4 For in Zoan were his princes, And his messengers reach Hanes. 5 All he made ashamed of a people that profit not, Neither for help, not for profit, But for shame, and also for reproach! 6 The burden of the beasts of the south. Into a land of adversity and distress, Of young lion and of old lion, Whence 'are' viper and flying saraph, They carry on the shoulder of asses their wealth, And on the hump of camels their treasures, Unto a people not profitable.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Isaiah 30:4-6
Commentary on Isaiah 30:1-7
(Read Isaiah 30:1-7)
It was often the fault and folly of the Jews, that when troubled by their neighbours on one side, they sought for succour from others, instead of looking up to God. Nor can we avoid the dreadful consequences of adding sin to sin, but by making the righteousness of Christ our refuge, and seeking for the sanctification of the Holy Spirit. Men have always been prone to lean to their own understandings, but this will end in their shame and misery. They would not trust in God. They took much pains to gain the Egyptians. The riches so spent turned to a bad account. See what dangers men run into who forsake God to follow their carnal confidences. The Creator is the Rock of ages, the creature a broken reed; we cannot expect too little from man, or too much from God. Our strength is to sit still, in humble dependence upon God and his goodness, and quiet submission to his will.