What Could God Possibly Have Against Braided Hair?
One of the most interesting passages of Scripture on the topic of modesty is the one that we find ourselves faced with this morning—the topic of braided hair in 1 Peter 3:
"Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct. Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious."
1 Peter 3:1-4 ESV
What could God possibly have against braided hair?
A Splash of Context
One of the things that we must remember about the Bible so that we make sure that we have the correct interpretation of things is that the chapter and verse divisions were not included in the original. They were something that was added and expanded upon at a later date as an easy way to find things.
There also is an internal hint—the word “Likewise” in verse one tips us off that something has come before, or that this is an extension of something that Paul’s already talked about.
Specifically, we find ourselves right in the middle of a discussion about the believer’s submission to authority.
- In 13 to 17 we find Peter exhorting us to be subject to every human institution, whether they are evil or God.
- In 18-21 we who are servants are to be subject to our masters1 even if the master is cruel. It’s compared to Jesus suffering even though he committed no sin.
Wives are To Be Subject to Their Husbands
It’s at this point that Peter turns toward the women, specifically the wives, and exhorts them to be subject to their husbands—even their unbelieving ones so that they might be won though their conduct.
This totally flies in the face of Contemporary Western Culture (CWC). In CWC, women have all the power in the relationship and families. They are the ones that have been given preferred treatment, and the husbands are the butt of all jokes. That’s opposite of what you see here.
Wives were to be respectful
It’s said that many men value respect of them as much as women value love toward them. I believe that there’s a lot of truth to this statement. I believe that men and women both have a ego—and one that can be bruised at that—but I believe that men derive what they are more from the respect that they are given than women.
Just look at the men around you and what they show pride and worth in.
- Men have the tendency to pour themselves into a task and be proud when it’s accomplished.
- When two men get together, one of the first things that they’ll do is ask “What do you do?” inquiring about what job they perform. It’s a source of finding out just where they stand in respect to another.
Now, respect in CWC isn’t the same as some Eastern Cultures that treasure respect more than we do, but it’s something that we drill into our soldiers and encourage our kids to do as well.
So wives, your respect of your husband is supposed to be something that draws him to Christ.
- Do not talk down on him to your girlfriends.
- Do not make disparaging remarks about what he does for an occupation if he’s providing for your family.
- Talk positively about him in front of your kids.
I’m sure you can think of some other ones.
Pure Conduct
This is where we get into modesty. Pure conduct is more than just keeping yourself physically pure by remaining faithful to your husband, it’s about having a pure attitude toward him and conducting yourself in the most righteous way possible.
It is here that Peter goes from abstract to practical.
Don’t Focus on the External
Peter lists three ways that women focus on the external:
- Hairstyle
- Jewelry
- Clothing
These three things still are a source of women’s obsession today!
When Peter says “the braiding of hair” then, we could easily substitute “getting a perm”, “getting highlights” or “getting a new hair do”.
In fact, we could probably rewrite I Peter 3:3-4 this way, and stay true to the text:
Do not let your adorning be external—getting Jennifer Anniston’s hairstyle, wearing a lot of pearls or diamonds, and buying the latest Vera Wang dress—but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.
See, it’s a comparison. Peter had a wife and, no doubt, he was well acquainted with how long it took for a woman to get ready in the morning. So when Peter says, “Don’t spend so much time in front of the mirror worried about what other people will see on the outside, spend time working on your heart” (yet another accurate way to understand what’s going on here), he’s comparing what wives could spend their time on.
It’s not that God has something against braided hair, it’s that God considers more precious your inner life—the purity and modesty from within—far more precious than anything you could do to the outside.
- This conversation could easily become a discussion on employee/employer relationships, but that’s a different blog altogether. [↩]
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The passage urges women to be respectful of their men. That could be for two reasons: either men need more respect, or women need the reminder. Anecdotal evidence suggests the latter.
