Paul continues his boasting in 1 Cor 12, this time mentions a vision in which he was transported to the “third heaven.” We do not know when this vision occurred, and the way Paul describes it is hard to place in the book of Acts. He describes his experiences as a vision (ὀπτασία) and a revelation (ἀποκάλυψις). The first word is usually associated with a god allowing himself to be seen by a human, or allowing a human to see something usually hidden (BDAG). Although a little later than the New Testament, the Martyrdom of Polycarp used the word to describe a “trance.” Paul calls his experience on the road to Damascus a vision (Acts 26:19). The second word is Paul’s usual word to describe his revelations from God, usually in the context of salvation history or eschatology.
When did Paul have this vision? He says it was “fourteen years ago,” which is about A.D. 40. Paul is therefore not referring to his Damascus Road experience, but an experience after his conversion but before the beginning of the first missionary trip (about A.D. 48). Paul founded the Corinthian church 50-51 on the second missionary journey.
Why does he Paul suddenly boast about a vision he had some 14 years earlier? This is part of Paul’s “humble boast” throughout this section—he has had visions (just like the opponents) but his are un-reportable and from the distant past. Unlike the opponents, he is not “making up visions” to impress his audience.
Does Paul refer to his experience in the Temple as reported in Acts 22:17-18? Luke uses a similar word to describe Paul’s vision, a “trance” (ESV, ἔκστασις). Chronologically it is possible since it is after his conversion and we do not know how many years between the conversion and that particular Temple visit. A major difference is the vision in Acts 22 includes a warning to leave Jerusalem and go to the Gentiles. (Check out Richard Fellows’ comments on the chronology of 2 Corinthians 12. Fellows says “It seems to me that 2 Cor 12:2 lends a little support to the chronology of Acts.”) It is really impossible to know when or where Paul had this vision. Paul’s only point here is his vision came in the past and it is something he is not able to relate to the church.
Paul reports the vision in the third person and does not really give any details. He does not know if he was “in the body” or not, and really does not know what happened to him when he had the vision. Again, this is a completely different report than would come from the opponents who seem to boast in great detail about their own experiences. It is as if Paul is saying, “Sure, I had one of those visions too, but I do not really consider it worth recalling now…”
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I am a little confused as to what the “third heaven” is unless it is heaven from a third person perspective. How did Paul’s audience react to the story he shared with them from his past? Was it fully factual or did Paul leave out any important points or maybe mistake some the things he shared. I attempt to look at my own life and try to tell a story from 14 years ago and it is difficult. It is a bit surprising as to how little Paul values the story though where at the end you share about the opponents boasting about it.
This is the only time this phrase “third heaven” is used in the N.T. but generally speaking, the ancient Jews thought of heaven in 3 ways:
1st heaven – the air, atmosphere around us, visible and, largely, reachable.
2nd heaven – the visible place of the sun, moon and stars, visible but not reachable.
3rd heaven – the place where God was, higher and beyond the 1st and 2nd heavens, a place not visible, not reachable.
I don’t think I’ve ever really looked into this section of 2 Corinthians, partly because the main focus is on the “thorn in [his] flesh” (v.7), but also because that’s Paul’s intention. Just as you said, if Paul were to go in depth about this vision to derive some spiritual revelation and prophesy to the people of Corinth, then he’d be doing exactly what his opponents would do. I know that if I had a vision, such as this one, I would likely share it with everyone I know because of the magnificence of it, but Paul does not want to succumb to the typical practices of that time. He’s already had some things to say to people who are discrediting his apostleship and authority, so for him to respond with these glorious visions and revelations, he would appear like other “apostles” and “teachers” of that time. Instead, he chooses weaknesses and things that wouldn’t typically get boasted about as things which are worthy of talking about. Just as Jesus flipped the typical way of thinking about, well, everything, Paul does something similar when he references this vision, but refuses to go in detail about it.
Even if Paul saw his vision, I don’t think he would have told the Corinth Church because he would not gain anything from it. Plus, he refused to be like the Super Apostles in chapter 11. The Super Apostles boasted about the things they saw and heard. Paul refused to be like them.
It is very interesting that the opponents of Paul are making up visions to impress the audience. Paul had a true vision and he knows this to be true, however, his opponents are fabricating stories about visions that never happened, all to impress people. This is similar to how people seem to act today. Many people like to exaggerate things or tell made-up stories to get people to like them. I believe that people do this because they think the real stories in their lives are not something that people want to hear, however, I think a genuinely true story that is being told by someone is far more interesting than a story where almost all of it, if not all of it is untrue. I also believe that Paul was in the right with his boasting. He knew the people were talking about fake visions and he knew he had a real vision. It is odd that they use the word trance when referring to Paul’s vision because when I think of a trance I think of someone being put under a “spell” or hypnotized. I wonder if some of those people believe that Paul was hypnotized by something or someone into seeing what he saw.