Psalm 27:4 One thing I have desired of the Lord, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord, And to inquire in His temple.
The Hebrew word for “face” is “panim”, (the Hebrew letters, peh-nun-yud-mem), literally “faces”, a plural word. Normally, when we think about God, we focus only upon one of His “faces” at a time. God is “love” – or He is “holy”– or He is “just”— or He’s a God of “wrath”. Yet, of course, ALL these “faces” are His at once; and so the word “panim” accurately reflects the truth of God’s multifaceted being. As we get to know Him better we begin to appreciate the complexity of His nature and the fact that our focus on one “face” is a very limited view, since there’s so much more going on in His amazing “Personality”.
Now the same four Hebrew letters which form the word “face”, (peh-nun-yud-mem), also form the Hebrew word for “inside” or “interior”. * This would seem to contradict the first meaning, “face”, since “face” is the external part of a person or thing, not the inside. Yet here, as with many Hebrew words and concepts lies a deep truth, a paradox which expresses two sides of reality. The “face” is intimately connected with the “interior“, and may accurately reveal the true “interior” of someone. There’s even a science (or perhaps you might call it an art) of reading peoples’ true attitudes and character by looking carefully at their facial expressions. So while we don’t “judge a book by it’s cover”, we may begin to know a person better by carefully looking at her face…because it is true that the face often says something real about the inside of a person. Yeshua (Jesus) said, “The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light.” Inside and out, we’re connected.
And this is something God wants us to do with Him; to meditate, or gaze upon His “panim”, His “faces”, and so to receive from His interior depths. Someday, we will see Him “face to face”, and begin to know Him in ways which are unimaginable. Yet it is possible, by His Spirit within us, to begin now.
God desires us to look deeper into who He is, even as we only look or meditate on one of His “faces”. King David expressed his own unique desire in these words: “One thing I have asked from YHVH, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of YHVH all the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the YHVH and to meditate in His temple.” God’s faces and His “interior” are one continuous eternal wonder. Let us spend time simply beholding Him!
* In Israel, the Ministry of the “Interior” is the first “face” you meet when interacting with the State on visa issues which determine your internal status in the Land. In Hebrew it’s called the “Misrad HaPanim” (Office of the INTERIOR), literally, “Office of the Faces”!
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy Devotions. This devotional was originally published on Worthy Devotions and was reproduced with permission.
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Sukkot (the Feast of Tabernacles) started last week, and it’s customary to say to everyone this week — Chag Sameach, which literally means joyous festival! As we mentioned, the feast of Sukkot commemorates the time in which God led the Israelites through the wilderness for 40 years, providing them with every need on a daily basis — shelter, food, water and clothing. You may know that a during Sukkot, a portion of Ecclesiastes is read in the synagogues. Interestingly enough, it speaks of the vanity of materialism.
Sukkot (the Feast of Tabernacles) will begin Wednesday night throughout the world. The feast of Sukkot commemorates the time in which God led the Israelites through the wilderness for 40 years, providing them with every need on a daily basis – shelter, food, water, and clothing. Interestingly, during Sukkot, the book of Ecclesiastes is read in the synagogues– but Ecclesiastes speaks of the vanity of materialism.
One of the main lessons of Yom Kippur is understanding the significance of “rachamim”, the mercies of God. The scripture expressed that our sins are removed as far as “the east is from the west” — meaning they are completely forgiven when confessed. On the feast of Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement two goats are involved in the sacrifice. The blood of the first goat was placed on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies. The other, or “scapegoat” was released into the wilderness, signifying that our sins were not only covered, but also removed. In the days of the Temple, this “scapegoat” was led through the Eastern Gate toward the Mount of Olives where it would disappear from view, as it fulfilled the removal of sins from the people.
There are times in our lives that we are going through a spiritual valley and we want to get victory — we want to have answers — we want God’s power to flow through us again.
This evening will begin the Biblical feast of Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur, which literally means Day of Coverings, can be a day of deep reflection on what the Lord has done for us. As Yeshua (Jesus) died on the cross 2000 years ago, the Gospel describes how the veil in the Temple was torn in two. This profound spiritual event reveals that the Lord gave all whose sins are covered by His blood access to the Holy of Holies, as He had become our High Priest in addition to being, Himself, the perfect sacrifice for sin.
As we celebrated Yom Teruah (Feast of Trumpets) and are in the midst of “Yamin Noraim” or the days of awe, the days between the Feast of Trumpets and Yom Kippur, it is the season of repentance.
This is the season that the shofar (rams horn) is blown to heed the call of warning to repent from our sins and be clean. The shofar’s unique sounding blast is a wake-up call to all who will hear.
As we find ourselves in the midst of the Yamim Noraim (Days of Awe), our hearts are centered this week on repentance as we prepare for Yom Kippur, which is approaching this Friday. In this spirit, I want to share something I discovered while studying the Jewish roots of many of Yeshua’s (Jesus’) parables. I came across an insightful teaching from a Jewish Rabbi, which I believe holds a valuable lesson for us today.