diff --git a/features/command_line/parallel_test.feature b/features/command_line/parallel_test.feature
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e3e620ccec
--- /dev/null
+++ b/features/command_line/parallel_test.feature
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+Feature: `--parallel-test` option
+
+  Use the `--parallel-test` option to have RSpec run using multiple threads in parallel
+
+  Scenario: Using `--parallel-test 3`
+    Given a file named "spec/parallel_test_spec.rb" with:
+      """ruby
+      RSpec.configure do |c|
+        c.before(:suite) { puts "before suite" }
+        c.after(:suite)  { puts "after suite"  }
+      end
+
+      RSpec.describe "parallel run" do
+        before(:context) { puts "before context" }
+        before(:example) { puts "before example" }
+
+        it "thread 0 example" do
+          expect(true).to be(false)
+        end
+
+        it "thread 1 example" do
+          expect(true).to be(true)
+        end
+
+        it "thread 2 example" do
+          expect(true).to be(true)
+        end
+
+        after(:example) { puts "after example" }
+        after(:context) { puts "after context" }
+      end
+      """
+    When I run `rspec --parallel-test 3`
+    Then the output should contain "3 examples, 1 failure"
+     And the output should contain "before suite"
+     And the output should contain "after suite"
+     And the output should contain "before context"
+     And the output should contain "after context"
+     And the output should contain "before example"
+     And the output should contain "after example"
diff --git a/lib/rspec/core.rb b/lib/rspec/core.rb
index 1c5bc7b2f4..67117dfa2c 100644
--- a/lib/rspec/core.rb
+++ b/lib/rspec/core.rb
@@ -28,6 +28,8 @@
   configuration
   option_parser
   configuration_options
+  example_thread_runner
+  example_group_thread_runner
   runner
   example
   shared_example_group
diff --git a/lib/rspec/core/configuration.rb b/lib/rspec/core/configuration.rb
index 69d82fe97f..3057cf0493 100644
--- a/lib/rspec/core/configuration.rb
+++ b/lib/rspec/core/configuration.rb
@@ -267,7 +267,7 @@ def treat_symbols_as_metadata_keys_with_true_values=(value)
       # @private
       add_setting :expecting_with_rspec
       # @private
-      attr_accessor :filter_manager
+      attr_accessor :filter_manager, :thread_maximum
       # @private
       attr_reader :backtrace_formatter, :ordering_manager
 
@@ -302,6 +302,7 @@ def initialize
         @requires = []
         @libs = []
         @derived_metadata_blocks = []
+        @thread_maximum = 1
       end
 
       # @private
diff --git a/lib/rspec/core/configuration_options.rb b/lib/rspec/core/configuration_options.rb
index 6ebad0fd36..503a4b6932 100644
--- a/lib/rspec/core/configuration_options.rb
+++ b/lib/rspec/core/configuration_options.rb
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ def organize_options
 
       UNFORCED_OPTIONS = [
         :requires, :profile, :drb, :libs, :files_or_directories_to_run,
-        :full_description, :full_backtrace, :tty
+        :full_description, :full_backtrace, :tty, :thread_maximum
       ].to_set
 
       UNPROCESSABLE_OPTIONS = [:formatters].to_set
diff --git a/lib/rspec/core/example_group.rb b/lib/rspec/core/example_group.rb
index 46e6278dfd..135b1de95c 100644
--- a/lib/rspec/core/example_group.rb
+++ b/lib/rspec/core/example_group.rb
@@ -469,6 +469,34 @@ def self.run(reporter)
         end
       end
 
+      # Runs all the examples in this group
+      def self.run_parallel(reporter, num_threads, mutex, used_threads)
+        if RSpec.world.wants_to_quit
+          RSpec.world.clear_remaining_example_groups if top_level?
+          return
+        end
+        reporter.example_group_started(self)
+
+        begin
+          run_before_context_hooks(new)
+          example_threads = RSpec::Core::ExampleThreadRunner.new(num_threads, used_threads)
+          run_examples_parallel(reporter, example_threads, mutex)
+          ordering_strategy.order(children).map { |child| child.run_parallel(reporter, num_threads, mutex, used_threads) }
+          # ensure all examples in the group are done before running 'after :all'
+          # this does NOT prevent utilization of other available threads
+          example_threads.wait_for_completion
+        rescue Pending::SkipDeclaredInExample => ex
+          for_filtered_examples(reporter) { |example| example.skip_with_exception(reporter, ex) }
+        rescue Exception => ex
+          RSpec.world.wants_to_quit = true if fail_fast?
+          for_filtered_examples(reporter) { |example| example.fail_with_exception(reporter, ex) }
+        ensure
+          run_after_context_hooks(new)
+          before_context_ivars.clear
+          reporter.example_group_finished(self)
+        end
+      end
+
       # @private
       def self.ordering_strategy
         order = metadata.fetch(:order, :global)
@@ -497,6 +525,18 @@ def self.run_examples(reporter)
         end.all?
       end
 
