Lessons #363 and 364
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New English Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
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Head Covering: Concept of Hierarchy (1 Cor 11:3-16)
… 3 Now I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. 5 And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is just as though her head were shaved. 6 If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved off, she should cover her head. 7 A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man. 8 For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9 neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10 For this reason, and because of the angels, the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head. 11 In the Lord, however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12 For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God. 13 Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, 15 but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. 16 If anyone wants to be contentious about this, we have no other practice—nor do the churches of God.
The message of this section that is concerned with head covering that we stated previously is this: Men should not have their head covered during prayer and likewise women who wear their hair the way God has given it to them, but they should cover it if they either cut or shave it. In our last study, we indicated that based on the sentence of 1 Corinthians 11:3 Now I want you to realize, there is knowledge the apostle strongly wants the Corinthians to have which is that there is such a thing as the concept of hierarchy both in heaven and on earth. We stated that there are the three relationships the apostle stated that are the basis of our assertion that there is such a thing as the concept of hierarchy both in heaven and on earth. We have considered the first relationship which is that between man and Christ as in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 11:3 the head of every man is Christ that we stated means that Christ has authority over man or that man functions under His authority, so we proceed to the second relationship.
The second relationship is that between a man and a woman as in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of the woman is man. Because in our last study, we stated that the word “head” is used figuratively for hierarchical meaning of authority of one over another, there is the problem of whether the sentence is concerned with every man and woman relationship or that of specific relationship of husband and wife. This problem arises also because of the range of meanings of the Greek words translated “woman” and “man.” Let us consider first the word “woman” that is translated from a Greek word (gynē) that generally means “woman as an adult female person” as it is used in the instruction of how believing women, without any reference to their marital state, should dress themselves in 1 Timothy 2:9:
I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes.
In some contexts where a man is mentioned, the word means “wife.” Thus, the context makes clear that Apostle Paul used the word in the sense of wife in several passages because either there is a reference to a man or a husband so that it is clear that the woman in view is a wife. Take for example, where a husband is mentioned or implied in 1 Corinthians 7:14:
For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy.
The clause For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife is literally For the unbelieving man has been sanctified through the woman. However, the context indicates that “the man” refers to a husband and so “the woman” refers to the man’s wife. In a handful of passages, the Greek word has the sense of “widow” as it is used by the Sadducees who quoted from the OT concerning levirate marriage to use it to argue against resurrection as we read in Luke 20:28:
“Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and have children for his brother.
The expression marry the widow is literally take the woman, that is, wife since the context indicates it is a deceased brother’s wife that was in view. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 11:3, the word means “woman,” that is, an adult female person as opposed to a man.
The word “man” in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of the woman is man is translated from a Greek word (anēr) that may mean “an adult male” in contrast to a woman as in the description of believers of both genders that were persecuted by Apostle Paul before his conversion, as we read in Acts 8:3:
But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison.
In some context, the word means “husband” as in describing the status of a woman when her husband dies, according to Romans 7:2:
For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law of marriage.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 11:3, the word means “man” in the sense of “an adult person who is male, as opposed to a woman.”
Having considered the Greek words translated “man” and “woman,” the question is whether we should understand both as “husband” and “wife” because of the word “head” that is used figuratively for hierarchical meaning of authority of one over another or simply “man” and “woman” in a general sense of the words. The implication of understanding the words as “man” and “woman” in the general sense of the words is that every man has authority over every woman while understanding the words as “husband” and “wife” limits a man’s authority within the family setting. Which of these implications did the apostle mean? We contend that it is the latter where the words are taken to mean “husband” and “wife” although this does not limit the application of head covering only to the married in a local church but limits the concept of authority of man over a woman. The reason for this interpretation is the Greek used a definite article before the word man, implying the apostle meant a specific man in relationship to a woman. Hence some English versions, such as the TEV and NRSV, used in the word “wife” instead of “woman” in their translation of the sentence we are considering. So, when the apostle wrote the sentence of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of the woman is man, he meant to convey that the husband has authority over the wife. We are saying that only in the family setting that a man has authority over the wife. The implication of what we have said, is a man should not think he has authority over every woman in every other setting since there is no scriptural basis for such position. He is not to expect every woman to obey him when there is no family or job or spiritual relationship between him and another woman. Furthermore, our explanation would solve the problem where a woman may be in a position of authority outside the home. The question then would be whether the husband in such a situation should obey her orders. The answer would be that he should because the situation is not the family setting. The husband is then governed by the instruction of Romans 13:1–2:
1Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.
