Concerning Shakespeare's Macbeth, Act 4.2 is not a long scene at all. It shows Lady Macduff and her son being killed. It's vital because it makes Macbeth's order to kill Macduff's family visible. It concretely shows the murders occurring. It's also important for other reasons, but I think you probably meant to say Act 4.3, so I'm going to move on to that.
Act 4.3 shows Malcolm testing Macduff to see if he's loyal to Scotland or to Macbeth. It's long because the tests Malcolm uses are intricate and complicated and thorough. Malcolm pretends to be lustful, greedy, and an all-around terrible human being. He waits to see whether or not Macduff will keep saying "Oh, it's all right, you can still be king" (I'm paraphrasing), or if he will turn away in disgust. If Macduff turns away in disgust then Malcolm will know he has Scotland's best interests at heart, and is not just playing along in order to betray him to Macbeth. That's what happens, of course.
Also, this scene includes Macduff finding out that his family has been killed.
This scene furthers the plot (Malcolm and Macduff join forces to lead an army against Macbeth), and reinforces themes (fair is foul and foul is fair--Malcolm suspects Macduff is foul, but he is really fair; and role reversal--Macduff must mourn before he seeks revenge, which is typically something more expected of a female).
By the way, the scene also pictures the English King Edward, so devout that he heals people. His character is a stark contrast to Macbeth's.
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