Proverbs 17:9
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Whoever conceals an offense promotes love, but he who brings it up separates friends.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
Note, 1. The way to preserve peace among relations and neighbours is to make the best of every thing, not to tell others what has been said or done against them when it is not at all necessary to their safety, nor to take notice of what has been said or done against them when it is not at all necessary to their safety, nor to take notice of what has been said or done against ourselves, but to excuse both, and put the best construction upon them. "It was an oversight; therefore overlook it. It was done through forgetfulness; therefore forget it. It perhaps made nothing of you; do you make nothing of it." 2. The ripping up of faults is the ripping out of love, and nothing tends more to the separating of friends, and setting them at variance, than the repeating of matters that have been in variance; for they commonly lose nothing in the repetition, but the things themselves are aggravated and the passions about them revived and exasperated. The best method of peace is by an amnesty or act of oblivion.
Open source ↗17:9 Maintaining a good relationship with another person means forgiving rather than dwelling on faults.
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
Cross-references
Other passages the community most often connects to this one. Tap to read.
Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers all transgressions.
Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
A perverse man spreads dissension, and a gossip divides close friends.
Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.