Let me give an example of a situation where the answer we have given would apply. Suppose that a husband and his wife work for a given company but the wife excels or is promoted to a higher position of authority over the husband. The husband should not refuse orders that come from the wife in her capacity because she is his wife. He will obey her orders while at work but at home she would obey him. Women’s leadership is a sign of breakdown of order in a society (Isa 3:12).
By the way, those who take the Greek word translated “head” as “source” certainly take the sentence of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of the woman is man as indicating that man is the source of the woman, something that is true in the original creation of the woman but not in this sentence. We contend that it is the fact that a husband has authority over the wife that the apostle meant in the sentence we are considering. The word “head” is used in the context of marriage relationship between a husband and wife to explain the reason a wife should submit to the authority of the husband as we read in Ephesians 5:23:
For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.
The Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul conveyed the concept of a husband having authority over the wife in that a wife is commanded to submit to the authority of the husband in Ephesians 5:24:
Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
The instruction wives should submit to their husbands is literally the women should submit to the men since the words “wives” and “husbands” are translated from the Greek words that we considered in 1 Corinthians 11:3 that mean “woman” and “man.” However, we are sure that the meaning of the Greek words in Ephesians 5:24 mean “wife” and “husband” because of the preceding command given in Ephesians 5:22:
Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.
The command Wives, submit to your husbands is literally, The women, to their own men. It is true that the word “submit” does not appear in the Greek text but that meaning is implied from verses 21 and 24 of the same chapter of Ephesians. The possessive pronoun “own” makes clear that the woman is to submit to her own man, who is certainly the husband. Thus, we are sure that instruction of a woman submitting to a man in Ephesians 5:22 and 24 refers to submitting to the authority of a husband. Writing to the Colossians, the apostle conveyed the same concept of a wife submitting to the husband’s authority in Colossians 3:18:
Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
The same concept of a husband having authority over the wife is conveyed in the only direct, teaching responsibility given to older women with respect to younger women, as the Holy Spirit directed Apostle Paul to pen down in Titus 2:5:
to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.
It is not only through Apostle Paul that the Holy Spirit conveys that a wife is under the authority of the husband as implied in the figurative use of head but also through Apostle Peter who commands wives to submit to their husbands as we read in 1 Peter 3:1:
Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives,
Apostle Peter linked the submission of wives to their husbands with women’s beauty of the OT times in 1 Peter 3:5–6:
5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, 6 like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.
The sentence They were submissive to their own husbands of verse 5 is an interesting one since we do not have the kind of clear instruction about wives submitting to the authority of their husbands in the OT as we have in the NT. It is a given that in the OT times wives knew that they were to obey or submit to the authority of their husbands as that is implied from creation of men and women and Sarah’s example of obeying Abraham. It is this understanding that was passed from one generation of humans to another beginning with the three sons of Noah. This explains the reason that in every culture it is understood that a wife should submit to the husband’s authority. Of course, God the Holy Spirit knew that the more humans become wicked and reject God’s order in creation, the more wives would not want to submit to the authority of their husbands. Therefore, the Holy Spirit conveyed to Christians the truth that a wife should submit to her husband’s authority. By the way, there is no passage in the NT that I am aware that teaches a woman should submit to a man that is not the husband.
In any case, it is our interpretation that when Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of the woman is man, he meant to convey that the husband has authority over the wife. Hence, the wife is to submit to and function under the authority of her husband in their marital relationship. Again, we should emphasize that a wife’s submission to the husband does not imply she is inferior to him or less intelligent. No! It simply means that there is a hierarchy in marriage relationship with the husband being the one that has the authority. This brings us to the third relationship that Apostle Paul used to convey the concept that the word “head” is used figuratively for hierarchical meaning of authority of one over another in our verse.
