Keraia
2 Samuel 21

2 Samuel 21:20

Four Battles against the Philistines · 2 Samuel 21:15–22
Read 2 Samuel 21

Translations

Modern
And there was also a battle at Gath, where there was a man of great stature with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He too was descended from Rapha,
Traditional
And there was yet a battle in Gath, where was a man of great stature, that had on every hand six fingers, and on every foot six toes, four and twenty in number; and he also was born to the giant.
Literal
And there was war again at Gath, where there was a man of stature, and the fingers of his hands were six, and the toes of his feet six—twenty-four in number. And also he was born from Rapha.
Latin
Quartum bellum fuit in Geth: in quo vir fuit excelsus, qui senos in manibus pedibusque habebat digitos, id est, viginti quatuor: et erat de origine Arapha.

Original

Hebrew
English
And there was also a battle at Gath, where there was a man of great stature with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He too was descended from Rapha,

Notes

2 Samuel 21:15–22

The longer account of battles with the Philistines highlights important victories by David’s mighty warriors. A similar list of their deeds appears later in the chapter (see also 2 Samuel 23:8–39).

2 Samuel 21:1–24:25

The final chapters of 2 Samuel form a coda (a concluding section). This section brings together and summarizes the main themes from earlier chapters.

These chapters are thematic, not chronological (arranged by topic, not by time). Because of this, not all the events happened at the end of David’s reign (for example, 2 Samuel 22:1).

The material is arranged using a common Hebrew literary pattern called a chiasm (a mirror-like structure). In a chiasm, the first and last sections match, and the middle section is the focus.

The structure of this chiasm is as follows:

A chiasm draws attention to the center section. Here, the center is David’s hymns. These hymns do not focus on David himself. Instead, they focus on David’s God.

Theme notes and profiles

David The Philistines

Events

Parallels

1 Chronicles 20:4–8

People

Huge man: A huge man from Gath, killed by David's warriors Rapha: Ancestor of Philistine giants; his descendants fought against David's warriors

Places

Gath: Philistine city; home of Goliath; refuge for David

Glossary

Avenger of Blood Gath Giants Philistia, Philistines Rephaim Samuel, Books of First and Second Shammah

Topics

Armies: March in Ranks: Champions Fight Instead of Championship: Representatives of the Philistines Land David's Armies David: King of Israel: Defeats the Philistines Finger: Six on One Hand Giants, Rephaim: The: The Last of, Destroyed by David and his Warriors Goliath: His Sons Nephilim Rapha: An Ancestor of Certain Philistine Warriors, (Margins) The Feet: Parts of, Mentioned in Scripture: Toes The Hands: Parts of, Mentioned: The Fingers The Philistines: David: Often Defeated in the Course of his Reign The Philistines: Men of Great Strength and Stature Amongst Toe: Six, on Each Foot