John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 25:19

"Pharaoh king of Egypt, and his servants, and his princes, and all his people;" — Jeremiah 25:19 (ASV)

It may be asked here why he connects Pharaoh with the Jews and assigns the second place to the Egyptians rather than to other nations. The reason is evident: the Jews expected deliverance from them. Moreover, the cause of their irreclaimable obstinacy was that they could not be moved from the false confidence with which the devil had once ensnared them.

They departed from God by making the Egyptians their friends. When they found themselves no match for the Assyrians, they turned their hopes to the Egyptians rather than to God. The prophets reasoned earnestly with them, but without success.

Therefore, since Egypt was the cause of ruin for the chosen people, and Pharaoh was, so to speak, the source and cause of destruction for Jerusalem and for the entire nation, the Prophet rightly mentions Pharaoh in the second place after speaking of Jerusalem and the cities of Judah.

This was because Pharaoh was a friend to the Jews, and they were so interconnected that they were inevitably drawn together into destruction. They had corrupted one another, encouraged one another in impiety, and with united minds and allied hearts, kindled God’s wrath against themselves. Thus, the Prophet could not have spoken of the Jews by themselves but was compelled to connect the Egyptians with them, for the condition of both peoples was the same.

Prayer:

Almighty God: As we continually abuse Your paternal kindness, so that when You spare us for a time, we make it an occasion for more audacity and freedom in sin, O grant that we may be so subdued by Your scourges that we return without delay to You and seek reconciliation with You through the blood of Your only-begotten Son. May we also be so displeased with our vices that we may from the heart submit to You, to be governed by Your Holy Spirit, until, having been cleansed from all our filth, we will come to that blessed glory which You have prepared for us in heaven, and which has been obtained for us by the blood of the same, Your Son Jesus Christ. Amen.