12:1–10 Up to this point in the “Fool’s Speech” Paul boasts that, as a servant of Christ, he is superior to his opponents (the so-called super-apostles) mostly in terms of his far greater sufferings (11:21b–33). In 12:1–10 the apostle goes on to boast of his surpassing revelatory experience. In contrast to the disgraceful descent from the wall in Damascus (11:33), Paul here recounts a glorious ascent into heaven (cf. T. Jos. 1:4 for a similar contrast between descent as humiliation and ascent as exaltation). Although Paul realizes that such boasting is futile, he nevertheless engages in it, succumbing temporarily to the pressure from his opponents (v. 1). Yet, having very briefly and discretely mentioned an example of this revelatory experience (vv. 2–4), Paul immediately returns to boasti…