Man As The Image And Glory Of God, And Woman As The Glory Of Man: Perspicuity Or Ambiguity? -- By: Lucy Peppiatt
Journal: Priscilla Papers
Volume: PP 33:3 (Summer 2019)
Article: Man As The Image And Glory Of God, And Woman As The Glory Of Man: Perspicuity Or Ambiguity?
Author: Lucy Peppiatt
PP 33:3 (Summer 2019) p. 12
Man As The Image And Glory Of God, And Woman As The Glory Of Man:
Perspicuity Or Ambiguity?
Lucy Peppiatt is Principal of Westminster Theological Centre, which has sites throughout the United Kingdom. She holds an MA in systematic theology from King’s College, London, and a PhD from the University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. She has authored The Disciple: On Becoming Truly Human (Wipf and Stock 2012), Women and Worship at Corinth: Paul’s Rhetorical Arguments in 1 Corinthians (Wipf and Stock 2015), Unveiling Paul’s Women: Making Sense of 1 Corinthians 11:2–16 (Wipf and Stock 2018), and Rediscovering Scripture’s Vision for Women: Fresh Perspectives on Disputed Texts (IVP Academic 2019). Lucy and her husband, Nick Crawley, lead Crossnet Anglican Church in Bristol.
The focus of this article is 1 Cor 11:7 and its surrounding verses. I explore how 11:7 has been received over the centuries, including how it has been perceived to fit into 1 Cor 11:2–16 and what it has been deemed to communicate regarding the relation of man to woman, woman to man, and both to God. I demonstrate the interpretive difficulties of the passage by surveying the views of six interpreters. In the end, I find all six to be insufficient and opt instead to affirm Paul’s radical vision for a new humanity.
It is clear that 1 Cor 11:2–16, in which vv. 7–10 have a pivotal position, has functioned through the ages to control not only how the church perceives the role of men and women in worship, but more fundamentally how the church perceives the relations of man and woman to one another, to Christ, to God, and even to angels. This passage touches on crucial questions of creation and the nature of God, thus serving as key to understanding God’s relation to the world. It is incumbent upon interpreters, therefore, to seek as much clarity as possible when attempting to fathom these verses.
In 1 Cor 11:3, we read famously that, “the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God” (NIV). The passage goes on: Men should uncover their heads in worship, and women should cover theirs, to guard against shame and dishonour. Why? Because man “is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man” (11:7 NIV). Expanded further as a theology of creation, it continues, “For man did not...
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