Purim—the festival of Esther—is the most light-hearted of the Jewish holidays. Perhaps this is what led the sages of the Talmud to ask, “Where is there an allusion to Esther in the Torah?” (Chullin 139b). They answer with a reference to Deuteronomy 31:18, in which God warns Israel of exile to come: v’anochi haster asteer panai – “And I will hide, yes hide my face.” Asteer – “hide” – sounds like the name Esther. The term hester panim, to hide the face, describes the conditions of Israel’s long exile, conditions that dominate the story of Esther. Rashi wrote, “In the days of Esther there will be hester panim, hiding of the divine countenance.” Accordingly, there is no mention of God or the supernatural in the whole book of Esther.

We can think of Purim, therefore, as the festival of exile, a time when God seems hidden, a condition that continues even to this day. Purim's light-heartedness is displayed against the backdrop of persecution and threatened extermination. Believers in Messiah, however, might not think of themselves as being in exile. If Messiah is risen and present among us, how can say that God’s face is hidden?

Isaiah 53 provides a vital clue. Many ancient Jewish authorities see references to Messiah in this famous chapter, even though they do not believe that Yeshua is the Messiah of which it speaks.. Isaiah asks, “to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” Ironically, the phrase “arm of the Lord” in Scripture normally describes the mighty acts of God that are undeniably real, both to God’s people and to his opponents. The phrase “arm of the Lord,” reminds us of Passover, which comes just a month after Purim, when God revealed himself openly both to Israel and to Egypt by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. “Arm of the Lord” is almost a synonym for revelation of the Lord, but Isaiah asks whether there is anyone to whom it has been revealed. We again confront hester panim, the hidden face of God.

The Gospel of Mark sounds this same theme. It opens with the declaration that this is “the Good News of Yeshua the Messiah, the Son of God . . .” (1:1), and goes on to record the testimony of Yochanan the Immerser (1:7–8), and even a voice from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; I am well pleased with you” (1:11). Even the demons recognize that Yeshua is the Son of God (1:24, 3:11, 5:7), but Yeshua silences them and tells them not to make him known. Indeed, he repeatedly instructs those who experience his healing power to tell no one about it (1:44, 3:12, 5:43, 7:36, 8:26). He refuses the Pharisees’ request for a sign to prove that he is sent from God (8:11-12). When Yeshua visits his own hometown, the people ask, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom he has been given? What are these miracles worked through him? Isn’t he just the carpenter? the son of Miryam?” (6:2-3). Rather than recognizing him as Messiah the Son of God, they take offense at him. His own disciples, when Yeshua performs the great miracle of calming a storm on the Sea of Galilee, ask “Who can this be, that even the wind and the waves obey him?” (4:41).

Mark has announced who Yeshua is, but there remains something hidden about him, and he draws us, his readers, into the question, “Who can this be?” If we answer this question too quickly and with too much self-assurance, we may get it wrong. Yeshua does not seek to hide that he is Messiah, but he is challenges us with what kind of Messiah he will be. He turns the normal expectations of his day, and of ours as well, on their head. As we are reminded at Purim, things are not as they appear. Those who seem powerful and in control will be put in their place by outsiders, including a God who is hiding. Yeshua delays the announcement that he is Messiah because he does not want it to precede the understanding of what kind of Messiah he will be. The turning-point in Mark comes when Yeshua takes his disciples off to a retreat in the region of Caesarea Philippi, away from the bustle and high visibility of Galilee. On the way he raises the question himself:

“Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.” And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him. (8:27-30)

At last, the secret is revealed. Now Yeshua will teach his disciples about the suffering and crucifixion he must endure to fulfill God’s purposes. He will rise from the dead to reveal God’s salvation, but he must first endure betrayal and death. Furthermore, Yeshua reveals that even after his resurrection there will be continuing exile and persecution—the hidden face of God—until he returns. He concludes his description of this period of trial with these words:

Stay alert! Be on your guard! For you do not know when the time will come. It’s like a man who travels away from home, puts his servants in charge, each with his own task, and tells the doorkeeper to stay alert. So stay alert! for you don’t know when the owner of the house will come, whether it will be evening, midnight, cockcrow or morning!– you don’t want him to come suddenly and find you sleeping! And what I say to you, I say to everyone: stay alert!” (13:33-37)

Yeshua hides his Messianic identity to ensure that his followers understand what kind of Messiah he is. But he has another purpose in remaining hidden; to prepare them for the long period between his resurrection and his return in glory, when he will often seem hidden, and his followers may be tempted to lose hope and become complacent. Instead, Yeshua warns us to stay alert, to continue to believe, to serve him according to his instructions, and to look for his return.