+      # @private
+      def self.run_examples_parallel(reporter, threads, mutex)
+        ordering_strategy.order(filtered_examples).map do |example|
+          next if RSpec.world.wants_to_quit
+          instance = new
+          set_ivars(instance, before_context_ivars)
+          mutex.synchronize do
+            threads.run(example, instance, reporter)
+          end
+        end
+      end
+
       # @private
       def self.for_filtered_examples(reporter, &block)
         filtered_examples.each(&block)
diff --git a/lib/rspec/core/example_group_thread_runner.rb b/lib/rspec/core/example_group_thread_runner.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..2ee8240f94
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/rspec/core/example_group_thread_runner.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+module RSpec
+  module Core
+    # ExampleGroupThreadRunner is a class used to execute [ExampleGroup] 
+    # classes in parallel as part of rspec-core.  When running in parallel 
+    # the order of example groups will not be honoured.  
+    # This class is used to ensure that we have a way of keeping track of
+    # the number of threads being created and preventing utilization of
+    # more than the specified number
+    # Additionally, this class will contain a mutex used to prevent access
+    # to shared variables within sub-threads
+    class ExampleGroupThreadRunner
+      attr_accessor :thread_array, :max_threads, :mutex, :used_threads
+
+      # Creates a new instance of ExampleGroupThreadRunner.
+      # @param max_threads [Integer] the maximum limit of threads that can be used
+      # @param mutex [Mutex] a semaphore used to prevent access to shared variables in
+      # sub-threads such as those used by [ExampleThreadRunner]
+      # @param used_threads [Integer] the current number of threads being used
+      def initialize(max_threads = 1, mutex = Mutex.new, used_threads = 0)
+        @max_threads = max_threads
+        @mutex = mutex
+        @used_threads = used_threads
+        @thread_array = []
+      end
+
+      # Method will run an [ExampleGroup] inside a [Thread] to prevent blocking
+      # execution.  The new [Thread] is added to an array for tracking and
+      # will automatically remove itself when done
+      # @param example_group [ExampleGroup] the group to be run inside a [Thread]
+      # @param reporter [Reporter] the passed in reporting class used for 
+      # tracking
+      def run(example_group, reporter)
+        @thread_array.push Thread.start {
+          example_group.run_parallel(reporter, @max_threads, @mutex, @used_threads)
+          @thread_array.delete Thread.current
+        }
+      end
+
+      # Method will wait for all threads to complete.  On completion threads
+      # remove themselves from the @thread_array so an empty array means they
+      # completed
+      def wait_for_completion
+        @thread_array.each do |t|
+          t.join
+        end
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/rspec/core/example_thread_runner.rb b/lib/rspec/core/example_thread_runner.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..7f05c33f28
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/rspec/core/example_thread_runner.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+module RSpec
+  module Core
+    # ExampleThreadRunner is a class used to execute [Example] classes in
+    # parallel as part of rspec-core.  When running in parallel the order
+    # of examples will not be honoured.  
+    # This class is used to ensure that we have a way of keeping track of
+    # the number of threads being created and preventing utilization of
+    # more than the specified number
+    class ExampleThreadRunner
+      attr_accessor :num_threads, :thread_array, :used_threads
+
+      # Creates a new instance of ExampleThreadRunner.
+      # @param num_threads [Integer] the maximum limit of threads that can be used
+      # @param used_threads [Integer] the current number of threads being used
+      def initialize(num_threads, used_threads)
+        @num_threads = num_threads
+        @thread_array = []
+        @used_threads = used_threads
+      end
+
+      # Method will check global utilization of threads and if that number is
+      # at or over the allocated maximum it will wait until a thread is available
+      def wait_for_available_thread
+        while @used_threads.to_i >= @num_threads.to_i
+          sleep 0.1
+        end
+      end
+
+      # Method will run the specified example within an available thread or
+      # will wait for a thread to become available if none currently are
+      # @param example [Example] the example to be executed in a [Thread]
+      # @param instance the instance of an ExampleGroup subclass
+      # @param reporter [Reporter] the passed in reporting class used for 
+      # tracking
+      def run(example, instance, reporter)
+        wait_for_available_thread
+        @thread_array.push Thread.start { 
+          example.run(instance, reporter)
+          @thread_array.delete Thread.current # remove from local scope
+          @used_threads -= 1
+        }
+        @used_threads += 1
+      end
+
+      # Method will wait for all threads to complete.  On completion threads
+      # remove themselves from the @thread_array so an empty array means they
+      # completed
+      def wait_for_completion
+        @thread_array.each do |t|
+          t.join
+        end
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/rspec/core/option_parser.rb b/lib/rspec/core/option_parser.rb
index 03e91fefb0..c8da924bdc 100644
--- a/lib/rspec/core/option_parser.rb
+++ b/lib/rspec/core/option_parser.rb
@@ -137,6 +137,20 @@ def parser(options)
           $VERBOSE = true
         end
 
