What are some examples of juxtaposition from the Bible?

Answer 1

A:Old Testament

There are numerous forms of juxtaposition in The Bible, but one important class of this is demonstrated in the Old Testament by the story of the spies sent by Moses into the Promised Land. The Book of Numbers actually has two versions of the same story, by two different authors, blended together so that superficially they seem the same story. It may be that the Redactor felt obliged to keep both stories intact, so he skilfully juxtaposed the two almost seamlessly. The result is there are two different reports about the land of Canaan and two different responses to those reports:

• The Yahwist Source was only interested in providing an account of the conquest of the future kingdom of Judah, and (Numbers 13:22-25) the spies travelled only as far north as Hebron in Judah. The spies returned and issued their report to Moses alone, stating that the land was 'flowing with milk and honey', but that the inhabitants were giants and and their cities fortified. Caleb alone tried to encourage the Israelites to proceed with the conquest; the spies countered Caleb's claim, stating that the land was unconquerable. (13:30-31,33). The people refused to enter Canaan and plotted to elect a new captain to lead them back to Egypt (14:1b, 4).
• The Priestly Source, writing during the Babylonian Exile, wanted to further Judah's interest in reclaiming the former kingdom of Israel and always included Israel in his stories. In his story, the spies toured the entire Promised Land, 'from the Wilderness of Zin to the entrance to Hamath' (Numbers 13:21). The spies returned and displayed the land's fruit and issued their report to Moses and Aaron, and to all the congregation. Their report stated that Canaan was not only unconquerable, but a 'land that devours its inhabitants' (13:32-33). The Israelites refused to enter Canaan (14:1a, 2-3). Joshua is closely identified with the traditions of the northern kingdom and, in the Priestly account, plays a much bigger part in the response. Caleb and Joshua both tried to encourage the Israelites to proceed with the conquest, but the Israelites responded by calling for them to be stoned.

A similar example of juxtaposition is in the story of Noah's Ark, which once again consists of two different versions blended so skilfully that they seem to the casual reader to be just one story, yet each can be read as a complete text in its own right.

New Testament

Some of the most sophisticated examples of juxtaposition ever written are a literary device used repeatedly in Mark's Gospel and now known as Markan intercalations.

Markan intercalations have two elements:

1. Literary presentation: Event A begins (A1), then Event B begins and finishes (B). Finally, Event A finishes (A2).
2. Theological meaning: the purpose of the intercalation is not mere literary show; it presumes that those two events - the 'framing event' and the 'insert event' - are mutually interactive, that they interpret one another to emphasise Mark's theological intention.

It is this combination of literary structure and theological import that makes those intercalations peculiarly if not uniquely Markan.

In Mark 5:21-24 (A1), Jesus passed over to the other side, where Jairus begged Jesus to save his daughter's life. At 5:25-34 (B), there is a passage about the woman with an issue of blood, whom Jesus healed, saying her faith had made her whole. At 5:35-43 (A2) a servant came to tell Jairus that his daughter was dead, but Jesus told him not to be afraid, only believe. The went to the home of Jairus and Jesus took hold of the girl's hand and commanded her to rise up. Both stories are about the power of faith, with each story enhancing the impact of the other.

The authors of Matthew and Luke tended to ignore Mark's intercalations and only copied them when it was convenient, probably considering it a rather strange phenomenon. The intercalation of Peter's denials and Jesus' confession in Mark 14:53-72 finds its way into John's Gospel at 18:13-27, although Luke had removed it. This is evidence that in this instance, the author of John took the passage direct from Markrather than from Luke.