Retrieved sermon context

1. MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE — 1965-02-21

• Retrieved chunks: 19

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• ¶25–¶31 Remember, our Lord Jesus Christ never did identify Himself as the Son of God. He said, “You said I was; to this end I was born,” and so forth, but He never identified Himself. And, now, that was the Pillar of Fire that led the children of Israel, was the Lord Jesus Christ in Spirit form, (you believe that?), the Logos that went out of God. And then when He was on earth, He said, “I come from God, and I go to God.” We all know that. And after His death, burial, and resurrection: Saul of Tarsus was on his road down to Damascus, to persecute the—the Christians, because they were teaching things contrary to what they had been taught. And he was a great warrior; under Gamaliel, one of the outstanding teachers of the day, in their school, their monastery; and a great man, and an officer of the church. And it was there that a great Light, the Pillar of Fire again, struck him down, in the middle of the day. And a Voice said, “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?” Now if you notice when Paul, Saul, raised up, he said, “Lord, Who are You?” Now, that boy, being a Jew, he certainly wouldn’t have called anything, unless it’d been something to symbol God, he wouldn’t have called it “Lord.” So, It was the same Pillar of Fire. As Jesus said, “I go to God. I came from God, and I return to God.” There He was, back in the form of a Pillar of Fire again; He said, “I am Jesus Whom thou persecutest; and it’s hard for you to kick against the pricks.”

• ¶35–¶39 Something is just about to happen. God never sends these things without being a purpose behind it. I was just thinking here. I placed it here, one of my notes. That I’m wearing this morning, a set of cuff links…And many of you have heard of this movie star, Jane Russell, and her mother is a Pentecostal; and Danny Henry is her cousin, her first cousin, her mother’s sister’s child. He was Baptist. He was standing at the meeting, a Business Men’s meeting in Los Angeles, California, two years ago. And I had just got through speaking of a great, powerful, forceful statements, that even the overseer, one of the general overseers of the Assemblies of God, stepped down to the platform from up in the balcony where he was sitting, and he said, “I don’t believe that Brother Branham meant that.” I said, “I have to mean it, sir. It’s THUS SAITH THE LORD.” And, then, it was about the church in this age. And about that time, this young man who is a businessman… His brother is over…he was there taking pictures for television that morning, his other brother is—is a state road supervisor of California. And Danny Henry walked forward after the meeting was closed, on the platform, like this, where the men were all seated, walked down to put his arms around me. And he said these words, “Brother Branham, I hope this don’t sound sacrilegious, but,” said, “that could be made the 23rd chapter of Revelation.” Which, there is only twenty-two chapters in Revelation. He said, “I hope this don’t sound sacrilegious.” He had no more than said it…Now, the boy was a Baptist, and knowed nothing about the supernatural. With his arms around me, he started talking in an unknown language.

• ¶54–¶56 Now, remember, these things that I say must come from the Word of God. It can’t be my own opinion, ’cause my opinion is just like anybody else’s. But it’s got to be in continuity with the Word of God. Remember, God keeps everything in continuity. He never changes. He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever. Do you believe that? He is the same. Now I shall read from the 19th chapter. And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these sayings, he departed from Galilee, and came into the coasts of Judaea beyond Jordan; And great multitudes followed him; and he healed them… The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him,… I pause there so you can get the emphasis on who it was that was tempting Him. …saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? And he answered and said unto them, Have you not read, that he which made them in the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father…mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Therefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. They said unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and…put her away? And He said unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. Now, God, help us.

• ¶66–¶68 Now, if that be so, we have two schools of thought on Marriage And Divorce. And that is, one of them says, that, “A man can only be married once, unless his wife is dead.” And that’s one of the questions, but, you go to following that, you go overboard. And then the next says, “Oh, if the wife or the husband, either one, has committed adultery, either one of them can be put away and married again.” You find yourself overboard with that. So, see, it’s neither southeast or northeast; we want directly east. You’d run out of Scripture when you go this way, you run out of Scripture when you go that way. We want to know where Scripture meets Scripture, and know what’s the Truth of it. Each takes a different way, and fail to bring up the correct answer, but there still must be an answer. It’s just like, today, there is two great schools of doctrine in the church; one of them is Calvinism, the other one is Armin-… Arminianism. One of them is legalist, the other one is grace. And we come to find out that the people who believe in grace, the Calvinists, they say, “Bless God, it don’t hurt me to smoke. It don’t hurt me to drink. I can do these things, I’ve got Eternal security.” Then we find the other side, on the legalist, said, “Oh, I would like to bawl him out, I would like to show him a piece of my mind, but, I’m a Christian, I have to keep still.” See, you find yourself on two different roads, and neither one of them is right. Now, that’s hard to say that, but it is the truth.

