Satar (H5641) is one of several Hebrew words for hiding or concealing. Significantly, it describes God hiding his face in judgment (Deuteronomy 31:17–18; Isaiah 54:8) and the psalmist's cry that God not hide his face (Psalm 27:9). It also describes God as a hiding place — the paradox of seeking shelter in the One who hides.
The hester panim (hiding of the face, from satar) is the terrifying experience of divine absence. When God hides his face, calamity follows. Yet the same root is used for God as refuge (Psalm 32:7). The psalms hold both realities in tension — God who hides is also the hiding place. In Christ, the ultimate hiding of God's face occurred at the cross ('My God, why have you forsaken me?'), so that God's face might shine upon us forever.