What does Paul's going up to paradise confirm about where paradise is now?
Paul's going up to paradise confirms that paradise is no longer down below, as it once was in Hades or Sheol, but is now in glory above. Since Christ ascended, that is now where the present-day believer goes at death.
Les explains that Old Testament saints were held in Hades, hell, or Sheol on the paradise side, waiting for the atoning blood that had now been shed. When Christ left paradise, Ephesians 4 shows He descended first into the lower parts of the earth, then ascended far above all heavens. He descended into paradise and took those who were captive, putting the capstone on it. Paul's later going up to paradise confirms that paradise is no longer down as it was, but now is in glory. That is the lot of the present-day believer when they die, ever since Christ ascended.
I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.
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Is Paul's reference to paradise in 2 Corinthians 12 consistent with the rest of Scripture?
Understanding paradise in both the Old and New Testaments shows that Paul's mention of being caught up into paradise in 2 Corinthians 12 is in accord with all of Scripture.