Psalms 105:17-18

105:17 He sent a man ahead of them ¹  –

Joseph was sold as a servant.

105:18 The shackles hurt his feet; ² 

his neck was placed in an iron collar, ³ 

[105:17]  ¹ tn After the reference to the famine in v. 16, v. 17 flashes back to events that preceded the famine (see Gen 37).

[105:18]  ² tn Heb “they afflicted his feet with shackles.”

[105:18]  ³ tn Heb “his neck came [into] iron.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) with the suffix could mean simply “he” or “his life.” But the nuance “neck” makes good sense here (note the reference to his “feet” in the preceding line). See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 38.