A Vision of Paradise

 4. What vision does 2 Corinthians 12:2-4 mention, and who likely had it?

⁴ In this connection, note what the apostle Paul wrote: “I know a man in union with Christ who . . . was caught away as such to the third heaven.

 5. What did Paul not see, and hence of what sort was “paradise”?

⁵ The context does not suggest that “the third heaven” refers to the atmosphere around our globe, nor to outer space or to any parallel universes, as postulated by astrophysicists. The Bible often uses the number three to represent emphasis, intensity, or added strength. (Ecclesiastes 4:12; Isaiah 6:3; Matthew 26:34, 75; Revelation 4:8) Thus, what Paul saw in vision was elevated or exalted. It was spiritual.