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.
This verse is part of a series of war accounts near the end of 2 Samuel, recording Israel's battles against the Philistines — a powerful nation that was a persistent enemy of God's people. "Rapha" refers to the Rephaim, an ancient people described throughout the Old Testament as extraordinarily large in stature, sometimes called giants. This particular warrior was remarkable even among them: six fingers on each hand, six toes on each foot. The account is matter-of-fact — no dramatic commentary, just the record. Israel kept fighting these battles under David's leadership, and this extraordinary enemy was ultimately defeated. The passage reminds us that the road to the promised life isn't free of genuinely formidable opposition.
Lord, some of what I'm facing feels genuinely too big, too strange, too much. But your people kept showing up — battle after battle. Give me the courage to take one more step into "still another" hard moment, trusting that you are already there. Amen.
Some enemies don't look like anything you trained for. Most of us imagine our obstacles as ordinary-sized — a difficult conversation, a tight budget, a stubborn habit. But occasionally you turn a corner and what you're facing is genuinely strange, outsized, something you couldn't have predicted. The Bible doesn't blink at this. It just records it. "In still another battle" — not the first, not the last. Israel's warriors kept showing up. What's striking isn't the six fingers. It's the phrase "still another battle." These fights kept coming. And so did David's men. You don't have to pretend your opponent isn't formidable. You don't have to shrink what you're facing to make your faith sound cleaner. What you do have to do is show up. Still another day. Still another round. The story of God's people is full of "still another" moments — and they kept walking through them.
What does the phrase "still another battle" suggest about the nature of the struggles God's people face — and what does that tell you about what faithfulness actually looks like over time?
Where in your life are you facing something that feels genuinely outsized or strange — something you weren't prepared for and don't quite have a playbook for?
The Bible records this enemy's unusual traits matter-of-factly, without dramatizing them. Why might that restraint matter? What does it suggest about how we should face extraordinary obstacles?
How does it affect the people around you — your family, your community — when you either keep showing up to hard battles or quietly walk away from them?
What is one "still another battle" in your life right now that you've been tempted to avoid — and what would it look like to show up for it this week?
And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
Numbers 13:33
And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
Numbers 13:32
And Ishbibenob, which was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David.
2 Samuel 21:16
There was war at Gath again, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; he also was a descendant of the giants.
AMP
And there was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number, and he also was descended from the giants.
ESV
There was war at Gath again, where there was a man of [great] stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also had been born to the giant.
NASB
In still another battle, which took place at Gath, there was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He also was descended from Rapha.
NIV
Yet again there was war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also was born to the giant.
NKJV
In another battle with the Philistines at Gath, they encountered a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in all, who was also a descendant of the giants.
NLT
Still another fight broke out in Gath. There was a giant there with six fingers on his hands and six toes on his feet—twenty-four fingers and toes! He was another of those descended from Rapha.
MSG