Hester Panim: When God Hides His Face
Have you ever asked yourself why God is not mentioned in the Book of Esther? You are not alone. Many have sought to understand this concept of God's 'Hester Panim' ('hiding of the face') and Jewish and Gentile scholars have come up with interesting theories.
Adele Berlin writes in the Jewish Study Bible, “The best explanation for their absence (of the mention of God and religion)… is that, given the story is so comic, at times bordering on lewd, such reticence about things religious is preferable, lest religion be debauched.” The thought being that perhaps God’s name is not mentioned in Esther to preserve its sanctity. What do you think?
It’s quite easy to be focused on our daily grind, and forget to look up to God. At times, it might feel as though our daily life is somewhat like a marathon where we run from point A to B, all by ourselves, while our Creator isn’t much in the picture. Perhaps somewhat similarly, we might also focus on all the turmoil of the ongoing dramatic events in the Persian Kingdom and point out a lack of a clear reference to God in the Book of Esther, which might make Him seem rather passive or even absent. Yet, through it all, He is working out His perfect plan behind the scenes.
Perhaps the fact that God seems to be ‘off-stage’ in this Persian story emphasizes that when evil events come upon the world, we humans must act. We should not wait idly for divine intervention. Rabbi Barney Kasdan emphasizes in his book, God’s Appointed Times, that people have a responsibility to act if the will of God is to be carried out. The same idea is expressed in Psalm 8:6,
“You have made him [mankind] to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet...”
God gave every human free will. We can choose the good or the bad. We are capable of making hard choices.
For a final thought, let’s turn to Deuteronomy 31:17-18,
“Then my anger shall be aroused against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured. And many evils and troubles shall befall them, so that they will say in that day, ‘Have not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us?’ And I will surely hide my face in that day because of all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods.”
The immediate audience of this passage is the Children of Israel. Here, God warns that He will hide His face, when we turn away from Him. As believers in Yeshua, we also do well to heed this warning.
May we choose to walk in His ways and seek His face, while always choosing to look up and see His hand at work in our lives, no matter our circumstances.
Chag Purim Sameach!