Messiah Coming in the Clouds

 بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الصلاة والسلام عليك يا سيدى يا رسول الله وعلى آلك واصحابك يا سيدى يا نور الله

In the Name of Allah, the Rahman, the Merciful

Prayers and peace be upon you, my Master, Apostle of Allah

And upon your Family and Companions, my Master, Light of Allah

The Sunni Islamic belief that the Messiah Jesus will descend from Heaven is established in the ancient Scriptures, for instance, the Prophet Daniel says:

חָזֵ֤ה הֲוֵית֙ בְּחֶזְוֵ֣י לֵֽילְיָ֔א וַאֲרוּ֙ עִם־עֲנָנֵ֣י שְׁמַיָּ֔א כְּבַ֥ר אֱנָ֖שׁ אָתֵ֣ה הֲוָ֑ה וְעַד־עַתִּ֤יק יֹֽומַיָּא֙ מְטָ֔ה וּקְדָמֹ֖והִי הַקְרְבֽוּהִי

I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him

(Daniel 7:13)

The coming of the Son of man with the clouds of heaven is interpreted to mean the descent of the Messiah. This is an interpretation found in Jewish apocalyptic literature:

Tenth sign: He will produce Menahem b. ‘Amiel, the Messiah of the lineage of David, from the place of imprisonment, as scripture states: ‘for one came out of prison in order to reign’ (Ecclesiastes 4:14), and He will transport him upon a cloud, as scripture says: ‘and behold (one resembling a human being came) accompanied by the clouds of the sky’ (Daniel 7:13) (Trajectories in Near Eastern Apocalyptic: A Postrabbinic Jewish Apocalypse Reader, Otot of R. Simon B. Yohai, p.116)

This passage affirms Daniel 7:13 is a Messianic prophecy in which the one like the son of man is the Messiah who shall be transported on a cloud. However, here the Jews have identified a certain Menahem son of Amiel as the Messiah. They also say that prior to his appearance he remains imprisoned. The current imprisonment of the false Jewish Messiah accords to the Hadith of Tamim ad-Dari in which the latter beheld the Dajjal (Antichrist) imprisoned and chained up:

فَانْطَلَقْنَا سِرَاعًا حَتَّى دَخَلْنَا الدَّيْرَ فَإِذَا فِيهِ أَعْظَمُ إِنْسَانٍ رَأَيْنَاهُ قَطُّ خَلْقًا وَأَشَدُّهُ وِثَاقًا مَجْمُوعَةٌ يَدَاهُ إِلَى عُنُقِهِ مَا بَيْنَ رُكْبَتَيْهِ إِلَى كَعْبَيْهِ بِالْحَدِيدِ

So we set off quickly until we entered the monastery, and there in it was the largest man we had ever seen, and the most tightly bound, with his hands bound to his neck, from between his knees to his ankles, with iron (Sahih Muslim)

Daniel 7:13 is quoted in another Jewish apocalyptic text as referring to the Messiah who shall come in the clouds:

And now we will celebrate the praise of the King Messiah. He is going to arrive “with the clouds of heaven” (עם ענני שמיא) and two seraphim will be on his right and on his left, as scripture says: “and behold, one like a human being came with the clouds of heaven” (Daniel 7:13) (Trajectories in Near Eastern Apocalyptic: A Postrabbinic Jewish Apocalypse Reader, Pirqe Masiah, p.153)

This passage, in speaking of the two Seraphim, affirms the Islamic belief that the Messiah shall descend from Heaven with two Angels:

وَاضِعًا كَفَّيْهِ عَلَى أَجْنِحَةِ مَلَكَيْنِ

He will be placing his palms upon the wings of two Angels (Sahih Muslim)

We Muslims believe that the promised Messiah is none other than Jesus, peace be upon him, who identified himself as the Son of man that shall come in the clouds of heaven as per Daniel 7:13: “And they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30) “Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven” (Matthew 26:64), “And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory” (Mark 13:26), “and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven (Mark 14:62), “Behold, he cometh with clouds” (Revelation 1:7).

The great Islamic sage, Ka’b al-Ahbar, confirmed that the Messiah Jesus, peace be upon him, shall come riding upon a cloud:

يَهْبِطُ الْمَسِيحُ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ ‌عِنْدَ ‌الْقَنْطَرَةِ ‌الْبَيْضَاءِ ‌عَلَى ‌بَابِ ‌دِمَشْقَ ‌الشَّرْقِيِّ ‌إِلَى ‌طَرَفِ ‌الشَّجَرِ تَحْمِلُهُ غَمَامَةٌ وَاضِعٌ يَدَيْهِ عَلَى مَنْكِبِ مَلَكَيْنِ

The Messiah Jesus, son of Mary, peace be upon him, will descend at the White Arch at the east of the Damascus Gate, at the edge of the tree, carried by a cloud, placing his hands on the shoulders of two angels (al-Fitan li-Nu’aym bin Hammad, p.386)

Similarly, Abdullah bin Amr bin al-As says:

فَبَيْنَا هُمْ تَحْتَ ضَبَابَةٍ مِنْ غَمَامٍ إِذْ تُكْشَفُ ‌عَنْهُمُ ‌الضَّبَابَةُ مَعَ الصُّبْحِ فَإِذَا بِعِيسَى ابْنِ مَرْيَمَ بَيْنَ ظَهْرَانَيْهِمْ

While they are under the mist of a cloud, the mist will dissipate from them in the morning and Jesus son of Mary will be in their midst (ibid, p.388)