Kabbalah Library

100. ‎“You shall not hate your brother in your heart; you shall indeed admonish your neighbor, and ‎shall not incur sin on him.” This commandment is to admonish him for sinning and ‎to show him great love, that he loves him, so the admonisher will not be punished. It is ‎written about the Creator, “He whom the Lord loves, He admonishes.” As the Creator does, ‎admonishing those whom He loves, man, too, will learn from His way and admonish his ‎neighbor, whom he loves. The Creator admonishes a person with love, in hiding. If one ‎accepts His admonishment, very well; if not, He admonishes him among those who love him. ‎If he accepts it, very well; if not, He admonishes him openly, before everyone’s eyes. If he ‎accepts it, very well; if not, He leaves him and no longer admonishes him, since He leaves ‎him to go and do as he pleases.

101. In the beginning, He lets him know in secret, to admonish him and awaken him, so that no person may know; it is between him and Him. If he accepts His admonishment, very well. If not, he makes it known about him among his loved ones. While there was a high priest in the world, He would place on him a sickness in his bed, and the lovers of the Creator would come and notify him that if there is an iniquity in him, he should repent from him and reflect on his actions. If he accepts it, very well. If not, He admonishes him openly, punishing him with his money, his sons, everyone talks about him, and come to him to awaken him to repent. If he accepts, very well. If not, his master begins to do his will and He never attacks him again. Likewise, one should admonish one’s friend, first in hiding, then among those who love him, and then openly. From here, he should leave him to do as he pleases.

102. For this reason, it is written, “You shall indeed admonish your neighbor,” admonish in hiding, so that no person will know. Admonish among his friends and loved ones, “Your neighbor,” openly. This is why it is not written in the beginning “admonish,” which means among his friends, but rather admonish in hiding. “Admonish,” if he is a person who is ashamed, he will not tell him and will not admonish him even in hiding, but tell it to his face, as one who is speaking about other things, and among those things he will mention, “He who did this and that iniquity is this and that,” so he will understand by himself and leave that iniquity. For this reason, “admonish,” and if not “indeed admonish,” and then openly, “your neighbor.” Henceforth, “and ‎shall not incur sin on him,” meaning that he will not admonish him anymore.

103. If one admonishes one’s friend and it happens that he admonishes him in public, he will not mention before him that iniquity that he had done, since he is certainly forbidden. Rather, he should simply say, and not mention that iniquity that he had done openly and will not register the iniquity to him, since the Creator has mercy on a person’s respect, even on the wicked.