The Test of the King's Illusions

"And I will conceal my face, etc". This is seemingly very surprising--how is it possible that the Holy One, blessed be He, will conceal his face from Yisroel, chaliloh? And how will they have chayus (life energy) and how will they endure, chas v'shalom, because this is all of their chayus.

The analogy is to a king who made numerous dividers, through optical illusion, in front of his palace in order that no one should come to him. And he hid himself there, and he made walls of fire and rivers, all of them optical illusions, before his sons.

One who was wise and contemplated the matter: how could it be possible that his father, the Merciful One, would not want to see the faces of his sons and friends? This is certainly only an optical illusion, as the father wants to test if the son will make the effort to come to him.

And in truth there is no concealment, and so immediately when he will have self-sacrifice to go into the river, the optical illusion disappeared and he crossed it, and so too with all the dividers, until he came to the king's palace.

But there was also a simpleton who was afraid to begin to cross the dividers, and there is another who crossed the water and returned from the walls and from the fire...

Degel Machaneh Ephraim (in the name of the Holy Baal Shem Tov)