The third relationship the apostle stated that is the basis of our assertion that there is such a thing as the concept of hierarchy both in heaven and on earth is that between God and Christ. It is this relationship that is given in the last clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God. To say the least, this sentence presents interpretation difficulties but before we address the difficulties of its interpretation, we should be careful to observe that the sentence does not say that “God the Father” is the head of Christ or that the Father is the head of Christ. We say this because there are interpreters who imply that it is God the Father or the Father that is the head of Christ. In fact, it is this assumption that is probably behind the heretics who in denying the doctrine of Trinity or Triune God argued in the past that the Christ was inferior to the Father. Furthermore, it is this assumption that caused some to assert that the apostle in the sentence we are considering implies that Christ owes His being to the Father. So, we should be clear that the sentence we are considering does not say that the Father or God the Father is the head of Christ. Of course, we do not mean that God cannot be described as the Father for there are passages that enable us to describe God as Father. Take for example, the Holy Spirit through Apostle John indicates that Jesus Christ is from God and returned to Him as we read in John 13:3:
Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God;
The same concept of coming from God and returning to God is expressed by the Lord Jesus but instead of God He used “Father” as we read in John 16:28:
I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.”
Thus, one could equate God to Father based on these two passages, but we are saying that in the last clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God that God is not to be equated to Father since that is not what the sentence says. This aside, the sentence is difficult to interpret because of several problems and observations that we will consider. We begin first with the problems and then consider the observations that are important in interpreting the sentence at hand.
A first problem in interpreting the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God is that the Scripture indicates there is one God, at least in our English versions. This assertion is given in a passage often referred as the “Shema” that is quite familiar with the Jews, especially those who are Rabbis. I am referring to Deuteronomy 6:4:
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.
The word “one” of Deuteronomy 6:4 is translated from a Hebrew word (ʾěḥāḏ) that as an adjective may be used in three ways. It can be used as an adjective of quantity with the meaning “one (whole), single, same” It is with the meaning “same” that the word is used to indicate the procedure for certain offerings that aliens in Israel would offer should be the same as the native Israelite in Numbers 15:15:
The community is to have the same rules for you and for the alien living among you; this is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. You and the alien shall be the same before the LORD:
The phrase the same rules is literally one decree. The meaning “single” is used by Prophet Isaiah in announcing the loss of children and widowhood that will come to Babylonia despite its arrogant claims as we read in Isaiah 47:9:
Both of these will overtake you in a moment, on a single day: loss of children and widowhood. They will come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and all your potent spells.
The phrase on a single day is literally on one day. Another use of the Hebrew word that is often translated “one” in the OT Scripture is as an as adjective of quality so means “unique, singular, only.” It is with the meaning “only,” that is, one of a unique class or kind, and so distinctive as the word is used with the meaning “only” in describing the lover in Song of Solomon 6:9:
but my dove, my perfect one, is unique, the only daughter of her mother, the favorite of the one who bore her. The maidens saw her and called her blessed; the queens and concubines praised her.
It is with the meaning “unique” that the word is used in Zechariah 14:9:
The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name.
The clause his name the only name may be translated his name will be unique. Another usage of the Hebrew word as an adjective is as “particularizing” adjective so has the meaning “certain” as Haman used the word to describe the Jews, as recorded in Esther 3:8:
Then Haman said to King Xerxes, “There is a certain people dispersed and scattered among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom whose customs are different from those of all other people and who do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them.
In Deuteronomy 6:4, the Hebrew word is used in the sense of “unique” so that Moses declared to Israel that the LORD or Israel’s God is unique. Thus, the Scripture is not saying that God is one in a numerical sense that many think when they hear the word “one.”
The idea of the God of the Scripture being unique is one that we have considered when Apostle Paul wrote 1 Corinthians 8:6:
yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.
