This is a question that has been bothering me for some time. I have asked several Rabbonim and have not had an answer.

The question is nice and short:

Where does the order of the Aleph Bet come from?

The order is significant, because if it was different, then gematria would not work in the way that it does and the numbers would be different.

The closest I've got to an answer is that aleph and bet are paired together, gimmel and daled are paired, etc. but it doesn't explain why aleph and bet are before gimmel and daled.

I know, ultimately, its from HaShem, but I wondered if there was any textual source for this.

Thanks,
Adam.

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Thanks for that.

I've read Rabbi Munk's 'Wisdom of the Aleph Bet', which is also a fantastic book, but that doesn't touch on the order of the letters.

Does the book that you mentioned definitely touch on the order? I've seen it in the bookshop and thought about buying it before.

If you seen it in the bookshop, then go ahead and browse it. I've read parts of it, but don't recall, but it is a good bet that there may be something in there to help you.

There is a gemara (my memory is saying late in masechta Shabbos--I'll try to get you an exact reference bli neder) that answers precisely this question. For example--it says, 'aleph-bet' means 'aluph bina', learn wisdom. After learning wisdom, 'gimel-daled'-which means gomail dalim, do kindness to the poor. The gemara proceeds to explain homiletically the entire aleph bet.

Thanks for that. I'd like to read it properly, so if you do remember the reference, that would be great.

It doesn't sound like a reason for the order of the letters though, more of an excuse. Do you know what I mean?

e.g. 'aleph-bet' means 'aluph bina'. How do you spell 'bina' before the other letters are ordered?

The words aluph and bina surely could not exist before the order was defined?

The reference is Gemara Shabbos daf 104a.
I recall once seeing that a non-Jewish anthropologist wanted to prove that Hebrew preceeded greek from the fact that the words aleph, bet, etc.have meaning in Hebrew, but the parallel letters alpha, beta, etc. in Greek have no meaning in that language.
Hashem created loshon Hakodesh with meaning contained in each letter. The letter was given together with its meaning.
I looked at the gemara this morning; it really is beautiful. It says the gimel sticks out its leg toward the daled to symbolize that a benefactor must run after the poor. The daled is turned away from the gimel to suggest that tzdaka should be gived in private so as not to embarrass the recipient.
All the best.

I wanted to correct/add a thought: we saw recently in the daf yomi that the Torah preceeded creation by 974 generations. The Zohar says that 'Hashem looked into the Torah and created the world', meaning that the world was created to provide a means for actualizing the Torah. Although these teachings deserve a lot of explanation, just taking them on the surface one can see that the Hebrew aleph-beis is elemental to creation, ontological if you will.
Once again, all the best.

Thank you for that. Sorry for not replying sooner - not been well, but fine now :-)

When the Zohar says Hashem looked into the Torah to create the world, I can see an interesting parallel to the coming of Moshiach. I read (sorry, I can't remember the source!) that when Moshiach comes and the other nations are judged, G-d will be there with a Sefer Torah to judge them. The commentaries ask why He would need a Sefer Torah at all. It goes on to say that it is not needed for Hashem, but for the nations to see that what they were doing was not for the benefit of the Jewish people and therefore the Torah, rather, it was for their own benefit.

Perhaps the same can be said of the Zohar at 'the' beginning? G-d didn't need to look into the Torah to create the world. He looked into it to demonstrate that it was for our benefit. For the benefit of the Jewish people and the Torah.

Thinking about this further, the Baal Haturim makes an interesting point on the word 'bereshis'. He splits it into 'beis' and 'reshis' - i.e. Two beginnings. He states that this refers to the beginning of the Torah and the beginning of the Jewish people. Perhaps this is how / why he viewed it that way?

Sorry - I've gone way off topic!

B"H

Adam,

My understanding of the Talmud, Shabbos 30a, is that the order of the Hebrew Alphabet has come down to us by way of an oral tradition. If you'd like, הלכה למשה מסיני.

When the "goy" asked Hillel to convert him on the condition that he be taught only the Written Law, but not the Oral Law, Hillel agreed and began by teaching him the Hebrew Alphabet - "aleph," "bet," "gimel," and so forth. The next day, Hillel reversed the order, and the would-be convert was devastated! He said: "But, yesterday, you taught me a different order!?"
Hillel replied: "Yes, but if you relied upon me then that what was taught you was the correct order, so too rely upon me now." (Implying that there are many teachings which, seemingly, have no source in the Written Law, but are only oral traditions passed down generation after generation. If you can accept a certain order for the alphabet, you can also accept the many other orally transmitted teachings!)

David

Beautiful proof! I always thought, though, that Hillel showed him say, a daled and said it was an aleph--not specifically because of the order.

David, I agree. It is a beautiful proof. I also recall reading in the Bahir a discussion of a correlation between the order of Creation and the order of Aleph-Beth.