Proverbs 27:5 (KJV)

Passage

Open rebuke is better than secret love.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 27:3 A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty; but a fool’s wrath is heavier than them both.

Proverbs 27:4 Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?

Proverbs 27:5 Open rebuke is better than secret love.

Proverbs 27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

Proverbs 27:7 The full soul loatheth an honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "open", "rebuke", "better", "than", "secret", and "love". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "open" and "rebuke", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "Wrath is cruel and anger is outrageous..." into verse 6's "Faithful are the wounds of a friend...", so "open" and "rebuke" belong inside that flow. In Proverbs context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "open" and "rebuke" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.