Drawing together outstanding biblical exegesis and strong theological reflection, Anthony Thiselton's The Living Paul is clearly the result of a lifetime of study and reflection, yet its lucid prose and succinct arguments make it accessible as an introductory text.

Thiselton begins by dispelling myths about Paul's relationship to Jesus (chapter 1) and Paul's apocalyptic understanding of new creation (chapter 2). He argues respectively that Paul did not found a religion inconsistent with the message of Jesus as recorded in the gospels, and that the dividing line in Paul's thought is not autobiographical but an apocalyptic expectation of the changing of the ages. Dispelling myths about Pauline studies is a recurring emphasis.

After a brief historical reconstruction of Paul's life drawn both from Paul's epistles and from Acts (chapters 3–4), the heart of the book is an exploration of theological themes in Paul (chapters 5–16). The themes which Thiselton explores are drawn from early Christian creeds and the life of the church: e.g. God and the Trinity (chapter 6); the Holy Spirit (chapter 7); anthropology (chapter 8); sin (chapter 9); justification (chapter11); the church (chapter 12); the ministry of the word (chapter 13); Baptism and the Lord's Supper (chapter 14); ethics (chapter 15); and eschatology (chapter 16). The central theological concept for Paul, according to Thiselton, is that of being ‘in Christ’ (chapter 10). Paul's christology not only receives the first theological treatment (chapter 5), but also becomes the lens through which Thiselton evaluates Paul's other theological commitments.

In each of these chapters, Thiselton demonstrates careful exegesis of specific biblical texts. In addition, he engages numerous theologians – from the patristic era through to the twenty-first century (e.g. Athanasius, Basil, Luther, Calvin, Barth, McGrath, Moltmann, Pannenberg). In the final chapter of the book, Thiselton explores how Paul's theology might be evaluated in light of positions taken by various postmodern philosophers (e.g. Foucault, Derrida) (chapter 17).

As an introduction, The Living Paul is a well-written text, not cluttered with excessive notes or technical vocabulary; furthermore, Thiselton avoids getting into squabbles with other scholars over minutiae in Pauline interpretation. Thus, the book remains, above all, readable.

However, two warning labels should be attached to this book. First, Thiselton includes Acts, Ephesians, Colossians and the Pastoral Epistles in both his reconstruction of Paul's life and in some of his discussions of developments in Pauline theology. The decision to include material from these books stands in contrast to the practices of most modern Pauline scholars, who emphasise first hearing Paul on his own terms. Nevertheless, for the purpose of an introduction, the inclusion of such a broad spectrum of material has produced a more comprehensive and ultimately, for me, convincing portrait of the apostle and his thought.

Second, Thiselton at times portrays Paul more positively than Paul's writings portray him. For example, after briefly acknowledging the horrors of slavery in antiquity, Thiselton insists that slavery to the right master ‘could be attractive’. Furthermore, he claims, ‘Paul sees Christ as the most generous, loving, and kind of all masters, or lords’ (p. 39). Thus, Paul's statements about slaves and slavery should be understood only positively. Similarly, Thiselton wants to dispel the myth that Paul was a woman-hater. Instead, he declares that Paul ‘breaks new ground beyond anything written by men in the world of Paul's day when he suggests that sexual intimacy may give pleasure to . . . women’ (7:3–5) (p. 9, italics mine; cf. pp. 73, 131). Nevertheless, with the acknowledgement of these two caveats, Thiselton has succeeded in creating an introduction to Paul which is comprehensive and yet accessible – a feat not all scholars would attribute to the apostle himself.