Morning Bible Study: Job 31:9-15

9 If my heart has gone astray over a woman
or I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
10 let my own wife grind grain for another man,
and let other men sleep with her.
11 For that would be a disgrace;
it would be an iniquity deserving punishment.
12 For it is a fire that consumes down to Abaddon;
it would destroy my entire harvest.

13 If I have dismissed the case of my male or female servants
when they made a complaint against me,
14 what could I do when God stands up to judge?
How should I answer him when he calls me to account?
15 Did not the one who made me in the womb also make them?
Did not the same God form us both in the womb?

Commentary
(the following is from Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary, 1706 -- www.christianity.com)

"All the defilements of the life come from a deceived heart. Lust is a fire in the soul: those that indulge it, are said to burn. It consumes all that is good there, and lays the conscience waste. 

Job had a numerous household, and he managed it well. He considered that he had a Master in heaven; and as we are undone if God should be severe with us, we ought to be mild and gentle towards all with whom we have to do."

Morning Bible Study: Job 31:1-8

31:1 I have made a covenant with my eyes.
How then could I look at a young woman?
2 For what portion would I have from God above,
or what inheritance from the Almighty on high?
3 Doesn’t disaster come to the unjust
and misfortune to evildoers?
4 Does he not see my ways
and number all my steps?
5 If I have walked in falsehood
or my foot has rushed to deceit,
6 let God weigh me on accurate scales,
and he will recognize my integrity.
7 If my step has turned from the way,
my heart has followed my eyes,
or impurity has stained my hands,
8 let someone else eat what I have sown,
and let my crops be uprooted.

Commentary
(the following is from Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary, 1706 -- www.christianity.com) 

"Job did not speak the things here recorded by way of boasting, but in answer to the charge of hypocrisy. He understood the spiritual nature of God's commandments, as reaching to the thoughts and intents of the heart. 

The lusts of the flesh, and the love of the world, are two fatal rocks on which multitudes split; against these Job protests he was always careful to stand upon his guard. And God takes more exact notice of us than we do of ourselves; let us therefore walk circumspectly. 

What we have in the world may be used with comfort, or lost with comfort, if honestly gotten. Without strict honesty and faithfulness in all our dealings, we can have no good evidence of true godliness."