angels in religious assemblies is
favoured by Eccles. v. 1, 6, and the fig
ures of Cherubim in the tabernacle and

Power on [her] head] Mr. Locke acknowledges with a modesty which does him much honour, that he did not understand this text, and many seem to have darkened it, by their attempts to explain it. But the chief difficulty does not lie in the word power; which must, to be sure, be understood of a veil, which married women wore on their head, as a token of subjection to their husband; (see Gen. xxiv. 65;) and Mr. Godwin, (Moses and Aaron, p. 236,) supposes the veil was in Hebrew called 17, (Radid,) from a root, 777 (Radad,) which signified subjection; so that the veil was, as it were, the habit by which a woman shewed she considered herself in subjection; and Chardin observes, that the married women in Persia wear a peculiar habit to the very same Chard. Pers. Vol. II. p. 187. It purpose. is much more difficult to ascertain the meaning of that clause, because of the an gels. It seems neither reasonable, nor decent, to explain this of young ministers; as if they were in peculiar danger of being temple.

300

Nor is it consistent with natural decency.

SECT. I have treated the matter with a plainness 11 Nevertheless, xxi. and freedom becoming my character: neverthe- neither is the man

xi. 11

without the woman,

less, let not any hints which I have dropped of neither the woman 1 Cor. the superior dignity of the man be abused, to without the man, in render him haughty and tyrannical: for it is the Lord. evident, that the man [is] not without the woman, nor the woman without the man, in the Lord. You know that the existence and comfort of either sex has a dependence upon the other; which the genius of the Christian religion requires us to consider, and to behave in a man12 ner correspondent to it. For as the woman

e

12 For as the wo

[was] at first taken from the rib of the man, man is of the man, e-
whom he ought therefore to love as a part of ven so is the man also
himself, and she to revere him, as under God all things of God.
by the woman; but
the source of her being; so also, in the ordi-
nary course of the Divine production, the man
[is] by the woman; born, nourished, and in the
tenderest years of life educated by her; a cir-
cumstance that ought to be ever most tenderly
remembered, as a spring of grateful affection
and regard. But let me add, that whether in
the first creation, or the successive production
of human creatures, all things [are] of God;
whose constitution ought therefore humbly and
obediently to be revered, and all the duties of
relative life performed, as for his sake, and to
his glory.

13 But with respect to the particular circumstance

13 Judge in your I was speaking of, I may leave you to judge of selves: is it comely yourselves, whether it be, according to the usages unto God uncovergenerally prevailing among us, decent for a ed?

that a woman pray

woman to pray to God with that masculine and confident air which she must have when her 14 head is uncovered: Or rather, doth not the 14 Doth not even sight immediately shock us, previous to any nature itself teach reasonings upon it in our own mind? So that you, that if a man nature itself seems to teach you, that on the one a shame unto him? have long hair, it is hand, for a man to have long hair solicitously adjusted and artfully adorned, is such a mark of an effeminate character, as is, on the whole, 15 a disgrace to him; Whereas, on the other hand,

15 But if a woman

if a woman hath long hair spread over her have long hair, it is shoulders, it is rather a glory to her; for her a glory to her, for

Fudge whether it be decent, &c.] The Grecian women, excepting the heathen priestesses, used to appear in their veils,

when they came into public assemblies; as we find in Homer, and many other an cient writers.