• ¶69–¶72 We find ourselves on two different roads; one, going one way; one, another. Now let’s see what Truth is. Now listen, and see if this sounds sensible to you. For instance, if I get ready to go overseas, and I’ll take my own family, I’ll call my wife up to me, and I will say, “We’re go-…I’m going overseas, dear.” Now here is the legalist’s side, “Now, my wife, I’m going to lay the law down to you! If you flirt with any man while I’m gone, when I come back you’re a divorced woman. And I don’t want you making eyes, don’t want you flirting! You understand that? I’m your husband! If you do it, I’m going to put you away when I come back.” Then she reaches and gets me by the tie, and say, “My good man, I want to tell you something, see, see, that if you make eyes at any woman, or take any woman out, or flirt with any woman, you’re going to be a divorced man when you come back.” Now, wouldn’t that be a happy home? That’s legalists. All right. Now, the other side is, that if I go overseas and I make a mistake… Go over and say, “Now, look, I’ll take this woman out. Oh, it’s all right with my wife, she don’t care.” My wife say, “I’ll go out with this man. It’s all right with Bill, he don’t care.” If I don’t care, then there is something wrong with me; I don’t love that woman right. And if she don’t care, there is something wrong with her. She is my wife; I don’t want other man fooling with her. She is my wife.

• ¶81–¶85 Look at all this revival has went on for fifteen years or more, and not one denomination come out of it. Luther had a revival, there went a denomination; Wesley, there went a denomination; Alexander Campbell, there went a denomination; all these other great…John Smith and so forth, denominations, Moody, all along. But here has been one…Usually a revival only lasts about three years. But this has been going for over fifteen years, and not one denomination has sprung up from it, for this is the Seed time. There is no more shuck; after the one shuck is gone, it’s Seed. God is ready, if He isn’t doing it now, He is going to call a Church to perfection by His Word, Jesus Christ. Notice, there must be an answer somewhere, and being that the Seven Seal mystery of God, Seven Seals… How many understands that, raise up your hand. Let’s see. I think most of them is our congregation from around, listen. If not, the books will be out pretty soon, upon the subject. We have books, some books on It now. Jesus, in our text, invites us to go back to the beginning, for the true Scriptural answer. Now, when He was confronted with this, there was two things in view. The priests said to Him, “Can a man put away his wife, marry another, for any cause?” And Jesus said, “It wasn’t so from the beginning.” Then they said, “Moses suffered us a writing of divorcement, and to put her away for anything they wanted to.”

• ¶94b–¶98 Now, if she broke her covenant with her husband, she broke her covenant with God; then, because she broke the covenant with God, she broke it with her husband. And when you break your promise and your covenant to God’s Word, that’s what caused so many illegitimate church members, ’cause a group of men got together and said, “Well, It didn’t mean that,” and it throws the whole organization out of continuity with the Word. “We don’t believe That. Doctor Jones said It wasn’t so.” But as long as God said It’s so, He said, “Let every man’s word be a lie, and Mine be the Truth!” There it breaks the continuity. Now we see, being that the continuity is broken, then the Life line was broken, also the time line was broken, the covenant was broken, everything shattered! What caused it? A woman. That’s what broke the covenant. Now, if you want to read that, you can read it, Genesis 3. Now, it was then man was made to rule over the woman, by God’s Word. She was no more co-equal with him. She was co-equal in nature, you know; but, when she broke God’s Word, God made a man to be a ruler over her. Genesis 3:16, if you want to put it down. She was no more equal with the man. She was the breaker of God’s Word. Don’t you see, “she,” she, the church down here? The breaker of God’s Word, that throwed her completely out of continuity. And that’s what the church has done, and throwed spiritual death upon the whole thing. Now you’ll understand why I hammer at these things like I do. It’s Truth! This is Bible facts.

