The Resurrection of the Son of God

This monograph represents N. T. Wright's comprehensive historical investigation into early Christian resurrection belief and its implications for understanding the origins of Christianity. As the third volume in his Christian Origins and the Question of God series, the work employs rigorous historical-critical methodology to examine the resurrection narratives and their theological significance within first-century Jewish and Greco-Roman contexts.

Wright advances a central thesis that challenges both skeptical historical scholarship and traditional apologetics. He argues that the bodily resurrection of Jesus provides the most plausible historical explanation for the emergence of early Christianity and its distinctive beliefs. Against scholars who propose that resurrection language emerged gradually through mythological development or spiritual experiences, Wright contends that the specific character of early Christian resurrection belief—emphasizing both continuity and transformation of the physical body—represents a dramatic mutation within Second Temple Jewish thought that requires a historical catalyst.

The work engages extensively with the prophecy argument tradition by demonstrating how early Christians reinterpreted Jewish scriptural expectations in light of resurrection claims. Wright shows how resurrection belief transformed messianic prophecies and expectations about divine vindication, arguing that this hermeneutical revolution points to an actual historical event rather than mere theological creativity. He positions his argument against both naturalistic historians who dismiss resurrection claims as legendary accretions and fundamentalist approaches that bypass historical questions.

Wright's methodology combines detailed exegesis of New Testament texts with analysis of contemporary Jewish and pagan sources regarding afterlife beliefs. He examines how resurrection functioned as both historical claim and theological interpretation, insisting these dimensions cannot be separated without distorting the evidence. The work particularly challenges the false dichotomy between "historical facts" and "theological meanings" that characterizes much modern biblical scholarship.

The monograph's significance for the God debate lies in its sophisticated defense of a foundational Christian truth claim through historical argumentation. Wright demonstrates that taking the resurrection seriously as a historical proposition has profound implications for theistic belief, as it suggests divine action within history. His work revitalizes the prophecy argument by showing how resurrection belief fulfilled yet transformed Jewish eschatological expectations in ways that support rather than undermine historical credibility. This contribution has influenced subsequent discussions about miracles, historical method, and the relationship between faith and historical investigation.