Isaiah 30:4 (ASV)

Passage

For their princes are at Zoan, and their ambassadors are come to Hanes.

Nearby Context

Isaiah 30:2 that set out to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to take refuge in the shadow of Egypt!

Isaiah 30:3 Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh be your shame, and the refuge in the shadow of Egypt your confusion.

Isaiah 30:4 For their princes are at Zoan, and their ambassadors are come to Hanes.

Isaiah 30:5 They shall all be ashamed because of a people that cannot profit them, that are not a help nor profit, but a shame, and also a reproach.

Isaiah 30:6 The burden of the beasts of the South. Through the land of trouble and anguish, from whence come the lioness and the lion, the viper and fiery flying serpent, they carry their riches upon the shoulders of young asses, and their treasures upon the humps of camels, to a people that shall not profit [them].

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "princes", "zoan", "ambassadors", "come", and "hanes". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "princes" and "zoan", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh be..." into verse 5's "They shall all be ashamed because of...", so "princes" and "zoan" belong inside that flow. In Isaiah context, the local focus is the Holy One of Israel, judgment and restoration, the servant of the LORD, and Zion's hope.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "princes" and "zoan" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.