2 Corinthians 12:3

And I know such a man (whether in the body, or apart from the body, I know not; God knoweth), how that he was caught up into Paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

The repetition of the same thought in 2 Corinthians 12:2,3 ("whether in the body ...") is difficult to interpret. "Opinion is divided as to whether the apostle is merely repeating what he had just said, or is describing"[8] a second event. There are many scholars on both sides of the question. The conviction here is that Paul described two experiences taking place on one occasion. The time of "fourteen years ago" thus applies to both. Paul's repetition here is for the purpose of applying his ignorance of what state he was in to both events. The plural "visions" (2 Corinthians 12:12:1) is thus fulfilled by the two here given; and, as Hughes said, "The word `and' at the beginning of this sentence at least seems to indicate that he is narrating something additional."[9]

PARADISE

There is another important consideration which supports the understanding of two events, rather than merely one,; and that is Paul's use of the word "Paradise." There is no authority whatever for making this mean the same thing as "the third heaven," despite the fact of endless arguments that they are the same.

Paradise ... This word in the New Testament is found only here and in Luke 23:43 and in Revelation 2:7. If it is true, as has been assumed, that the third heaven is the place of God's dwelling (see under 2 Corinthians 12:2), Jesus had not yet ascended to it on the day he rose from the dead; for he said to Mary Magdalene, "Touch me not, for I have not yet ascended to my Father" (John 10:17). Yet the Lord had promised the thief on the cross, "Today shalt thou be with me in Paradise" (Luke 23:43). In the light of these scriptures we must set aside the learned opinions to the effect that Paradise and the third heaven are the same place. Jesus had been with the thief in Paradise already, but he had not yet ascended to the third heaven. However, we call attention to the "if" that stands at the head of this paragraph. As Farrar said:

Such questions are clearly insoluble, and I leave them where I find them. We shall never understand this passage otherwise than in the dim and vague outline in which St. Paul purposely left it.[10]

Unspeakable ... unlawful ... In these words are Paul's reasons for not satisfying human curiosity about the things he mentioned (see under 2 Corinthians 12:2). "Paul here revealed nothing, either of what he saw or what he heard. The New Testament deliberately veils the next life, though it makes plain what is needful for our salvation."[11]

[8] Philip E. Hughes, Paul's Second Epistle to the Corinthians (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1962), p. 435.

[9] Ibid.

[10] F. W. Farrar, The Pulpit Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), Vol. 19, Second Corinthians, p. 291.

[11] Norman Hillyer, op. cit., p. 1086.