. Matt. 16:17-19), isled to anticipate what actually only happens at the end of the Gospel, namely, Jesus'designation of Peter to be vicar-shepherd in charge of His flock (21:15-19)..Page 12 IntroductionA classic example of foreshadowing occurs in 11:4. Jesus responds to Marthaand Mary's message about Lazarus' illness by declaring, "This sickness is not untodeath, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified by it." Lazarus'illness is not unto death because Jesus will raise him. And because Jesus raises him,the Jewish leaders will plot and bring about Jesus' own death. Thus, Lazarus' illnessis "for the glory of God," because it leads to Jesus' death-glorification on the cross.Simpler foreshadowings are found in 11:50; 12:33; 13:36; 16:32; 21:18.8. InclusionKnown among classical scholars as "ring composition," inclusion is a narrator'stechnique in which was is said at the beginning of a piece is repeated at the end. Therepetition forces the reader's attention back to the beginning and thus serves as aframe for the piece as a whole. John frames his whole Gospel by repeating in chapter21 words and names used in 1:19-51 (note the return in chapter 21 of the namesSimon son of John, Nathanael, the two unnamed disciples, the words "follow me,"and the commissioning of Peter as vicar-shepherd of the sheep, a commissioningalready implicit in the change of Simon's name to Peter in 1:42).In addition to framing the Gospel as a whole, John frames each individualsequence of his Gospel. Two examples will suffice: 2:1-12 (note how verses 11-12repeat names and places in verses 1-2); 20:1-18 (note how the sequence begins andends with the full name of Mary Magdalene). Recognition of inclusions is importantfor the interpreter. More than anything else, inclusions clearly indicate beginningsand endings and thus help the exegete to divide the Gospel into distinct parts,sequences, and sections. In modern terms, inclusions divide the written Go...
