On What Scriptural Basis Is a Man Praying with a Hat on Frowned Upon If a Woman Praying with a Hat on as a Covering Is Considered Unscriptural?
1) Direct answer
It’s Scripture. A man must not pray with his head covered; a woman must be covered—but God defined her covering as her long hair, not a hat. So a man praying with a hat on dishonors his Head, and a woman using a hat as a “substitute covering” is unscriptural. Her hair is the covering God appointed.
2) Scriptural explanation
- 1 Corinthians 11:4,7: “Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head… For a man indeed ought not to cover his head; forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God.”
- 1 Corinthians 11:5–6: A woman praying or prophesying uncovered dishonors her head; if she won’t be covered, “let her also be shorn,” showing that uncoveredness and shorn/shaven go together.
- 1 Corinthians 11:13–15: “Judge in yourselves… if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her… for her hair is given her for a covering.”
3) Simple clarifying logic
- For the man: The Bible says he must not cover his head when praying. A hat on a praying man is a covered head; therefore it dishonors Christ his Head.
- For the woman: The Bible itself identifies the covering—her hair is given to her for a covering. That means:
- Long hair = covered.
- Shorn/shaven = uncovered.
- No hat can replace hair, and no hat is required to fulfill the command.
So a woman thinking a hat “makes her covered” while she cuts her hair is still uncovered by Scripture. And a woman with long hair is covered even without a hat.
4) Reinforcing statement
Now notice: it’s not about church customs but God’s order. Men pray uncovered; women are covered by the hair God gave. That keeps the headship honor exactly as the Bible sets it. Final biblical conclusion: A man should remove his hat to pray (1 Corinthians 11:4,7). A woman’s scriptural covering is her long hair (1 Corinthians 11:15); a hat does not make or replace that covering.
Existing Follow-Up Answers
- If a Woman Willfully Cuts or Shaves Off Her Hair but Wears a Scarf or Hat to Pray, Is She Covered?
1) Direct answer No. If a woman willfully cuts or shaves her hair and then puts on a scarf or hat to pray, she is still uncovered before God. The - So What If a Woman by Accident, Age or Health Condition Has Short or No Hair, How Should She Be Covered If Hats and Scarfs Are Not a Covering?
1) Direct answer If a woman loses hair by accident, age, or sickness, she is not made “uncovered” in guilt before God. The Bible’s covering is he - What Determines If a Woman's Head Is Covered? Is It the Scalp Visibility or the Uncut Hair? Does It Matter If the Hair Is Matted in Cornrows or Plait?
1) Direct answer A woman’s head is covered when her hair is uncut and allowed to grow. It is not about hiding the scalp with fabric, and it’s not
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
Questions and Answers, Part 2
64-0823E §84
No, Brother, if you want a flattop haircut, I'll tell you; You just wait till you get about my age, you'll have one. So... That's all right. I didn't mean that like that, buddy. Bless your heart if you believe Brother Branham tell you the truth. I don't think God says anything about men, his covering is just as long as he cuts his hair. If he lets his hair grow down long like a woman, the Bible says it's a shame for a man to do that. But now, if ... as long as you got your hair and you're a little boy. And I know I...
And knoweth it not
65-0815 §68
That's why that woman will wear them shorts. She's counted a prostitute the same as the woman in the act, see. She doesn't know that that spirit... How does she know her ultimate? What is an ultimate? It's the last word. The ultimate is the Amen; it's the end of all strife---your ultimate. And if your church ... a Pentecostal church that tells you that long hair stuff is just fanaticism---"You've got a spare tire on the back of your head," and so forth and them kind of things---the man is possessed of the devil; fo...
Oneness
62-0211 §73
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Has the Lord spoken only to Moses?
53-1130 §22
I can prove by the Bible that any woman that'll bob her hair has a legal right in the sight of God for her husband to divorce her. That's the Scripture. Now, if you don't believe it, lay the question up here tomorrow night, and I will show you. That's right. That's right, but what do we do? The Bible says it's a common, sinful thing for a woman to pray with her hair cut short. That's right. And yet you put all this makeup on, but what does it do, friends? There's only one woman done that, and you know what God did...
Questions and Answers, part 2
54-0103E §63
I know we ladies today ... or, you ladies, rather, wear hats. You say that's your covering. That's wrong. The Bible said a woman's covering is her hair. And if she cuts her hair, it's a common thing for her to pray. That right? That's Scripture, see. So now, women are supposed to wear long hair, regardless of what you want to think about it; that's "Thus saith the Lord." You can show me any place... You say, "Well, my hair's long. See, it's down to my shoulders." That was short hair. "Christ..." You said, "Christ h...