New Book Explains Why Orthodox Jews Reject Jesus’s Deity and How Christians Should Respond
For Immediate Release (San Diego, CA) — As antisemitism surges across the U.S. and worldwide in the wake of the October 7 attacks, a new book by a missionary-scholar brings urgent clarity to one of the oldest debates between Christianity and Judaism: Is Jesus truly God in the flesh?
In “The Scandal of a Divine Messiah,” author and missionary Dr. Brian Crawford draws from years of ministry in Brooklyn’s Orthodox Jewish community as well as comprehensive theological research to tackle the common objections Jewish people raise about Jesus. The book confronts what the author calls “the scandal” of the Incarnation — God becoming man — an idea most people in Orthodox Judaism reject as blasphemous.
“On the streets of Brooklyn, I had frequent conversations with Orthodox Jewish neighbors who challenged my faith in Jesus with sophisticated arguments,” says Crawford. “Those early experiences propelled me to find a solution, and without intending to, I found profound answers to my questions while studying the Incarnation of Christ. This book seeks to depict how Orthodox Jewish theology came to be, how it diverged from Scripture and science, and why the Incarnation if the best solution to the unanswered questions in the Hebrew Scriptures. Many Jewish people see Christianity as a foreign religion that is against Jewish people and against traditional Jewish theology. My book addresses those fears by grounding the Trinity and Incarnation within Judaism, and by fairly handling Orthodox Jewish detractors with the respect they deserve.”
With antisemitism reemerging in public discourse, conspiracy theories spreading online, and Christian communities divided over Israel’s role in God’s plan, “The Scandal of a Divine Messiah” offers a theologically rigorous and culturally relevant resource. The book reminds Christians of the Apostle Paul’s words that the gospel is “to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile” (Romans 1:16), equipping believers to share their faith with Jewish friends while avoiding stereotypes and showing genuine respect.
“Since the attacks of October 7, Israel has been caught in a no-win scenario that was cunningly designed by Hamas to inflict maximum damage on the Jewish people’s reputation,” says Crawford. “Inside Christian churches, there has been a resurgence of reading Old Testament promises to the Jewish people allegorically, assigning their fulfillment to the Christian church, rather than to the Jewish people. This has led many Christians to treat Jews as just one people group among many, not special in any religious sense, rather than a unique covenant people who remain elect and beloved by God despite their unbelief in Jesus. When the Jewish people’s positive status in the eyes of God is devalued among Christians, even believers can fall into the antisemitic spirit of the post-October-7 age.”
Originally developed as Crawford’s doctoral project at Talbot School of Theology where he earned his Doctor of Ministry in apologetics degree, “The Scandal of a Divine Messiah” expanded to over 900 footnotes and a 30-page bibliography spanning Jewish, Christian, and Greco-Roman sources. Crawford says the book is meant to be a resource that “fills in the gap” and places the Incarnation in direct conversation with the two most influential currents of medieval Judaism — the rationalism of Maimonides and the mysticism of Kabbalah — both of which still shape Jewish theology today.
Crawford says this book is written for Christians who struggle to explain Jesus’s deity to Jewish friends, Messianic believers seeking answers to Orthodox objections, as well as pastors, apologists, and seminary students engaging in Jewish-Christian dialogue. He says anyone disturbed by the current rise in antisemitism and seeking a biblical framework would also benefit from the book’s content.
“Many Christians assume they understand Judaism simply by studying the Old and New Testaments,” Crawford explains. “But Judaism underwent major transformations in the Middle Ages. Without an understanding of those teachings, Christians will continue to misconstrue why Jewish people reject the deity of Christ. I pray this book builds a bridge between Jews and Christians at a time when clarity is desperately needed.”
In “The Scandal of a Divine Messiah,” author and missionary Dr. Brian Crawford draws from years of ministry in Brooklyn’s Orthodox Jewish community as well as comprehensive theological research to tackle the common objections Jewish people raise about Jesus. The book confronts what the author calls “the scandal” of the Incarnation — God becoming man — an idea most people in Orthodox Judaism reject as blasphemous.
“On the streets of Brooklyn, I had frequent conversations with Orthodox Jewish neighbors who challenged my faith in Jesus with sophisticated arguments,” says Crawford. “Those early experiences propelled me to find a solution, and without intending to, I found profound answers to my questions while studying the Incarnation of Christ. This book seeks to depict how Orthodox Jewish theology came to be, how it diverged from Scripture and science, and why the Incarnation if the best solution to the unanswered questions in the Hebrew Scriptures. Many Jewish people see Christianity as a foreign religion that is against Jewish people and against traditional Jewish theology. My book addresses those fears by grounding the Trinity and Incarnation within Judaism, and by fairly handling Orthodox Jewish detractors with the respect they deserve.”
With antisemitism reemerging in public discourse, conspiracy theories spreading online, and Christian communities divided over Israel’s role in God’s plan, “The Scandal of a Divine Messiah” offers a theologically rigorous and culturally relevant resource. The book reminds Christians of the Apostle Paul’s words that the gospel is “to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile” (Romans 1:16), equipping believers to share their faith with Jewish friends while avoiding stereotypes and showing genuine respect.
“Since the attacks of October 7, Israel has been caught in a no-win scenario that was cunningly designed by Hamas to inflict maximum damage on the Jewish people’s reputation,” says Crawford. “Inside Christian churches, there has been a resurgence of reading Old Testament promises to the Jewish people allegorically, assigning their fulfillment to the Christian church, rather than to the Jewish people. This has led many Christians to treat Jews as just one people group among many, not special in any religious sense, rather than a unique covenant people who remain elect and beloved by God despite their unbelief in Jesus. When the Jewish people’s positive status in the eyes of God is devalued among Christians, even believers can fall into the antisemitic spirit of the post-October-7 age.”
Originally developed as Crawford’s doctoral project at Talbot School of Theology where he earned his Doctor of Ministry in apologetics degree, “The Scandal of a Divine Messiah” expanded to over 900 footnotes and a 30-page bibliography spanning Jewish, Christian, and Greco-Roman sources. Crawford says the book is meant to be a resource that “fills in the gap” and places the Incarnation in direct conversation with the two most influential currents of medieval Judaism — the rationalism of Maimonides and the mysticism of Kabbalah — both of which still shape Jewish theology today.
Crawford says this book is written for Christians who struggle to explain Jesus’s deity to Jewish friends, Messianic believers seeking answers to Orthodox objections, as well as pastors, apologists, and seminary students engaging in Jewish-Christian dialogue. He says anyone disturbed by the current rise in antisemitism and seeking a biblical framework would also benefit from the book’s content.
“Many Christians assume they understand Judaism simply by studying the Old and New Testaments,” Crawford explains. “But Judaism underwent major transformations in the Middle Ages. Without an understanding of those teachings, Christians will continue to misconstrue why Jewish people reject the deity of Christ. I pray this book builds a bridge between Jews and Christians at a time when clarity is desperately needed.”
About Dr. Brian Crawford:
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Dr. Brian Crawford is the Director of Digital Evangelism for Chosen People Ministries. He directs the evangelistic website AboutMessiah.com and the Messianic apologetics website ChosenPeopleAnswers.com. He received his Master of Divinity from the Charles L. Feinberg Center for Messianic Jewish Studies, and his Doctor of Ministry in apologetics from Talbot School of Theology. Brian has been married to his college sweetheart, Liz, since 2007, and they have three young children. The Crawfords spent nine years ministering in Brooklyn, New York, but now they reside in Southern California. For more information visit https://brianjcrawford.com.
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