He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue.
Parallel translations
- WEB One who rebukes a man will afterward find more favor than one who flatters with the tongue.
- BSB He who rebukes a man will later find more favor than one who flatters with his tongue.
- NKJV He who rebukes a man will find more favor afterward Than he who flatters with the tongue.
- NASB One who rebukes a person will afterward find more favor Than one who flatters with the tongue.
- NLT In the end, people appreciate honest criticism far more than flattery.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Honest rebuke ultimately wins more gratitude than flattery. It teaches that loving correction serves people better than empty praise.
Overview
The proverb assures that the one who rebukes truthfully will eventually find more favor than the flatterer whose smooth words deceive. Genuine love speaks needed truth even when it is initially unwelcome. This reflects how Christ and faithful shepherds correct those they love for their good, and such truth-telling builds lasting trust (Ephesians 4:15).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Prov 27:5–6Open rebuke is better than secret love.
- Matt 18:15Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
- Ps 141:5Let the righteous smite me; it shall be a kindness: and let him reprove me; it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head: for yet my prayer also shall be in their calamities.
- Prov 29:5A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet.
- Gal 2:11But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.
- 1 Kgs 1:32–40And king David said, Call me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king.
- 2 Pet 3:15–16And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
- 1 Kgs 1:23And they told the king, saying, Behold Nathan the prophet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground.
- 2 Sam 12:7And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul;
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Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 28:23 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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