“You shall not hate your brother in your heart; you shall reprove/rebuke your fellow and do not bear sin because of him.” (Leviticus 19:17)
On the surface, this verse is teaching that when we rebuke others, we should not do it in a way that is sinful.
For example, by embarrassing them in public.
R’ Gedaliah Schorr has a interesting spin on the phrase “do not bear sin because of him.”
The Hebrew can be understood as “do not raise up the sin over him!”
In other words, don’t magnify the sin and minimize the person.
Don’t put the emphasis on the magnitude of the sin, “How could you do such a terrible thing?”
Rather, focus on the greatness of the person, “How could a person like you do such a thing? It’s beneath someone like you.”
