1 Corinthians 11

1 Be yee followers of mee, euen as I am of Christ.

Imitate me, as I myself imitate Christ.

2 Now brethren, I commend you, that ye remember all my things, and keepe the ordinances, as I deliuered them to you.

I praise you, indeed, because you never forget me, and are keeping my injunctions in mind, exactly as I laid them on you.

3 But I wil that ye know, that Christ is the head of euery man: and the man is the womans head: and God is Christs head.

But I am anxious that you should understand that the Christ is the head of every man, that man is the head of woman, and that God is the head of the Christ.

4 Euery man praying or prophecying hauing any thing on his head, dishonoureth his head.

Any man who keeps his head covered, when praying or preaching in public, dishonours him who is his head;

5 But euery woman that prayeth or prophecieth bare headed, dishonoureth her head: for it is euen one very thing, as though she were shauen.

while any woman, who prays or preaches in public bare-headed, dishonours him who is her head; for that is to make herself like one of the shameless women who shave their heads.

6 Therefore if the woman be not couered, let her also be shorne: and if it be shame for a woman to be shorne or shauen, let her be couered.

Indeed, if a woman does not keep her head covered, she may as well cut her hair short. But, since to cut her hair short, or shave it off, marks her as one of the shameless women, she should keep her head covered.

7 For a man ought not to couer his head: for as much as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man.

A man ought not to have his head covered, for he has been from the beginning the likeness of God and the reflection of his glory, but woman is the reflection of man’s glory.

8 For the man is not of the woman, but the woman of the man.

For it was not man who was taken from woman, but woman who was taken from man.

9 For the man was not created for the womans sake: but the woman for the mans sake.

Besides, man was not created for the sake of woman, but woman for the sake of man.

10 Therefore ought the woman to haue power on her head, because of the Angels.

And, therefore, a woman ought to wear on her head a symbol of her subjection, because of the presence of the angels.

11 Neuertheles, neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man in the Lord.

Still, when in union with the Lord, woman is not independent of man, or man of woman;

12 For as the woman is of the man, so is the man also by the woman: but all things are of God.

for just as woman came from man, so man comes by means of woman; and all things come from God.

13 Iudge in your selues, Is it comely that a woman pray vnto God vncouered?

Judge for yourselves. Is it fitting that a woman should pray to God in public with her head uncovered?

14 Doeth not nature it selfe teach you, that if a man haue long heare, it is a shame vnto him?

Does not nature herself teach us that, while for a man to wear his hair long is degrading to him,

15 But if a woman haue long heare, it is a prayse vnto her: for her heare is giuen her for a couering.

a woman’s long hair is her glory? Her hair has been given her to serve as a covering.

16 But if any man lust to be contentious, we haue no such custome, neither the Churches of God.

If, however, anyone still thinks it right to contest the point – well, we have no such custom, nor have the churches of God.

17 Nowe in this that I declare, I prayse you not, that ye come together, not with profite, but with hurt.

In giving directions on the next subject, I cannot praise you; because your meetings do more harm than good.

18 For first of all, when ye come together in the Church, I heare that there are dissentions among you: and I beleeue it to be true in some part.

To begin with, I am told that when you meet together as a church there are divisions among you. In part I believe this,

19 For there must be heresies euen among you, that they which are approoued among you, might be knowen.

indeed, there must be parties among you, so that the people of real worth become known.

20 When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eate the Lords Supper.

When you meet together, as I understand, it is not possible to eat the Lord’s Supper;

21 For euery man when they should eate, taketh his owne supper afore, and one is hungry, and another is drunken.

for, as you eat, each of you tries to secure his own supper first, with the result that one has too little to eat, and another has too much to drink!

22 Haue ye not houses to eate and to drinke in? despise ye the Church of God, and shame them that haue not? what shall I say to you? shall I prayse you in this? I prayse you not.

Have you no houses in which you can eat and drink? Or are you trying to show your contempt for the church of God, and to humiliate the poor? What can I say to you? Should I praise you? In this matter I cannot praise you.

23 For I haue receiued of the Lord that which I also haue deliuered vnto you, to wit, That the Lord Iesus in the night when he was betrayed, tooke bread:

For I myself received from the Lord the account which I have in turn given to you – how the Lord Jesus, on the very night of his betrayal, took some bread,

24 And when hee had giuen thankes, hee brake it, and sayde, Take, eate: this is my body, which is broken for you: this doe ye in remembrance of me.

and, after saying the thanksgiving, broke it and said ‘This is my own body given on your behalf. Do this in memory of me.’

25 After the same maner also he tooke the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the Newe Testament in my blood: this doe as oft as ye drinke it, in remembrance of me.

And in the same way with the cup, after supper, saying ‘This cup is the new covenant made by my blood. Do this, whenever you drink it, in memory of me.’

26 For as often as ye shall eate this bread, and drinke this cup, ye shewe the Lords death till hee come.

For whenever you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death – until he comes.

27 Wherefore, whosoeuer shall eate this bread, and drinke the cup of the Lord vnworthily, shall be guiltie of the body and blood of the Lord.

Therefore, whoever eats the bread, or drinks the Lord’s cup, in an irreverent spirit, will have to answer for an offence against the Lord’s body and blood.

28 Let euery man therefore examine himselfe, and so let him eate of this bread, and drinke of this cup.

Let everyone look into their own heart, and only then eat of the bread and drink from the cup.

29 For he that eateth and drinketh vnworthily, eateth and drinketh his owne damnation, because he discerneth not the Lords body.

For the person who eats and drinks brings a judgment on themselves by their eating and drinking, when they do not discern the body.

30 For this cause many are weake, and sicke among you, and many sleepe.

That is why so many among you are weak and ill, and why some are sleeping.

31 For if we would iudge our selues, we should not be iudged.

But, if we judged ourselves rightly, we should not be judged.

32 But when we are iudged, we are chastened of the Lord, because we should not be condemned with the world.

Yet, in being judged by the Lord, we are undergoing discipline, so that we may not have judgment passed on us with the rest of the world.

33 Wherefore, my brethren, when ye come together to eate, tary one for another.

Therefore, my friends, when you meet together to eat the Supper, wait for one another.

34 And if any man be hungry, let him eate at home, that ye come not together vnto condemnation. Other things will I set in order when I come.

If anyone is hungry, they should eat at home, so that your meetings may not bring a judgment on you. The other details I will settle when I come.