The Hidden Prince Quotes

“He had two stories to live. In the first, God had saved his eye. In the second, God had taken his eye. Both were true.... It was up to him which story he chose to live out every day. The lost eye or the saved eye. The blind man or the sighted one. The God who had abandoned him or the God who had saved him.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“God was reminding me to endure. To trust in him in the midst of so much discouragement. Something in my soul bowed before that invitation. And I would bear the weight of the burden before me.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“This heart, though imperfect, can be trusted. And this heart tells me your love is true.
Love does not preserve us from mistakes. You made a mistake. But your heart is trustworthy."
I forgive you.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“Grace means allowing room for someone to grow.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. Proverbs 4:23, NLT”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“It was up to him which story he chose to live out every day. The lost eye or the saved eye. The blind man or the sighted one. The God who had abandoned him or the God who had saved him.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“Many of the characters in this novel are based on historical figures. These include Daniel, Cyrus, Harpagus, Astyages, Cambyses, Mandana (the Persian pronunciation of Cyrus’s mother’s name), and Nebuchadnezzar. The Bible is silent on whether Daniel was married or single. Some historians have even concluded that he might have been a eunuch. I saw no evidence of this and chose to give him a family. While this novel is a work of my imagination, where possible I have tried to remain faithful to historical and archaeological details. If you are interested in further reading, I recommend the classic textbook From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire by Pierre Briant and Discovering Cyrus: The Persian Conqueror Astride the Ancient World by Reza Zarghamee. The events of chapter 54 surrounding the disputed coat are based on a story told by the Greek historian Xenophon about Cyrus’s childhood, which I found in Zarghamee’s book, Discovering Cyrus. Although Otanes is a fictional character, the general story felt like a perfect fit for this thread of the novel. Biblical references to Cyrus include Isaiah 44:28–45:7; Jeremiah 51:11, 28-29; 2 Chronicles 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-11 and 5:14-15. Some of these verses were written decades before Cyrus was born and are considered prophetic in nature, while others describe the return of the Jewish captives to Jerusalem and Cyrus’s role in those events.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“God himself had stretched his ladder from the heavens to the earth, so that his angels could ascend and descend amongst the lonely and brokenhearted. In that forsaken place, God had promised Jacob, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go. I tapped the ground next to my head. “Set the foot of your ladder right here, my Lord. Be with me and keep me.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“not stop there. They went on. Even if he doesn’t, they said, hanging their lives on the hook of possible disappointment. “Where do you draw the line for God, Jared? Even if he does not take away this pain? Even if he does not restore your independence, your strength, your health? Will you still choose him, even if? Choose him every day?” Daniel picked up his walking stick. “Because if you want reassurance, then you have to sort out your even-ifs.” Jared swallowed. The problem with spending time with Daniel was that sometimes you got slapped instead of coddled.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“A strange sound escaped Jared’s throat. He pointed to the eye patch covering his empty eye socket. “The one who allowed this, you mean.” Daniel gave him an unflinching stare. “The same.” “That’s not very reassuring, Daniel.” “I told you that you would face your own fiery furnace one day. If you want a taste of reassurance, you have to begin where Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah began.” “And where is that?” “But even if he doesn’t . . .” Jared shook his head, confused. “I don’t know what you mean.” “That morning, when they were dragged before the king, they told him that our God was able to save them from his hand. But they did”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince

“Daniel drew closer. "God wants your hearts to learn to endure, too. Endure in love. Love him even when he seems absent. Love him when he has offended or disappointed you. Love him when you feel he has not protected you... If. you do not learn to lean into God's enduring love, in time, you might become slaves to bitterness. And that's a far worse slavery than merely b king captives in Babylon.”
― Tessa Afshar, The Hidden Prince