Biblical Narrative

Biblical narrative structure

In terms of structure, the Bible is divided into two halves, the Old Testament and the New Testament.

The Old Testament came first, detailing how the world came to be and the central beliefs of Christianity.

• The Ten Commandments are included here.
• Many of the stories in the Old Testament were presented as historical narratives, telling stories of how key events in the founding of Christianity happened.
• Characters in these texts are typically named and recognisable figures.

Next came the New Testament.

• This was written after the death of Jesus Christ and consists of his teachings.
• The New Testament is divided into the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
• While present in both testaments, the New Testament became particularly known for containing a genre of stories known as parables.
• Parables have representative characters whose main purpose is to communicate a moral.
• It's important to note that the New Testament also contains historical narratives in telling the life story of Jesus Christ.

Biblical narratives tended to follow a simple plot structure. They had a basic beginning, middle, and end which usually communicated a moral lesson and showcased humanity's faults. Many biblical narratives involved a human protagonist learning from their mistakes and being shown forgiveness by God. The idea of redemption is central in biblical tales. The literary device of repetition was also commonly used in these narratives to emphasise the particular belief being illustrated.

Character in biblical narrative

While all biblical narratives are different, there are certain commonly occurring character archetypes we can identify. These frequently aid in communicating a given moral teaching. Biblical narratives served a purpose and, therefore, the narrator did not shy away from passing judgement on characters and making clear if they were fundamentally good or bad.

Setting in biblical narrative

In any narrative, the setting is key to helping us contextualise. Depending on the biblical narrative, the type of setting and its relative importance varies.

In historical narratives, the setting tends to be real, historical, and tangible. In the Old Testament, many of these narratives tell the history of the Hebrew people and their journey. In the New Testament, many of these stories focused on telling the story of Jesus Christ. These narratives were mostly based on what would now be modern-day Israel and Palestine. The locations are recognisable and would have been easily found on a map at the time of writing.

This helped to ground these stories and emphasise the writer's belief that they are factual. Settings such as these also gave key cultural context to stories.

Fig. 1 - A map of Palestine, where many biblical narratives are set.

In the case of parables, the setting took a backseat to the meaning of the narrative. While settings in parables were regularly real and important, they were not always as central as in historical narratives. Parables focused on getting across a moral instead.

Biblical narrative example

As we covered above, there are both narratives directly from the Bible and also genre fiction substantially inspired by the Bible. Below are examples of these biblical narratives inspired by the Bible.

Biblical narrative: 'The Parable of the Prodigal Son'

'The Parable of the Prodigal Son' is found in the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament and is told by Jesus Christ. It tells the story of a father with two sons, one who loyally stays with his father and another who asks for his inheritance so he can go off on his own. However, he wastes his fortune drinking and gambling and is left penniless.

The son returns, begging for his father's forgiveness, and is welcomed with open arms. His father throws a party in his son's honour to celebrate his return. The son who remained with his father is infuriated by this, not understanding why his brother is appreciated while he has not been, despite his loyalty.

The intention behind this parable is to teach the virtues of redemption and forgiveness, essential to Christianity. As with many parables, the setting is not key here, nor are recognisable characters. The focus is on communicating a particular moral and teaching readers a lesson.

Biblical narrative: A Christmas Carol (1843)

A Christmas Carol by the novelist Charles Dickens is an iconic Christmas tale. It follows the miserly character, Ebenezer Scrooge, who hates Christmas and is cruel to all he encounters. Before Christmas, he is visited by three spirits, who show him his past, present, and future. He is made sharply aware of how selfish, greedy, and money-hungry he has become. By the end of A Christmas Carol, Scrooge has changed into a benevolent character, fully appreciating Christmas and using his riches for good.

Dickens's novel has multiple biblical allusions and references. The story of Scrooge's journey towards goodness is a tale of redemption, just like in 'The Prodigal Son'. This establishes A Christmas Carol as a Christian story. The values that Scrooge learns in the process of his redemption can be seen as traditional Christian values. For example, doing charitable work, treating those around you kindly, and using what you have for good.

Fig. 2 - An artist's impression of Charles Dickens.