A slow rumbling, that has been building up among New Testament scholars for the past twenty years, is only now beginning to make its effects felt on a more general public. A new Paul is beginning to emerge, one who differs from the Paul of Augustine and Luther, who is no friend to the traditional orthodoxy that has co-opted him for almost two thousand years.

To help us see Paul in this new way, Scott arrives at three conclusions argued step-by-step throughout the book: Paul was called; His concern was with the nations; Paul addresses particular situations, not a universal human condition.

The new Paul threatened Roman authorities with anti-imperial rhetoric, much of which is still operative today. Thus, the new Paul may prove an even more radical challenge to church and society than did the historical Jesus.