Paul’s supernatural experience and his pain: (chap.12):
In this chapter-12, Paul describes his experience of his super-natural experience of being caught up into the third-heaven and speaks about his pain that God has allowed him to experience throughout the rest of his life.
Paul’s vision to third heaven: (12:1-6):
Paul continued his boasting about his vision, revelations and his weakness. He confesses that there is nothing to be gained from his boasting but it was necessitated because of the unbelief of Corinthian Christians. The Corinthians were belittling Paul and coming into the influence of false teachers, so Paul unwillingly boasts about his visions and revelations. Here Paul says: “I know a man” is actually speaking in 3rd person. He was speaking about himself. Paul kept his thrilling experience of his heavenly vision for 14-years within himself. Certainly Paul was given divine revelations that no other man saw or heart.
There are many such visions recorded in the Bible where men of God saw angels, Jesus, heaven etc. Some of them we can see are:
- Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, had a vision of an angel (Lk.1:8-23).
- Jesus’ transfiguration is described as a vision for the disciples (Matt.17:9).
- The women who came to visit Jesus’ tomb had a vision of angels (Lk. 24:22-24).
- Stephen saw a vision of Jesus at his death (Acts 7:55-56).
- Ananias experienced a vision telling him to go to Saul (Acts 9:10).
- Peter had a vision of the clean and unclean animals (Acts 10:17-19; 11:5).
- Peter had a vision of an angel at his release from prison (Acts 12:9).
- John had many visions on Patmos (Rev.1:1).
- Paul had a revelation of Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 22:6-11; 26:12-20).
- Paul had vision of a man from Macedonia, asking him to come to that region to help (Acts 16:9-10).
- Paul had an encouraging vision while in Corinth (Acts 18:9-11).
- Paul had a vision of an angel on the ship that was about to be wrecked (Acts 27:23-25).
In spite of such great experience Paul had, he downplays his experience. But he was making them to understand that the false teachers who are so called super apostles have nothing in them. Paul when speaking about his visions, he speaks in 3rd person but when describing about his humble experience, he speaks in 1st person. So we must be careful when men speak more of their visions and revelations than the Gospel. Paul does not know really whether he was in the body or out of the body during this visions. Since Paul did not say anything, it is needless to speculate.
He was caught up on the 3rd heaven. The blue sky is called the first heaven or the atmosphere and the second heaven is the starry heaven and the third is the place of the throne of the Divine glory. Paul was caught up to 3rd haven or this is also called the paradise. Paradise is the temporary place where souls of believers went after death to await resurrection. This vision must have occurred to Paul during Paul’s 14-years in Syria and Cilicia (Gal. 1:21-2:2) where he was stoned in Lystra (Acts 14:19). But he kept this incident to his heart for 14 years. In Paradise, he heard inexpressible words. He says nothing about of what he saw perhaps the Holy Spirit did not allow him to reveal. That’s why he says, it was not lawful for a man to utter. Here he shows nothing of self glory, but glorifies God. Instead he boasts of his weaknesses and his infirmities. He contrast himself with the so called super apostles by saying that “I am not a fool.” Had been any other person in Paul’s place, he would have spoken so much of his experience, but Paul cuts short his heavenly experience and speaks only of his infirmities. By mentioning his experiences, Paul was showing himself different from the super apostles. If the Corinthian Christians thought Paul was weak and different than the super apostles, that was fine with him. He wanted the Corinthian Christians to see the glory of God expressed in weakness.
Paul was given this heavenly experience because:
- God gave a glimpse of paradise to all of us through Paul’s experience.
- Paul could draw the spiritual energy to move forward through trials and persecutions waiting for him while taking the Gospel to Europe and Asia minor. This vision helped Paul to finish his course.
- This vision gives inspiration and encouragement to all generations to come for the proclamation of the Gospel.