Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man.
~ 1 Corinthians 11:4-15
For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.
~ Deuteronomy 18:12
For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
~ Romans 1:26-32
Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
~ 1 Corinthians 6:9-10
A Sermon on Deuteronomy 22:5, by John Calvin.
Ianuarie. 1556.
The Cxxvj. Sermon, which is the second upon the two and twentieth Chapter.
A woman shal not weare the apparel of a man: neither shal a man put on the garments of a woman. For whosoeuer doth so, is an abhomination to the Lord thy God.
When thou goest abroad and findest a birds nest in a tree or on the grounde, and young birdes or egges therein, & the dam sitting vpon her young or vpon the egges: thou shalt not take the dam with her young birdes:
But thou shalt let the dam goe, & take the young ones to thy selfe, that it may goe well with thee, and that thou maist prolong thy dayes.
When thou buildest thee a newe house, thou shalt make a battlement about the roofe of it, that thou bring not bloud vpon thy house by the falling of some man downe from it.
The first law which I have rehearsed here, sheweth that in all our behaviour, we must have a care to be honest, & eschew all looseness. Truly it should seem to be no matter of great importance for a man to be appareled after one fashion or other: but yet for all that, God will have things done in order. For if men go disguised, & wear such apparel as serveth not for necessity but for folly: that is not convenient. If women be dissolute, what a thing is that? They forget their nature: for women ought to be modest. If there be no shame, but that they will needs be out of order: it is a very beastliness. That is the effect of God’s intent in saying that men ought not to put on women’s apparel, nor women ought not to be clothed in men’s apparel: For it is good reason that there should be a difference between men and women. And although there were no law written, doth not even nature teach it us? And when Paul (1 Cor. 11.5,) telleth us that women must come to the Church with their heads covered & not with their hair about their ears: he sheweth the same thing. What saith he? have we need to speak to you of such things? For if a woman were polled [her hair cut short], durst she shew her head abroad? A man may well be bold to shew his head bare, though he be polled: and shall a woman do so too? That were a shame, everybody would mock at her, and she should be fain to hide her head. Now since ye know this without any scripture or word written: do ye not see how God hath shown as it were a seed of modesty in you, to the intent that every man should have a regard to that which is comely for him? So then, let us mark that here God intended to shew us that everybody’s attiring of themselves ought to be such, as there may be a difference between men and women. And truly we see what dangers doe ensue when folk go so disguised: many inconveniences do accompany them, & God is offended with them. Therefore the setting down of this law is not without cause. For they that love to go so disguised, do despise God: as for example, in these maskings & mummings, when men put themselves into women’s apparel, and women put themselves into men’s as ye know: what comes of it? Although no evil ensued thereof, yet the very thing itself displeaseth God. We hear what is said of it in this place. Whosoever doth it, is an abomination. Ought not this saying to make the hair of our heads stand up, rather than we would provoke God’s (773:B) wrath upon us willfully? But besides this, we are sure that the suffering hereof is the opening of a gap to all whoredom. At a word, such disguisings are but enticements of baudry, as experience proveth. Therefore let us not think, that it was more than needed, for God to appoint men a several kind of appareling by themselves, and the women another kind of attiring by themselves agreeable to their several sexes. Whereupon we have to remember, that God liketh well, that there should be an honesty even in our apparel. Truly (as I have said afore) that is not the chief point: For if a man should set the perfection of our life in this thing: it were all one as if he should set the cart before the horse: but yet is it not to be omitted. For even the Heathen themselves have shewed us our lesson, telling us that if there be no regard of honesty, men do bewray that the rest of their virtues are not counted for virtues any more. For if they observe not some order, discretion and modesty in their behaviours & manner of dealings, they may seem to be degenerated into brute beasts. Then is it as a witness that we walk as before God, when we regard a kind of honesty in our apparel. Truly men may soon overshoot themselves. Although they attire not themselves like women, yet if they use any gaudishness, and make themselves to be as gazing-stocks: such superfluity displeaseth God already in another respect. Likewise though women attire not themselves in the raiment of men: Yet if they be too gallant & brave, and covet to have too great a show, they fail not to offend God, even in another respect, as I said afore. Yet notwithstanding, we must first of all see that men be so appareled as they become not womanlike, as we see diverse times that they attire themselves like brides. In so doing they seem to be sorry that God made them not women, & to be desirous to renounce their own sex. And that is a shameful thing. Again, when women go appareled like men of war, (as there be some which had rather to bear a hackbut on their shoulder than a distaff in their hand:) it is against kind, and we ought to abhor it. Although we were not spoken to, nor had any law or ordinance of God: yet do we even of ourselves perceive it to be strange and whosoever hath any spark of pureness in him, will judge so. Ye see then that first of all the fashion which men do use in apparelling themselves, must shew that God hath created them to be as men: and that the women also must observe the modesty that is agreeable to their sex. Thus much concerning (774:A) the first point.
