The present volume gathers up studies by Peter J. Tomson, written over thirty-odd years, that deal with ancient Jewish law and identity, the teachings of Jesus, the letters of Paul, and the historiography of early Jews and Christians. Notable subject areas are Jewish purity laws, divorce law, and the use of the name 'Jews'. The author also examines Jesus' teachings as understood in their primary and secondary contexts, the various situations Paul's highly differentiated rhetoric may have addressed, and the causes contributing to the growing tension between Jews and Christians and the so-called parting of the ways.

Born 1948; Professor emeritus of New Testament, Jewish Studies and Patristics at the Faculty of Protestant Theology, Brussels; General Editor of Compendia Rerum Iudaicarum ad Novum Testamentum; Guest Professor of Biblical Studies, University of Leuven.