In the whirlwind of cooking and preparing for yamim tovim, you might have a similar experience to mine. My kitchen becomes filled with pots, recently washed, and cooked dishes, everything all over the place. It becomes overwhelming. So I have a ritual that I do, which brings me a great degree of calm. I slowly put everything into order. The bowls, the pots in their place, the food into the fridge, stacked by day. I’ve turned chaos into order.
The book of Shoftim was a time of utter chaos, ups and downs, and a constant refrain of “there was no king in Israel, everyone did what was right in their eyes.” The nation constantly fell into idolatry and even immorality.
Amid a time of utter chaos, Shmuel stood up to help bring order to the nation. He was the one to appoint a king, to bring order to the nation.
The importance of having a king was not just for his time. This development set the stage for David Hamelech’s dynasty. This is the royal line that sets the stage for the destiny of the nation for the rest of time, concluding with Mashiach tzidkeinu.
Light from darkness, order from entropy, messy kitchen to organized, both Chana (Shmuel’s mother) and David (Shmuel’s anointed) echo the same thought, “Hashem lifts the poor from the dust.” May we merit being lifted up in our private lives and our communal lives, with Mashiach tzidkeinu, very soon.
