Paul was accused of not having a revelation from God but he explained that he had a true vision of Jesus that transformed his life. he described being taken up to the third heaven. The different uses of the word ‘heaven’ is explained. Different understandings of what Paul meant when he spoke of his ‘thorn in the flesh’ are given.

Paul introduces the reality of spiritual warfare that every Christian faces together with the resources that God provides to fight against the enemy. Roman soldiers are guarding him and he uses their armour to explain these resources.