And as touching the second, let us mark also generally, that in our apparelling of ourselves God will have us to respect use & honesty. Those are the two things which we ought to set store by. The first is use. And my meaning by use, is that men should be contented with such apparel as will defend them from cold and heat. And by honesty I mean that they should not be clad & attired after a disguised fashion, as though they went to play an enterlude, or were desirous to make folk to gaze at them for the strangeness of their apparel, that it might be said, who is this? O, it is such a one. Now then, if we observe the use, that is to say, if we hold it enough to be clothed only: and therewithal do keep such measure as we break not common order: it is a rule that God alloweth. Also when women be not too curious in attiring themselves, nor desirous to draw all men’s eyes unto them to behold them in their decking: that is the honest kind of behaviour, which God commendeth unto us. And in the same respect doth Paul (1 Tim. 2.9,) say that women ought to have a holy honesty, or a comely holiness. In speaking of the attire and apparel of the faithful women, he useth a word which importeth that they must not only be honest, but also therewithal have a certain mark of holiness, that men may know them to have profited in God’s word. And truly if we considered well what was the first cause of apparel, we would not be so greatly given to superfluous bravery as we be. For as oft as we put on either shirt or Coat, we be put in mind that our Lord commandeth us to hide ourselves, because his image is disfigured in us: and our clothing of ourselves ought to make us think upon the sin of our father Adam. For by reason of sin, we become subject both to heat & cold. And again, God telleth us that it is a sign of our shame. For nakedness of itself is not unhonest, were it not that God’s image is disfigured in us by our corruption. Had we this regard with us, surely we would be more wary to keep order and measure in our apparel, than we be. Howsoever the world go, let us learn that God will have us not only to be pure and clean from all lechery, but also to prevent all inconveniences. As for example, when he saith, Thou shalt not commit adultery: that commandment hath an eye to this present text. I have told you already, that all the laws which are written here, concern manners, & are rules of good life, & are to be referred to the ten commandments: For God hath not added anything to those ten sentences. Therefore whereas in this text it is said that the man shall not wear the apparel of the woman; doth God set down an eleventh commandment? Did God bethink himself better afterward, and add somewhat else to that which we had heard of him heretofore? No, it is but only an exposition of this saying of his, Thou shalt not commit adultery. As how? For in forbidding adultery, God not only forbiddeth the act itself, which were punishable & worthy of reproach even before men: but also he forbiddeth in effect all unchaste behaviour, so (774:B) as none may appear, neither in apparel nor in any part of our conversation. We must keep such a measure, as our apparel tend not to unchastity, lest we run into such looseness, as we be blamed for seeking to make a hotchpotch, & to have had no regard of bringing all things to confusion by such disorderly dealing. Which mischief to eschew, both men and women must have a care to follow every of them their own vocation. If we be not of that mind, although we commit not any adultery in act, yet are we attainted already before God, with some vice that tendeth towards adultery. Wherefore let us learn that by this sentence where our Lord saith that men and women ought to differ one from another in fashion of their apparel, he meant to expound and confirm this former saying of his, Thou shalt not commit Adultery. Were this as well borne away as it ought to be, we should have better rule among us than we have: & there would be no such impediments in the redressing the abuse of apparel. The costliness thereof would soon be corrected in some countries. And why? For ye shall see nothing now but embroidery, & such over-sumptuous things, that by all likelihood men are wilfully bent to overcharge themselves with the deckings of women, but these things would be provided for. And in the meanwhile men look not to other vices which are as much or more to be condemned. For there is never any ho, when folk begin once to seek new fashions to disguise themselves. This seemeth to be nothing: but as it cometh from an evil root, so tendeth it also to an evil end. For it is certain that if it were not for ambition and pride, these things should not be seen so common as they be. Insomuch that there are a great sort, that can find in their hearts to endure hunger and thirst and a number of other incommodities in their bodies, only to bestow their money upon things that can serve them to none other end than pomp and vanity. And why do they so? O, they love well gay apparel: they have a delight to be tooted at and gazed at a great way off. And we see it more nowadays than ever it was seen. This fond curiosity hath reigned in all ages among the Frenchmen, and they cannot be reclaimed from it as yet at this day, but they despise God & nature more than ever they did. But we hear what God saith by his Prophet Zephaniah (1.8,) where he threateneth such folk as seek newfangled and strange attires, coveting always new shift. No doubt but he condemneth this pompousness and the persons themselves which seek everyday new fashions, that they may be gazed at afar off, and be the more esteemed, and that men may say of them; Such a one hath invented a new fashion: such a one is skillful in finding out new attires. Surely such folk are well worthy to be condemned to be tailours. These great lords & brave lads which will needs wear tablets at their necks, that is to say sumptuous Jewels for folk to gaze at a great way off ought of reason to be all made tailors, seeing they have so great pleasure in finding out so diverse sorts of apparel to disguise themselves with. (775:A) And by the way let us mark, that in saying so our Lord sheweth us that we must come back to the said use and honesty, and to the rule which he hath given us: and if we keep that; let us assure ourselves that it shall be an acceptable service to him. Contrariwise, if we be led with a foolish and inordinate lust, to change every minute of an hour and to disguise ourselves: it is a thing that displeaseth God, though it import none evil at all. And moreover, we see how it proceedeth of fond vainglory: and when men are so given to vanity, surely they despise their own Souls and never care for them. Also they be infected with overweening, so as they will needs be commended. Now when men deal after that fashion, can it be said that there is no evil in it? No: for whereto do all these disguisings and superfluities tend, but to all manner of corruption, and whoredom, and such other like things, besides superfluous expenses? And therefore let us mark, that to keep ourselves from such dangers, and from defiling our bodies with lechery, and other infections; we must eschew evil occasions, and not meddle with any thing that may allure us to any wicked lust of lechery, or otherwise, but apparel ourselves soberly and necessarily. Thus ye see in effect, how we ought to put this commandment in use.
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