Today the Messiah is hidden. . . . We live in hope of the coming of the Son of Man in his glory. Jesus’ teaching, his ultimate instructions to his disciples, are for this time, the time of absence, in which his disciples must watch and wait, and for which Christ gives them the wisdom needed. (Lustiger, The Promise, p. 42)

Of course, to believers Messiah is present through his spirit, by which he gives “the wisdom needed.” But the way of faithfulness to a hidden Messiah is different from what we might choose for ourselves. And it is certainly different from the way pointed out by the religious consumerism of our day. We cannot expect religious triumph at every turn, even though Messiah is with us. He warns us of the difficulty of the age in which we live, but instills confidence through the promise of his return.

The story of Esther reminds us of Isaiah’s question, “to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” And the holiday of Purim reminds us that it will be revealed to those who rely on him, despite the delays and disappointments of exile. In the same way Yeshua, who seems hidden to many, who fails to meet the expectations that this world sets in place, is the source of deliverance to Israel and the nations. Purim reminds us to remain faithful to Yeshua’s message and example during this time of hester panim, the hiding of God’s face.

RR

MiKetz—“At the end” of two years, Pharaoh has a dream, a two-fold dream that troubles him greatly. He searches for an interpreter, but none of the wise men of Egypt can help. Only then does the Chief Cupbearer remember an incident that occurred exactly two years earlier. He was in prison and a young Hebrew fellow-prisoner correctly interpreted a dream he had dreamt there, and a dream of the Chief Baker, who was imprisoned with him. Now he is sure that this Hebrew, whom we know of course as Joseph, can interpret Pharaoh’s troubling dream as well.

At this point, the Torah says of Joseph, “They brought him hastily,” or “rushed him” out of the prison to prepare to come before Pharaoh (Genesis 41:14). The Sforno comments on this phrase,

The Divine salvation always comes hastily, as it is written, “For my salvation is near to come” (Isaiah 56:1), and also, “Oh, that My people would hearken to me… I would soon subdue their enemies” (Psalm 81:14-15). And so it came to pass in the Egyptian bondage, as it says, “because they were thrust out of Egypt’ (Exodus 12:39), as our Sages have taught us (in the Passover Haggada), “Their dough had no time to rise, for the King of kings, the Almighty, revealed Himself to them and redeemed them.” And so it shall be in the future, as it is written, “And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His Temple” (Malachi 3:1).

The Divine salvation always comes suddenly, but it most often comes after long years of bondage. Joseph is sold into slavery as a youth of seventeen, and is a grown man of thirty when he is finally brought before Pharaoh. Israel groans under Egyptian bondage for generations before Moses appears to bring deliverance. The exile leading up to the final deliverance has extended to multiple centuries and is only now in our day drawing to a close amid great suffering and difficulties.

The Divine salvation comes suddenly, but it comes after a time of longing, endurance, and prayer. The message to us is clear: we must never give up.

Today’s Messianic Jewish community needs to apply this truth. We are growing and maturing in many ways, but we know there is a divine purpose that we have not yet fulfilled. We long to see the knowledge of Messiah Yeshua multiplying among our people, and the next generation of Messianic Judaism thriving in numbers and strength. At times we may wonder if this vision will ever be fulfilled. But the Scriptures instruct us to persevere in this hope, and to look to God, for His deliverance comes swiftly and even unexpectedly.

Parashat MiKetz is usually read during the season of Chanukah, a time when we celebrate another act of Divine salvation. During Chanukah, we read from the prophecy of Zechariah, ending with the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: “‘Not by might nor by power, but by My spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of “Grace, grace to it!”’” (4:6-7).

Zerubbabel is facing the impossible task of restoring the temple of Jerusalem and the Jewish presence in the land of Israel after years of exile in Babylon. Zechariah, perhaps like us, has a vision of restoration that seems far off in light of the realities around him. His message, however, is that salvation comes suddenly because it is not the product of human effort and preparation. Rather, it is an intervention from above that transcends our efforts and preparation. We have a vital part to play, just as Joseph remained alert and ready to serve throughout his years of bondage, Zerubbabel gave himself to the task of rebuilding, and the Maccabees took a stand for the Lord in difficult times. The real hope, however, is not in our accomplishments, but in God’s spirit, now freely given to us in Messiah Yeshua. Let us keep this hope alive on behalf of our congregations and our people this Chanukah season and beyond.