Read the Bible

¹ Imitate herein my example as I do that of Christ. ² now I commend you, brethren, for remembring all my orders, and for keeping the rules I delivered to you. ³ but I would have you take notice, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the wife, is the man; and the head of Christ, is God. ⁴ every man who prays or prophesies having his head covered, dishonoureth him who is his head: but every woman who prays ⁵ or prophesies with her head uncovered, dishonoureth the man who is her head: for it is the same thing as if her head was shav'd. ⁶ a woman may as well have the tonsure, as not wear her veil: the one is as indecent as the other. ⁷ A man ought not to be veil'd: he has the honour of being invested with authority from God, and may glory in his priority to the woman. ⁸ for the man was not taken from the woman: but the woman from the man. ⁹ nor was the man copied from the woman: but the woman from the man. ¹⁰ therefore the woman ought to be veil'd, out of regard to the angels. ¹¹ however, the man and the woman are equal with respect to the Lord. ¹² for as the woman was taken from the man, so man is born of the woman: and all are from God. ¹³ Be you yourselves judges: is it decent for a woman to pray to God without a veil? ¹⁴ does not settled custom show it is a shame for a man to have long hair? ¹⁵ on the contrary, such is an ornament to a woman: because it was given her as a sort of veil. ¹⁶ but if any man has a mind to be contentious, I answer, we have no such custom, nor any of the churches of God.

¹⁷ Now in what I am going to say, I do not commend you, because your assemblies are not to your advantage, but to your prejudice. ¹⁸ for first, I hear, that when you come together in the church, you fall into parties; and I believe it is true of some of you. ¹⁹ for there must be factions among you, whereby it will appear who among you are the approved. ²⁰ when you thus assemble therefore, this is not eating the Lord's supper. ²¹ for in eating every one strives to take his own supper first, and while one is hungry, another is surfeited. ²² what, have you no houses to eat and drink in? or have ye a contempt for the church of God, or is it to insult those who are in want? what shall I say to you? shall I commend such behaviour? I do not approve of it.

²³ For I received it from the Lord, and I inform'd you of it: that the Lord Jesus, the night in which he was betrayed, took bread: ²⁴ and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, "take, eat; this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me." ²⁵ in the same manner he took the cup, after supper, and said, "this cup is the new covenant in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me." ²⁶ As often then as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye make a declaration of the Lord's death till he come. ²⁷ so that whosoever eats this bread, and drinks this cup without respect to the Lord, does make a criminal use of the body and blood of the Lord. ²⁸ Let a man then sift and approve himself, and accordingly let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. ²⁹ for he that eats and drinks in a disrespectful manner, not discriminating the Lord's body, eateth and drinketh to his own punishment. ³⁰ hence it is, that many are weak and sickly among you, and no small number now sleep in their graves. ³¹ for if we made such a discrimination, we should not be punished. ³² but when we are punished, we are chastised by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. ³³ wherefore, my brethren, when you come together to eat, stay for one another. ³⁴ and if any one is press'd with hunger, let him eat at home; that ye may not otherwise meet with punishment. as for other matters, I will set them in order when I come.