+        parser.on('--parallel-test NUMBER', 'Run the tests with the specified number of parallel threads (default: 1).') do |n|
+          options[:thread_maximum] = if !n.nil?
+                                      begin
+                                        Integer(n)
+                                      rescue ArgumentError
+                                        RSpec.warning "Non integer specified as number of parallel threads, seperate " +
+                                                       "your path from options with a space e.g. " +
+                                                       "`rspec --parallel-test #{n}`",
+                                                       :call_site => nil
+                                        1
+                                      end
+                                    end
+        end
+
         parser.separator <<-FILTERING
 
   **** Filtering/tags ****
diff --git a/lib/rspec/core/runner.rb b/lib/rspec/core/runner.rb
index 5c452fd57d..0aef9b49ca 100644
--- a/lib/rspec/core/runner.rb
+++ b/lib/rspec/core/runner.rb
@@ -83,7 +83,12 @@ def initialize(options, configuration=RSpec.configuration, world=RSpec.world)
       # @param out [IO] output stream
       def run(err, out)
         setup(err, out)
-        run_specs(@world.ordered_example_groups)
+        if @options.options[:thread_maximum].nil?
+          run_specs(@world.ordered_example_groups)
+        else
+          require 'thread'
+          run_specs_parallel(@world.ordered_example_groups)
+        end
       end
 
       # Wires together the various configuration objects and state holders.
@@ -116,6 +121,33 @@ def run_specs(example_groups)
         end
       end
 
+      # Runs the provided example groups in parallel.
+      #
+      # @param example_groups [Array<RSpec::Core::ExampleGroup>] groups to run
+      # @return [Fixnum] exit status code. 0 if all specs passed,
+      #   or the configured failure exit code (1 by default) if specs
+      #   failed.
+      def run_specs_parallel(example_groups)
+        @configuration.reporter.report(@world.example_count(example_groups)) do |reporter|
+          begin
+            hook_context = SuiteHookContext.new
+            @configuration.hooks.run(:before, :suite, hook_context)
+            
+            group_threads = RSpec::Core::ExampleGroupThreadRunner.new(@configuration.thread_maximum)
+            example_groups.each { |g| group_threads.run(g, reporter) }
+            group_threads.wait_for_completion
+
+            example_groups.all? do |g| 
+              result_for_this_group = g.filtered_examples.all? { |example| example.metadata[:execution_result].exception.nil? }
+              results_for_descendants = g.children.all? { |child| child.filtered_examples.all? { |example| example.metadata[:execution_result].exception.nil? } }
+              result_for_this_group && results_for_descendants
+            end ? 0 : @configuration.failure_exit_code
+          ensure
+            @configuration.hooks.run(:after, :suite, hook_context)
+          end
+        end
+      end
+
       # @private
       def self.disable_autorun!
         @autorun_disabled = true
diff --git a/spec/command_line/parallel_spec.rb b/spec/command_line/parallel_spec.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..a79ba893ec
--- /dev/null
+++ b/spec/command_line/parallel_spec.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,83 @@
+require 'spec_helper'
+
+RSpec.describe 'command line', :ui, :slow do
+  before :each do
+    @out = StringIO.new
+    write_file 'spec/parallel_spec.rb', """
+      RSpec.describe 'parallel run' do
+        it 'thread 0 example' do
+          sleep 1
+          fail
+        end
+
+        it 'thread 1 example' do
+          sleep 1
+          pass
+        end
+
+        it 'thread 2 example' do
+          sleep 1
+          pass
+        end
+
+        it 'thread 3 example' do
+          sleep 1
+          fail
+        end
+
+        it 'thread 4 example' do
+          sleep 1
+          pass
+        end
+
+        it 'thread 5 example' do
+          sleep 1
+          pass
+        end
+      end
+    """
+  end
+
+  describe '--parallel-test' do
+    it '1 thread' do
+      run_command 'spec/parallel_spec.rb --parallel-test 1'
+      output_str = @out.string
+      validate_output(output_str)
+      seconds = get_seconds(output_str).to_i
+      expect(seconds).to be >= 6
+    end
+
+    it '3 threads' do
+      run_command 'spec/parallel_spec.rb --parallel-test 3'
+      output_str = @out.string
+      validate_output(output_str)
+      seconds = get_seconds(output_str).to_i
+      expect(seconds).to be >= 2
+      expect(seconds).to be < 7
+    end
+
+    it '6 threads' do
+      run_command 'spec/parallel_spec.rb --parallel-test 6'
+      output_str = @out.string
+      validate_output(output_str)
+      seconds = get_seconds(output_str).to_i
+      expect(seconds).to be >= 0
+      expect(seconds).to be < 4
+    end
+  end
+
+  def run_command(cmd)
+    in_current_dir do
+      RSpec::Core::Runner.run(cmd.split, @out, @out)
+    end
+  end
+
+  def validate_output(output_str)
+    expect(output_str).to include("6 examples, 2 failures"), "output_str: #{output_str}"
+    expect(output_str).to include("Finished in "), "output_str: #{output_str}"
+  end
+
+  def get_seconds(output_str)
+    return output_str[/Finished in (.*) second/, 1]
+  end
+end