On an unrelated point, I think the “contemporary western culture” where women have all the power in their relationships is a bit idealistic. That is, it exists theoretically, but in real life, women have less power than they do in our media. =/
Chris, currently 66-75% of US divorces are initiated by the wife (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divorce_in_the_United_States). Less than 1 of 4 divorces with children have the custody of the children assigned to the father
(http://www.stanford.edu/group/psylawseminar/Child%20Custody%20in%20the%20USA%20(Page%201%20of%205).htm) So women can and do eliminate the marriage, freeing themselves from the responsibility, and take the children and get paid to leave. How is that less power?
The custody of children is decided by a judge, not the parents themselves. The unequal distribution of marital resources is designed to favor the children of the relationship. Although alimony has historically been the right of a divorced woman, the shift away from a working husband/dependent wife arrangement has rendered such payments unusual.
Unfortunately, divorce is not the only measure of power in a relationship. Controlling behavior, domestic violence and absenteeism are also forms of such “power.” Without extensive research, it would hard to form a comparison of the tendency of each gender to engage in these “powerful” behaviors. I mention these examples merely to point out that initiating divorce cannot be taken for conclusive evidence that the person who does so has the upper hand over their spouse. I also reassert my former claim that, despite the social advances women have made, they are still in many ways vulnerable in their relationships.
There are all kinds of programs for battered women (and their children) around. If modern women had all the power we often attribute to her, surely there wouldn’t be a need for such things. But in fact, women often have a very hard time leaving their husband. That in itself is a power that spouses have over each other.
I hope I haven’t given offense to anyone. What I am trying to convey is merely an extension of MIn’s message: men and women need respect from their significant others.
Chris, Vulnerability is part of marriage and neither gender should get ‘screwed’ (for lack of a better term) by their partner. Unfortunately, we live in a fallen world and every human, is at best, totally depraved.
I’ve seen very little evidence that alimony, custody, and child support is becoming more egalitarian. If you have it, please share.
About 40% of heterosexual partner domestic violence victims are male. Yet, the programs to protect a man and his children are few and far between. While men will use brute strength against their partner, women use surprise and weapons. However, the male victims will receive considerably less support from friends, family, police, counselors, and bystanders. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlFAd4YdQks)
The situation for women is not near perfect, nor is it near perfect for men.
If the Bible is to be followed – a husband should love his wife sacrificially [Ephesians 5:25-33] (he needs the reminder, she needs the commitment.) A wife should respect her husband submissively,{Ephesians 5:22-24] (she needs the reminder, he needs the respect.)
My wife finds it a lot easier to respect me when I am loving her sacrificially. I find it a lot easier to love her sacrificially when she is respecting me. However, my wife’s poor behavior does not negate my instruction, nor does my poor behavior does not negate her command. Speaking as a man, I wish husbands, for the most part, would ignore Ephesians 5:22 – 24 as it is NOT written to them.
No offense was taken, nor implied. I agree men and women need respect from their significant others. They also need love. The importance and ease of respect and love, differ between the genders.
I didn’t read the comments at all, but I just wanted to say that I think the issue is not the braided hair (as you sorta stated in your article), but the problem is that women who were known for being involved in prostitution in that time specifically in that area wore braided hair and it therefore was said to Christian women to not be associated that way but to be set apart from them. These days prostitutes are associated with super short skirts and little tops, so perhaps that is more what should know not to wear as Christian women so that we are setting higher standards for ourselves and to care more about living for Christ than to be a part of the world and what they accept.
I agree with this article and am thankful the Lord calls us to be more then what we look like on the outside. Yes, it boils down to more then braiding your hair but what an honour women to be called higher then your hairstyle. It should be an encouragement to the women to seek out the issues of your heart and why we long for the outside to be beautiful. If we think of the role models we as ladies have they are never the most beautiful ones but the wisest, most respectful, most outreaching ones who are gentle but powerful in the Lord.
Thanks for writing this! Great encouragement and reminder to pull our eyes off what the world deems as important and back onto what our Father calls us to treasure.
I Love It! All Glory to God! The word of God rightly divided, understood and received will make you free!!! I’m free in Jesus name. Simply stated…The text was saying stop focusing on how you look on the outside and let your beauty shine from the inside. My heart is adorned with the holy scriptures (The Word of God). My husband always says to me, respect is the greatest gift I can give him. I totally understand what he is saying and where he is coming from in his heart. This was great. Hallelujah!!!!