• ¶154–¶158 Now, He could not be just and make a man to fall. He had to put him on equal basis, of free moral agency, to make his own choice, but knowing he would fall. Now, He can’t be a Saviour unless something is lost. He can’t be a Healer unless something is sick. These things had to be that way. God made them thus so that His great attributes could be displayed. If there wasn’t that, He’d have never been a Saviour. But we know He was, even before there was a time, He was a Saviour. He was a Saviour, so there has to be something lost. How is it going to be? If He takes and loses it, just in order to save it, then it isn’t justice to His judgment. He couldn’t send a man to hell, and be just. He is kind, gentle, true, honest, and He is a great Judge. See, He would be working against Himself. So He had to put a man out here, and make him on free moral agency, so he would, knowing, would fall; and the man, in His Own image, how could he fall? Now are you seeing daylight? So, He had to make a by-product, something out of the original creation. Now you see it. See? There you come. See? Then, that’s what fell. He made it, knowing it would fall. And it’s put over in the hands of Satan, for a vessel of dishonor. Where is honor bestowed today? You think on that. Notice closely now. Then again, why she was designed this way and not like other females, why was the woman designed so and not other females? None of the other females was designed like that. They’re not, today. They can’t. Not being made that way, she can’t do it. Why did He not make this female then, a woman, just like other females, so she would just be the same way, could just raise her babies? Then she would have her husband, and live; and when it come time for her baby, she would have her baby. Why—why did He make her like this?

• ¶205–¶207 Notice, don’t fail this now, take it all down in your hearts. But not one of those women could even have one more husband. He is the original creation, not her. Not one of those women could have one more husband, but that one husband could have a thousand wives. That’s THUS SAITH THE LORD. That’s the Bible. Now I’ve went back, took my time and showed you back yonder where it started, what Jesus said. Now do you see it clearly? They could have as many… “Oh,” you say, “that was just for Israel.” Is it? When Abraham took Sarah down into the Philistine country, there was a king down there named Abimelech. And Sarah was a hundred years old, right at it, but she had been changed back to a young woman and been made beautiful. Do you know that? [Congregation says, “Amen.”—Ed.] All right. And Abimelech wanted her for a wife. You remember my Message on it? Abimelech wanted to take Sarah for a wife. Probably had a harem, but he could not take her if she was married to Abraham. So Abraham said to Sarah, “Say that you are, ‘my brother,’ because he’ll kill me so that he can have you.” Why didn’t he just chase Abraham out of the country, and take his wife and go on? Not only a law was it with believers, but to all people in the creation. Sinner or a saint, you are responsible, man, for these acts. There was a heathen king. How many knows that story is true? [“Amen.”] It’s the Bible, Genesis, about the 16th chapter, I think.

• ¶208–¶213 You notice, Abimelech would have took her for a wife. He fixed hisself to have this new Hebrew girl. And he said, “This is my…” She said, “That’s my brother.” He said, “That’s my sister.” And Abimelech said, “I’ll just take her for a wife then.” Could you imagine a man doing a thing like that? But he did it. And then that night, while he went to sleep, the Lord appeared to him in a dream, and said, “Abimelech, you’re as good as a dead man.” He was protecting that, that stream of Jewish blood there, you see. He said, “You’re as good as a dead man. You’ve got another man’s wife you’re fixing to marry.” He said, “Lord, You know the integrity of my heart.” Said, “Did not she tell me that was her ‘brother’? Did not he himself say, ‘That’s my sister’?” He said, “I know the integrity of your heart, that is the reason I wouldn’t permit you to sin against Me.” Is that right? Said, “Restore his wife, because that man is My prophet. And unless you take him back his wife…And let him pray for you, not your priest. If he don’t pray for you, your whole nation is gone.” Amen. There is amazing grace. Right. “Your whole nation is gone. That’s that man’s wife, and he is My prophet.” Amen. That’s THUS SAITH THE LORD. That’s the Scripture. Right. Now we find out, death was caused. Death is the cause of sin of the woman, come through the woman and not the man. By her way of living her life, and by her, all death comes. Her way of giving life is death. How many knows that? Job 14, if you want to put down the Scripture.

