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. – 2 Samuel 21:20

Today's Scripture Reading (November 12, 2025): 2 Samuel 21

Antonio Alfonseca was a professional relief pitcher who was born in the Dominican Republic. The Montreal Expos originally signed Alfonseca. (The Expos were the first Major League Baseball team to be located outside of the United States, and I have to admit that, back in the day, I was a card-carrying member of the Montreal Expos fan club.) He didn't play for my Expos, but he did play for several teams in MLB and was part of the Florida Marlins team that won the World Series in 1997. He also won the National League Rolaids Relief Man Award and was the National League saves leader during the 2000 season, also with the Marlins.

Alfonseca also had a few interesting nicknames. He was known as "The Dragonslayer," "El Pulpo" (The Octopus), and "Six-Fingers." The last two nicknames were likely because Alfonseca had a condition known as polydactyly; he had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. It was a condition that his grandfather also had, and Alfonseca regarded his extra fingers and toes as a badge of honor and a family trait.

Polydactyly is not an unknown condition; approximately 4 to 12 babies out of every 10,000 births are born with the condition. The extra fingers can cause pain, often negatively affect a person's self-esteem, and might make a person seem clumsy. Today, most children with polydactyly have the extra digits removed soon after birth. But some, like Antonio Alfonseca, keep the extra fingers and toes and are proud of this feature that makes them different from most other people.

The author of 2 Samuel tells us of a giant Philistine warrior from Gath who had twelve fingers and twelve toes. The author of Samuel may have never met anyone with polydactyly. It also seems probable that the author linked the extra digits of this warrior to his size, believing that he was so big he needed them. I have no idea whether the additional digits helped or hindered this Philistine giant. But it seems evident that the extra fingers and toes were a significant propaganda element for the Philistines.

However, the extra fingers and toes did not cause David and his mighty men to second-guess their mission. It didn't matter how big or strong the enemy was, or how many fingers and toes they had; David was confident that his mission had been given to him by God. God would not leave him alone, so the King was unimpressed by the extra fingers and toes of a Philistine giant.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 22