We have considered this passage in detail but for our present purpose we will review briefly what we said regarding this passage as it is important in understanding the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God. Understanding that the word “one” could mean “unique” then Apostle Paul in using the word “one” meant to convey that the supreme God is in a class by Himself or unique and so the word “one” is used in a qualitative and not quantitative manner to describe God that Christians worship. In effect, when the apostle wrote the phrase in the Greek translated in 1 Corinthians 8:6 one God, he intended to convey that the God of Christians is unique and different from the lesser gods that exist either in heaven or on earth. By the way, it is the same Greek word (theos) translated “gods” in 1 Corinthians 8:5 that is used in verse 6 for “God” although the Greek concept of “God” is different from that of the Christians since their gods were not regarded as creators of the universe per se. Anyway, from the use of the same Greek word for the gods mentioned in verse 5, it is important to convey that the God of the Christians is unique or in a class by Himself among divine beings although the same Greek word is used to translate the word “gods” and “God.” The point then is that Apostle Paul is concerned not merely to confess monotheism but because of the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit that the God of the Christians is unique. We are saying that it is his new understanding of God that is certainly different from what he believed as a rabbi that he intended to communicate in the phrase one God. In other words, he wanted to convey the uniqueness of the God of the Christians. Understanding the apostle’s confession regarding the uniqueness of the God of the Christians will be useful in interpreting the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God.
A second problem in interpreting the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God is the uniqueness of the God of Christians presented in terms of plurality of persons in a unique class of divine beings and that of unity in function. The term “person” refers to a being with intellect, sensibility, and will. Hence a person has the quality of personality. By personality we mean a distinct individual existence to which belongs reason and will. Anyway, the NT teaches of the plurality of persons and unity of God. This we can learn from the baptismal formula given in Matthew 28:19:
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
The word “name” indicates that a person is involved hence the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are viewed as distinct persons. However, the use of the word “and” indicates an equality of the persons mentioned in the baptismal formula. The equality of the two persons, Father and Son, may be seen in the promise of Jesus regarding the sending of the Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus indicated the Father would send the Holy Spirit as we read in John 14:26:
But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
However, in another passage, the Lord Jesus is the one sending the Holy Spirit as in John 15:26:
"When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me.
This passage then indicates the equality of the Father and Son and certainly unity of function between the Father and the Son. The unity of function between the Son and the Holy Spirit is implied in the work of God described in 1 Corinthians 6:11:
And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
The three gracious acts described with the words “washed,” “sanctified,” and “justified” are the work of God although two persons are mentioned in the last phrase of 1 Corinthians 6:11 in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. On a surface reading, there is the problem of whether this last phrase is associated with all three actions or simply the last action given in the word justified. It is our interpretation that the phrase is linked to the three actions of washed, sanctified, and justified. This is because there is no other passage in the Scripture where justification is described either as the sole work of the Lord Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit. Instead, we have justification given as the work of God without making any distinction of the member of the Godhead involved. Hence, the apostle states severally that God is the One that justifies as, for example, in Romans 8:33:
Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.
Thus, the apostle did not only link the act of justification to the two members of the Godhead mentioned in the phrase of 1 Corinthians 6:11 in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God but to all three actions of “washed,” “sanctified,” and “justified.”
A third problem in interpreting the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God is that each person of what we call the Godhead is described as God. The first member of the Godhead we call the Father is certainly described as God as we will note in the observations we will consider shortly. Thus, we focus on the other members of the Godhead. The Lord Jesus Christ is directly called God. Apostle John began his gospel by stating the Jesus Christ is God although he did not use the word “Jesus” or “Christ” in John 1:1:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
The Word refers to Jesus Christ as John indicated by reference to the incarnation in John 1:14:
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Apostle Paul directly called Jesus Christ God in Titus 2:13:
while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,
The phrase our great God and Savior of Titus 2:13 is the most direct reference of Jesus Christ as God in the NT. However, there are scholars who dispute that our phrase our great God and Savior is a direct reference to the deity of Jesus Christ, arguing that nowhere else in the NT is Christ directly called God and so take the phrase as a reference to God the Father, implying that there are two persons of the God head in the phrase our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Of course, the deity of Christ does not depend solely on this passage since there are several passages of the NT Scripture that affirm it; nonetheless, it is our interpretation that there is one person of the Godhead, Jesus Christ, that is involved in the phrase our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, implying that it is the most direct statement of the deity of Jesus Christ by the apostle. There are several reasons for this interpretation. The context being concerned with second coming of Christ in the phrase the glorious appearing demands this interpretation. There is no other passage of the Scripture that indicates believers should anticipate the appearing or coming of God the Father. Instead, the constant teaching of the NT Scripture is that believers should expect the return of Jesus Christ. This expectation of the return of Jesus Christ is first taught by Him prior to His death on the cross in John 14:1–3:
1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
The angels that appeared to the disciples of Jesus Christ during His ascension into heaven asserted the same concept of the return of Christ in Acts 1:11:
“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
Apostle Paul himself made several references in his epistles concerning the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, as for example, in 1 Corinthians 4:5:
Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.
