And my heart hath been secretly enticed, or my mouth hath kissed my hand:
Ver. 27. And my heart hath been secretly enticed] sc. By the devil, who is ειδωλοχαρης, as, saith Synesius, a great promoter of idolatry; and probably had tempted good Job to this sin also; but was bravely repulsed. If I have done this secretly, saith he, that is, contrary to my open profession of sincere religion. See Deuteronomy 27:10 .
Or, my mouth hath kissed my hand] An action of idolaters, who kissed their idols that were present, 1Ki 19:18 Hosea 13:2 (as the Papists now do their idols, even to the wearing of hardest marble), and to those which were further from them, they held out their hand, and afterwards did put it to their mouth; as an acknowledgment that they had their life and breath from them, saith Diodati, as a sign of subjection, saith Piscator, from Genesis 41:40 Psalms 2:12, "Kiss the Son," sc. with a kiss of homage, such as wherewith Samuel kissed Saul, 1 Samuel 10:1. And Plutarch saith (in Caton. Uticens.), that not to all, but to some special chief commanders, and generals, it was granted among the Romans, That the hand should be kissed before them by way of honour; and this was called adorare, quasi applicare manum ad os. That saying of Bernard (In Cantic. serm. iv.) is worthy of inserting, Qui in se, non in Domino gloriatur, manum suam osculatur; He that glories in himself, and not in the Lord, kisseth his own hand, and is, interpretative, an idolater.