Why does Paul tell the Corinthian church women not to be like the prostitutes?
Paul warns church women not to resemble prostitutes because those women were brazen in dress, behavior, and talkativeness. To prevent the church from being identified with such women, he calls for church women to be subdued, subservient to their husbands, and silent in the assembly, making them the complete opposite of the woman of the street.
Les teaches that the prostitutes were completely in a class of their own—brazen in dress, behavior, and talkativeness. Paul uses this as an example: if anything would make someone say the church women were no different from those prostitutes, then the church had to be careful. He therefore tells the women of the Church not to be anything like the women of the street, but to be subdued and subservient to their husbands. Verse 34 reinforces the contrast: let your women keep silence, as a complete opposite of those out on the street, for it is not permitted unto them to speak, but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. Les notes that under God's Law to Israel, the woman had almost no rights, though God had His reason for doing it. He also illustrates the cultural backdrop: in the Middle East, a veiled lady can go anywhere without fear, but removing the veil makes her the object of almost anything.
Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law.
More Questions
What did Paul tell the women in Corinth to watch?
Paul told the ladies in the church to watch their languages, speaking, and behavior.
What does 1 Corinthians 14:34 command women to do in the church?
Reading 1 Corinthians 14:34, Paul commands women to keep silence as the complete opposite of the women out on the street, and says it is not permitted for them to speak but they are commanded to be under obedience, as the law also says.