Consequently, it is inconceivable that the apostle would be speaking of the return of God the Father or His appearance as what believers are to live in expectation of it taking place. There are more reasons in support of this interpretation that if you want to hear them, I suggest you go to the church website and listen to the lessons #53 and 54 of Titus study. Anyhow, the Holy Spirit directly through Apostle Paul called Christ God.
The Holy Spirit is described as a person who is called God first in the OT. He is identified as God in David’s last oracle recorded in 2 Samuel 23:2-3:
2 "The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me; his word was on my tongue. 3 The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel said to me: 'When one rules over men in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God.
You see, unless the Spirit of the Lord is a person, He could not speak through David but then the One who spoke through David is also described as the God of Israel. Hence, the Spirit of the Lord, that is, the Holy Spirit is called God. In the NT, Apostle Peter called the Holy Spirit “God” as he rebuked Ananias for being deceptive as we read in Acts 5:3–4:
3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? 4 Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God.”
The One that Ananias lied to is identified in verse 3 as the Holy Spirit but then in verse 4 the apostle stated You have not lied to men but to God. This indicates that Peter directly equated Holy Spirit to God. The fact that Christ and Holy Spirit are each called God is important in our interpretation of the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God. This brings us to the observations we need to make that are relevant to the clause we are considering.
Our first observation is that there are two phrases used in connection with the first member of the Godhead, the Father. The first is the phrase God and Father of Lord Jesus that appears five times in the NT; four by Apostle Paul and once by Apostle Peter. In all the five occurrences, the conjunction “and” is used for explanation. Let me justify my assertion. Apostle Paul used it in Romans 15:6:
so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The concept of “glorifying” is applicable to God as the apostle indicates in Romans 15:9:
so that the Gentiles may glorify God for his mercy, as it is written: “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles; I will sing hymns to your name.”
However, this idea of glorifying God is applied specifically to the Lord Jesus, the Son of God, as implied in John 11:4:
When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”
Since glorifying can apply to the Lord Jesus, it was necessary for Apostle Paul to identify the specific member of the God head he meant in Romans 15:6. Consequently, he had to explain that it is God the Father that he meant. This means the conjunction “and” in the phrase God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ of Romans 15:6 is used to explain that God here refers specifically to the Father. This interpretation is implied in the UBS handbook that suggests that phrase could be translated as “God who is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” or “God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The phrase God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ appears in 2 Corinthians 1:3:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,
Praise is an activity that is due God as Apostle Paul indicates in Galatians 1:24:
And they praised God because of me.
Because Apostle Paul was focusing on the Father as the recipient of praise it was necessary for him to describe further the member of the Godhead he meant, so in 2 Corinthians 1:3, the word conjunction “and’ is to be understood as explaining the member of Godhead the apostle meant so that the phrase God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ may be expanded to read “God who is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” The same explanation applies to the apostle’s use of the phrase in 2 Corinthians 11:31 and Ephesians 1:3. The explanation also applies to Apostle Peter’s use of the phrase in 1 Peter 1:3:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
The phrase God and Father of Lord Jesus is one used to distinguish the first member of the Godhead from the second member, Lord Jesus. However, this phrase is not used in our passage of 1 Corinthians 11:3 which is significant in the interpretation of the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God.
