Giant living at the time of United Monarchy
Rapha was the ancestor of several Philistine giants who fought against David and his mighty warriors.
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Also known as giant · Rephaites
Rapha is mentioned in 2Samuel 21 and 1Chronicles 20 as the ancestor of several Philistine giants who fought against King David and his mighty warriors. The name "Rapha" is used to describe these giants as descendants of the Rephaim, a people known for their great stature and strength (Deu.2.11, 20-21). In 2Sa.21.16, Ishbi-benob, one of the descendants of Rapha, wielded a bronze spear and threatened to kill David, but Abishai came to David's aid and killed the giant. Another descendant of Rapha, Saph (also called Sippai in 1Ch.20.4), was killed by Sibbecai the Hushathite (2Sa.21.18). In 2Sa.21.20 and 1Ch.20.6, another descendant of Rapha is described as a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. This giant was killed by Jonathan, the son of Shimea, David's brother (2Sa.21.21; 1Ch.20.7). These battles against the descendants of Rapha are summarized in 2Sa.21.22 and 1Ch.20.8, emphasizing that they were defeated by David and his servants. The mention of Rapha and his descendants highlights the ongoing conflict between the Israelites and the Philistines, as well as the bravery and skill of David and his warriors in facing and defeating these formidable enemies. The victory over the giants also demonstrates God's faithfulness in fulfilling His promise to give the Israelites victory over their enemies and to establish David's kingdom.
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Tall. (1.) A Benjamite, the son of Binea (1 Chr. 8:2, 37), a descendant of Saul. (2.) Margin of 1 Chr. 20:4, 6, where “giant” is given in the text.
RA'PHA (tall). A descendant of Benjamin. 1 Chr 8:2. A descendant of Saul. 1 Chr 8:37.
RA'PHA (tall). A descendant of Benjamin. 1 Chr 8:2. A descendant of Saul. 1 Chr 8:37.
Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.
7 verses in 2 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H7497
Then Ishbi-benob, a descendant of Rapha, whose bronze spear weighed three hundred shekels and who was bearing a new sword, resolved to kill David.
Some time later at Gob, there was another battle with the Philistines. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Saph, one of the descendants of Rapha.
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,
So these four descendants of Rapha in Gath fell at the hands of David and his servants.
Some time later, war broke out with the Philistines at Gezer. At that time Sibbecai the Hushathite killed Sippai, a descendant of the Rephaim, and the Philistines were subdued.
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,
So these descendants of Rapha in Gath fell at the hands of David and his servants.
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.