How on Earth Did Jesus Become a God?

This monograph examines the rapid emergence of devotional practices centered on Jesus within early Jewish monotheistic communities, arguing that the worship of Jesus as divine represents an unprecedented and remarkably swift religious innovation. Hurtado investigates how Jewish followers of Jesus, committed to exclusive worship of one God, came to incorporate Jesus into their devotional life in ways that effectively treated him as divine within the first two decades after his death.

The work challenges conventional scholarly explanations that attribute high Christology to later Hellenistic influence or gradual legendary development. Instead, Hurtado demonstrates through analysis of early Christian texts, liturgical practices, and devotional patterns that Jesus-devotion emerged explosively within Jewish Christian circles in Palestine. He employs a methodology that prioritizes religious practice over theological speculation, examining how early Christians prayed to Jesus, sang hymns to him, baptized in his name, and included him in their understanding of God's unique identity.

Central to Hurtado's thesis is the concept of "binitarian worship" - the inclusion of Jesus alongside God the Father as recipient of devotion while maintaining monotheistic commitments. He argues this development cannot be explained through parallels with Jewish intermediary figures, emperor worship, or mystery religions. Rather, he proposes that powerful religious experiences, particularly visions and prophetic revelations, convinced early Jewish believers that God required them to honor Jesus in this extraordinary manner.

The monograph engages critically with previous scholarship, particularly challenging evolutionary models of Christological development and theories that minimize the Jewish context of early Christianity. Hurtado demonstrates that the highest Christological claims and corresponding devotional practices appear in the earliest recoverable sources, not as later accretions. His work significantly impacts debates about Christian origins, the relationship between early Christianity and Judaism, and the development of Trinitarian theology.

The study contributes to understanding how new religious movements emerge and transform within established traditions. By focusing on lived religious practice rather than abstract theology, Hurtado illuminates how monotheistic Jews could maintain their fundamental commitments while radically reconfiguring them to include Jesus in the divine identity. This work remains influential in New Testament studies, historical Jesus research, and comparative religion, offering a historically grounded account of one of the most significant religious innovations in Western history.