When the Iron Enters the Soul

By Rachel Deese, LPC-MHSP | HeartLife Counselor

Psalm 105:17-19

17 he had sent a man ahead of them,
    Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
18 His feet were hurt with fetters;
    his neck was put in a collar of iron;
19 until what he had said came to pass,
    the word of the Lord tested him.

What strikes me about Joseph’s story is how easy it is to elevate the outcome while skimming past the trauma he endured before he ever got there. We celebrate the palace, the promotion, the reconciliation, and the wisdom, but Psalm 105 slows the story down and forces us to look honestly at what Joseph actually carried on the way to fulfillment. My parents’ generation often minimized trauma entirely and expected people to simply move on, while many in the younger generation can unintentionally make trauma so central that it becomes the defining lens through which everything is interpreted. Scripture does neither. The Bible does not ignore suffering, nor does it enthrone it.

Psalm 105 says, “They afflicted his feet with fetters; his nephesh entered iron.” That Hebrew word nephesh is often translated as “soul.” It refers to the inner self—the living being, the mind, emotions, desires, breath, and personhood. I believe this clearly indicates that Joseph’s suffering shifted from the external to the internal. The iron, the shackles, and the imprisonment made their way inside his entire being. That sounds a lot like trauma. Trauma is not just something that happens around us; it enters the nervous system and impacts the lens through which we see everything that happens to us. It shapes reactions, expectations, emotions, and a person’s sense of safety. Psalm 105 does not pretend Joseph walked through betrayal, slavery, false accusation, isolation, and imprisonment untouched. The text acknowledges that the suffering reached inward. Yet the story also refuses to let suffering become Joseph’s identity. The trauma entered him, but it did not become the center of who he was.

What may be most painful is that Joseph endured all of this while carrying a promise from God. He was not spiritually empty. He had dreams, purpose, and calling, yet year after year, his circumstances seemed to contradict everything God had shown him. That is what Psalm 105 means when it says, “the word of the Lord tested him.” The promise itself became part of the pressure. We know Joseph was sold into slavery and imprisoned around the age of 17, and he was not elevated into Pharaoh’s service until he was 30 years old. That is 13 long years of roller-coaster experiences, with most of them spent in darkness—literally and emotionally. I wonder how many nights Joseph replayed those dreams in prison while trying to reconcile them with chains on his feet. I wonder if he questioned whether God was truly going to come through. Scripture does not give us his inner dialogue, but it gives us enough humanity to know he was not untouched by prolonged suffering. This is where many people begin turning away from God—not merely when life is hard, but when life is hard while God seems silent. When obedience does not produce immediate rescue. When the promise and reality appear violently disconnected.

And yet Psalm 105 begins by reminding us that God was sovereign in all of it:

“He sent a man before them—Joseph, sold as a slave.”

That does not mean God approved of the evil done to Joseph, but it does mean Joseph’s suffering was not outside of God’s awareness or authority. There were things that had to be shaped in Joseph that would allow him to withstand the elevation that was coming and remain faithful and loyal to God once he got there. None of us want the suffering that often precedes elevation. We simply want the elevation. But God knows what we cannot yet sustain. Character, humility, dependence, wisdom, endurance, and surrender are often forged in places we would never willingly choose.

At the same time, suffering itself is not the goal. Healing matters. Releasing trauma matters. If trauma impacts the lens through which we see everything, then unresolved suffering can keep us bound long after the prison doors have opened. Joseph’s trauma entered him, but it did not ultimately define him. He did not spend the rest of his life living from bitterness, vengeance, fear, or victimhood. So perhaps one of the great tensions of suffering is this: if we refuse to release the trauma, process the pain, and allow God to heal what entered us in the dark, how much of the suffering remains wasted? We must do our part to restore our bodies, minds, and souls. God does most of the heavy lifting, but we must stay soft toward Him.

Rachel Deese, LPC-MHSP, Licensed Brain Health Trainer

Rachel Deese is a licensed brain health trainer and certified marriage coach.

Rachel believes all were created in the image of God and have innate value. The Bible teaches each one of us was created uniquely and with purpose. Because of this, Rachel approaches each individual and couple uniquely, utilizing many therapeutic approaches and tools. With Rachel’s background in health and wellness, as well as counseling, she holds a holistic perspective on how she sees and helps her clients. Rachel has been teaching on the Bible, health and wellness, marriage, and mental health in churches and the community for the past two decades.