The central thesis of Davies' book is that the apostle Paul, rather than Jesus, was the true architect of Christian theology and institutional Christianity. 

Davies argues that Jesus himself was a Jewish teacher who sought the internal renewal and reform of Judaism. Following Jesus' crucifixion, it was Paul who transformed this regional, Jewish apocalyptic movement into a global religion. He did this by synthesizing Jesus' moral teachings with Hellenistic (Greek) mysticism, pagan mystery religions, and Roman concepts of salvation.