Skip to content

Add your phone number?

Optional. Nothing is sent unless you choose it.
The Historic Faith
Sign in
All Questions
Question 9
He “knocks down” the idea that the covering is long hair by appealing to the Greek (katakalypt? in v.4), Esther 6:12 (Haman “with his head covered”), Plutarch, and the different word peribolaion in v.15; what does this deep dive into language and early sources expose about our confidence in English translations and headings, and how willing are you to let careful exegesis overturn a view you inherited?
Another way to ask: What does Finny’s focus on Greek words and early sources show about the limits of English translations and section headings? How open are you to changing a view you grew up with if careful Bible study points another way?

Direct Answer Finny’s deep dive suggests English headings and familiar translations can mislead, and that careful exegesis—Greek words, biblical cross-references, and early church testimony—should have the power to correct inherited assumptions.

Support from Transcript:

  • He warns section titles like “Instructions for public worship” are “from the publisher… nothing to do with the Bible,” yet they strongly bias readers.
  • On hair-as-covering, he argues v.4’s “katakalypt?” (“down from/against the head”) points to a cloth covering, not hair.
  • He cites Esther 6:12 in the Septuagint: Haman “mourning and with his head covered,” obviously not sudden long hair.
  • He adds Plutarch’s use of the same expression for Scipio “with his head covered,” then uncovering it—again, a removable covering.
  • He notes v.15 uses a *different* word, “peribolaion,” better rendered “shawl/wraparound,” and says most Bibles translate it poorly by using the same English word “covering.”
  • He appeals to early church writers (Irenaeus onward) and emphasizes their agreement it was a fabric veil; he critiques modern “audacity” to out-argue native speakers.
Discussion Follow-ups What inherited interpretation do you hold mainly because “that’s how I’ve always heard it”? Finny’s method asks whether you’ll yield to evidence even when it disrupts your tradition.

Jumpstarter 9 of 10
Back Questions Next