Musick-al note # 174
Paul, in 2 Corinthians 12:2 said, “I know a man . . . caught up into the third heaven.” Most commentators feel that this was referring to Paul himself and this is a possibility but an inconclusive conjecture. Considering the time to which Paul referred and at the place where this statement is recorded, Paul is defending his own apostleship while contrasting it with the false apostles. Paul knew them to be going about undermining his work in Christ and then boasting of their accomplishments. If the man caught up was Paul himself, then most certainly they could not match any such boast, however Paul said that he would only boast in the work he had done for Christ and the infirmities that he had. Such boasting would have only brought about more controversy. It is not necessary to know who the man caught up into the third heaven is, but it is necessary to believe the Word of God and obey it.
As to the phrase ‘the third heaven’, there is only speculation as to what place is meant. If we consider our world and its place in the universe, we consider the atmosphere surrounding earth as heaven. Then we can surmise that the stratosphere where the sun, moon, and stars are is the second heaven. The third heaven must then extend farther from the earth to be beyond all the created things God has made to the place where He dwells. The Scriptures state that God inhabits eternity or dwells in it (Isaiah 57:15), living in a high and holy place, the third heaven. If one studies the scripture concerning the creation, it begins with God. He existed in a place before our universe was created. He created and brought the earth and heavens into being. He was separate and above all that He created. Another way is to say that man was caught up to the throne of God where Christ sits at His right hand (Hebrews 12:2).
Gordon Musick
Musick-al Notes 