Jehovah's Witnesses: Will Jesus be returning visibly and bodily on the clouds of heaven?

Question

To be met by the resurrected people who died in Christ and then those who are in Christ and living on the Earth at the time of His return?

This is in 1 Thessalonians.

so when Jesus was taken up in a "cloud", as it says in the gospels, that "cloud" was also a mass of people?

so the Lord will descend and all these people will go up to meet him in the air, but they won't see him because he is hidden in the clouds. that will be an interesting "meeting". ever met someone through a closed door?

it says air, not heaven. i'm not talking about heaven here.

Answer 1

Yes, Jesus is visible to those looking for him.

It is a kindness when a question which alludes to a bible thought actually includes the citation in question. Here, the questioner seems to allude to the following passage, including bracketed amplifications by this answerer:
...(1 Thessalonians 4:15-17) [Among anointed Christians] we the living who survive to the presence of the Lord [which began in 1914] shall in no way precede [into heaven] those who have fallen asleep in death [perhaps centuries earlier]; because the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a commanding call, with an archangel’s voice and with God’s trumpet, and those who are dead in union with Christ [that is, anointed Christians who died before 1914] will rise first. Afterward we the living who are surviving will, together with them, be caught away in clouds to meet the Lord in the air [when we die, or after Armageddon]; and thus we shall always be with the Lord.


Note that Revelation talks about how a substantial contingent of anointed ones precedes their fellows into heaven. Jehovah's Witnesses believe the bible to teach that this earlier contingent were resurrected soon after Christ's second "presence" began in 1914.
...(Revelation 6:11) And a white robe was given to each of them [who had been resurrected to heaven]; and they were told to rest a little while longer, until the number [144,000] was filled also of their fellow slaves and their brothers who were about to be killed as they also had been


It seems rather obvious that "in the air" is synonymous with "in heaven". The bible repeatedly mixes references to the atmospheric heavens and the spiritual heavens.

(Ephesians 2:5-7) By undeserved kindness you have been saved— and he raised us up together and seated us together in the heavenly places in union with Christ Jesus, that in the coming systems of things there might be demonstrated the surpassing riches of his undeserved kindness in his graciousness toward us in union with Christ Jesus.

(Hebrews 1:3) [Jesus] sat down ...in lofty places.

Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/e/dg/index.htm?article=article_10.htm

Answer 2

The attending angels at the ascension informed Christ’s awestruck disciples that Jesus would return in the “same manner” as they had beheld him going into the sky. Only Jesus’ loyal disciples witnessed his ascension. Jesus’ returning in the “same manner” indicates that only his anointed disciples will see him after his descent from heaven.

As for everyone seeing the Son of man coming upon the clouds, we should not suppose that everyone will literally see Jesus. Jesus himself clearly stated at John 14:19: “A little longer and the world will behold me no more, but you will behold me, because I live and you will live.”

If the world will behold Jesus "no more" that would preclude non-believers from literally seeing the glorified Son of man. Jesus’ words concerning the son of man being beheld coming in the clouds simply means that the world will be made to know that Jesus is controlling the world and bringing upon it Jehovah’s judgments.

Answer 3

If something is "in the clouds" it is not visible. It is referring to a resurrection that is not visible to the naked eye. Jesus said before his death "and the world will behold me no more". (John 14:19)

Like Jesus, his annointed brothers are put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit. A spirit is intangible, not physical. Hence anyone raised to spirit life in heaven would no be seen by humans leaving the earth, as if heaven were some physical place in the sky.

Answer 4

Clouds=mass of peoples.
And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
Not J.W

Acts 1:9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
EXACTLY.