I enjoy the “A Very Short Introduction” series of books. Of course the authors are limited in what they can write in these short books. The book on Paul is written by E.P. Sanders.
Sanders is an influential New Testament scholar. He was one of the pioneers of what is known as the New Perspective on Paul.
This is a good representation of one interpretation of Paul. It is not one that I fully accept.
The things that I disagree with are his rejection of the “disputed” letters of Paul. I do believe that these other letters are Pauline.
In addition, I disagree with Sanders’ evaluation of the historical value of Acts. I don’t believe that Paul’s letters and Acts are near as contradictory as Sanders’ suggests.
If you are going to read this book on Paul by Sanders, then also read a different view, perhaps by someone like N.T. Wright.
