12 "Stand fast now in your spells And in your many sorceries With which you have labored from your youth ; Perhaps you will be able to profit , Perhaps you may cause trembling . 13 "You are wearied with your many counsels ; Let now the astrologers e , Those who prophesy by the stars , Those who predict by the new moons , Stand up and save you from what will come upon you. 14 "Behold , they have become like stubble , Fire burns them; They cannot deliver themselves from the power of the flame ; There will be no coal to warm by Nor a fire to sit before !
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Isaiah 47:12-14
Commentary on Isaiah 47:7-15
(Read Isaiah 47:7-15)
Let us beware of acting and speaking as Babylon did; of trusting in tyranny and oppression; of boasting as to our abilities, relying on ourselves, and ascribing success to our own prudence and wisdom; lest we partake of her plagues. Those in the height of prosperity, are apt to fancy themselves out of the reach of adversity. It is also common for sinners to think they shall be safe, because they think to be secret in wicked ways. But their security shall be their ruin. Let us draw from such passages as the foregoing, those lessons of humility and trust in God which they convey. If we believe the word of God, we may know how it will be with the righteous and the wicked to all eternity. We may learn how to escape the wrath to come, to glorify God, to have peace through life, hope in death, and everlasting happiness. Let us then stand aloof from all delusions.