John Calvin Commentary Genesis 50:7

"And Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt," — Genesis 50:7 (ASV)

And Joseph went up. Moses gives a full account of the burial. What he relates concerning the renewed mourning of Joseph and his brothers, as well as of the Egyptians, should by no means be established as a rule among ourselves. For we know that since our flesh lacks self-control, people commonly go to excess both in sorrowing and in rejoicing.

The tumultuous display, which the inhabitants of the place admired, cannot be excused. And although Joseph had a right purpose in view when he set the mourning to last for seven successive days, yet this excess was not free from blame. Nevertheless, it was not without reason that the Lord caused this funeral to be so honorably celebrated, for it was of great consequence that a kind of sublime trophy should be raised, which might transmit to posterity the memory of Jacob’s faith.

If he had been buried privately and in an ordinary manner, his fame would soon have been extinguished. But now, unless people willfully blind themselves, they have continually before their eyes a noble example, which may nurture the hope of the promised inheritance. They perceive, as it were, the standard of that deliverance erected, which will take place in the fullness of time.

Therefore, we are not here to consider the honor of the deceased so much as the benefit of the living. Even the Egyptians, not knowing what they do, bear a torch before the Israelites, to teach them to follow the course of their divine calling. The Canaanites do the same when they distinguish the place by a new name; for as a result, it came about that the knowledge of the covenant of the Lord flourished anew.