The image of Greco-Roman culture in the Galilee of Jesus suggested by this investigation is a complex one. By Jesus' time, the region's encounter with Hellenism was over three centuries old. Despite occasional scholarly claims to the contrary, however, the penetration of Greek culture does not seem to have been especially deep, at least in respect to the spheres of culture we have considered. Greek inscriptions appeared on the region's Hellenistic-period coinage (all of it minted elsewhere), but otherwise inscriptions appear to have been uncommon. So, too, were examples of Hellenistic architecture and Hellenistic art. Other aspects of Hellenism may well have affected the lives of many Galileans – one thinks, for example, of the administrative changes that would have marked shifts of power – but describing those effects in detail remains a challenge.

Antipas's rise to the throne, which occurred at approximately the same time as Jesus' birth, brought with it significant changes. The rebuilding of Sepphoris and establishment of Tiberias allowed the client king to demonstrate his enthusiasm for the mingling of Greek, Roman, and local cultures that was taking place throughout the Levant. Both cities exhibited some of the characteristics of the typical Greco-Roman city. From early in the first century, for example, at least some of Sepphoris's streets were arranged on a grid. Evidence from the mid-century shows that the civic government of Tiberias was organized along Hellenistic lines, and presumably that of Sepphoris was structured similarly.