I would not feel bad for the therapist at all if I walked in and found them setting up furniture. I would figure the therapist had done something to provoke it.
And I think feeling helpless and incompetent is good for them - their egos can be over the top. Good to be taken down a peg or two in my opinion.

I am all for no one dealing with another that they don't want to deal with - I just think it better if the therapist admits it clearly and openly that it is their failure and not that of the client. And not go hiding around terms like "in the client's best interest" or couching it in ethical terms that imply they know best.