The Authentic Gospel of Jesus

I have simply tried to put the record straight, and to reconstruct a genuine likeness of Yeshua, son of Joseph of the Galilean townlet of Nazareth.

This is the stated aim of Geza Vermes, ‘the greatest Jesus scholar of his generation’ (Sunday Telegraph), in his acclaimed reassessment of the fiery and brilliant Aramaic-speaking Jewish healer who changed the world.

Vermes’s approach is groundbreaking. He links many of the best-known Gospel parables, such as that of the prodigal son, to far older Hebrew traditions; he shows that in transition from oral Aramaic to written Greek, and through the spread of Jesus’ ministry from Palestine into the wider Graeco-Roman world, variations arose. There is compelling evidence to suggest that Jesus’ public ministry may have lasted as little as six months, from autumn to spring ad 30. By returning to the reality of Jesus, the preacher and healer, Vermes shows just why this brief ministry reset the course of history and of faith.

‘Wonderfully accessible ... This book will demand that Christians rethink their faith’

1. Sunday Times