The second phrase used in connection with the first member of the Godhead is God the Father that is used in the NT epistles when there is need to differentiate two members of the Godhead. Thus, Apostle Paul described of handing over of the kingdom to God the Father by the Lord Jesus as we read in 1 Corinthians 15:24:
Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.
Apostle Paul distinguished the Father from Jesus Christ as the source of his commission as an apostle in Galatians 1:1:
Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead—
The Father is distinguished from the Son, Jesus Christ, in matter of greetings. Thus, in Apostle Paul’s greeting to the Thessalonians, he distinguished two members of the Godhead as the source of grace and peace as we read in 1 Thessalonians 1:1:
Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you.
Apostle John did the same in 2 John 3:
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.
Apostle Peter distinguished the Son from the Father regarding the transfiguration experience of Jesus Christ, so he used the phrase God the Father in 2 Peter 1:17:
For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
In a specific instance of thanksgiving to the first member of the God head through Jesus Christ, Apostle Paul used the phrase God the Father in Ephesians 5:20:
always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Often, thanksgiving is given to God but here the object of thanksgiving is described as God the Father since Jesus Christ is mentioned as the reason or means of doing so. That God is the object of thanksgiving is implied in Romans 14:6:
He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.
The point we have demonstrated is the phrase God the Father is one that is used when there is need to differentiate the first two members of the Godhead. This phrase is not used in 1 Corinthians 11:3 that we are studying.
Our second observation is that post resurrection descriptions of Jesus Christ is often given in terms of Him standing or seat at the right hand of God that signifies the place of authority and power. Stephen prior to his being stoned to death saw Jesus at the right hand of God as recorded in Acts 7:55:
But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
Apostle Paul described Jesus at the right hand of God in Romans 8:34:
Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
The human author of Hebrews described Jesus as having sat down at the right hand of God as we read in Hebrews 10:12:
But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.
The same human author described Jesus’ position in heaven in terms of being at the right hand of the throne of God, according to Hebrews 12:2:
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Other passages that we have not cited that describe the same thing did not mention Jesus Christ being on the right hand of God the Father. However, it is only when Jesus described His position in heaven that He described Himself as sharing the same throne with the Father as we read in Revelation 3:21:
To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.
It is possible that Jesus did this because of the personal relationship and coequal authority of the Son with the Father and certainly the Holy Spirit who was not mentioned. When the throne is mentioned later in the book of Revelation, it is said to be a throne occupied by God and the Lord Jesus Christ in Revelation 22:1:
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.
The point is that it is significant that the Holy Spirit through human authors of the Scripture only described Jesus as being at the right hand of God that would include the Holy Spirit but only in His mouth that the throne is described with reference to the Father.
The problems we have raised and the observations we have made enable us to interpret what the Holy Spirit stated through Apostle Paul in the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God. The fact the Scripture says that God is one and there are three persons each called God present a problem in how to interpret the sentence. In effect, how can God be the head of God since Christ is God? Thus, some trying to deal with the implied problem introduced the concept of the Father in the clause. However, we do not find either the phrase God and Father of Lord Jesus or the phrase God the Father to indicate that the apostle intended to differentiate one member of the Godhead from another. Others who take the Greek word translated “head” as “source” say God is the source of Christ’s life in the sense of becoming a man. The problem with this interpretation is that to take our Greek word translated “head” as “source” is unprecedented both in the NT and classical Greek. Based on our review of what the apostle said about “one God” in 1 Corinthians 8:6 and our interpretation that the Greek word translated “head’ is concerned with the concept of hierarchy, we can interpret what the apostle meant in the clause of 1 Corinthians 11:3 and the head of Christ is God. He meant that within the unique divine being called God, there is a hierarchy under which Christ is known and functions. It is not that He as God is under the authority of the Father but that He functions under the umbrella of the authority that belongs to the unique divine being called God, bearing in mind that each member of the Godhead has specific function in the outworking of God’s plan. In other words, Christ functions under the concept of authority that belongs to deity or the unique divine being called God. With this we have demonstrated our assertion that there is such a thing as the concept of hierarchy both in heaven and on earth.
11/12//21