• ¶224–¶228 Now, sister, I want to put you to the place where God’s Word promised you, and you see then you stay in that place, too. Matthew 5:32. I want you to notice here, to support this same idea of “one” and “many.” Matthew, thirty-…I think it’s Matthew 5:32, 31 to begin with. It has been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: That’s Jesus speaking, the One said, “from the beginning.” Now watch. But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving…the cause of fornications, causes her to commit adultery;…(see) whosoever shall put away his wife, saving… the cause of fornication, causes her to commit adultery: (Why? She’ll marry again.) and whosoever marrieth her that is divorced committed adultery. See, she has got a living husband, so no man can marry her. Care what she does and who she is, she’s got a living husband, there is no grounds for her at all. But, it’s not, for him. “Causes her,” not him. Get it? You have to make the Word run in continuity. See, nothing saying he couldn’t, but she can’t. See, “causes her,” not him. That’s exactly what the Bible says, “causes her.” It is not stated against him to remarry, but “her.” Why? Christ in the type. Notice, it is stated that he cannot remarry, only a virgin. He can remarry. He can ma-…he can remarry again if it’s a virgin, but he can’t marry somebody else’s wife. No indeedy. And if he does marry a divorced woman, he is living in adultery, I don’t care who he is. The Bible said, “Whosoever marrieth her that is put away, liveth in adultery.” There you are, not no divorcees.

• ¶229–¶233 See that original back there, “from the beginning,” now? Remarrying, now notice, he can, but she can’t. Like David, like Solomon, like the continuity of the whole Bible, now, same as David and the rest of them. Now you notice in First Corinthians 7:10, notice, Paul commands the wife that is, that divorces her husband, to remain single or be reconciled, not to remarry. She must remain single, or to be reconciled back to her husband. She cannot remarry. She must remain single, but, notice, he never said about the man. See, you can’t make the Word lie. “From the beginning,” the sex law by polygamy. Now, the Word of God runs true with nature of God, runs in to continuity. See how there is one school went east, and the other one went west, on it? You got to come back to the Truth, to find out what it is. It’s always been that way, that’s the regular covenant with God from the beginning. First, before the beginning, from the beginning there was just one and one. After the sin came in, then there was one man and a bunch of women; run that way in nature, every animal, and human beings and natural flesh is animal. We are mammal, we know that, all of us, see, and it’s all God’s nature in continuity. But now that the Seals are opened, the Spirit of Truth directs us to the Word. That explains why all the mistakes has been down through the ages, because the Seals was not opened, This was not revealed. It’s true.

• ¶241–¶243 And at the end there will be one Lord Jesus, and His Bride many, singular. You get it? There was one David on one throne, one king (after God’s Own heart) with five hundred wives. Jesus sitting on His Throne (Hallelujah!) in the Millennium, with a Wife; like it was at the beginning, created out of the earth, by the hand of Almighty God, in the resurrection, of many members. There you are. Women, struggle to be that, come into Christ, then you’ll not be in that filthy mess out there. But as long as you’re just a church member trying to live moral and good, yourself, you’ll never make it. Neither can a man make it outside of Christ. As Paul went on to say, “But there, in Christ, there is neither male nor female.” They’re all one. But to get this Marriage And Divorce straightened out, so that you would know which was right and which was wrong, now He plainly shows here in these types. There is one Christ, and many members of that Wife. Notice, He can put us away for spiritual fornications and false doctrine, any time He wants to; but how dare you try to put Him away, and make it? The man can put away his wife and marry another one; but not the woman put away her husband and marry another one. See all the shadows and types there perfectly balanced up? See the original creation; not the by-product nowhere. Not the church; the Bride through the Word. Not the woman; the man, each time. That’s why it never says anything against the man doing it; it’s always the woman. That’s exactly.

• ¶244–¶248 But she can be the Bride of Christ, by being…And remember, she being a part of a man, the Bible said she can on-…“Nevertheless I suffer not a woman to teach, or to usurp any authority, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, and then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the by-product was deceived. Notwithstanding she shall be saved if she continues in holiness and sobriety, and in childbearing, and all such,” because then she becomes a part of this man. That’s what bring… Why didn’t Abraham…Why didn’t God kill Sarah sitting right there, denying, and lying right in the face of God? Sitting there as a mortal Man, eating flesh, eating bread, drinking milk, and He said, “Why did Sarah laugh back there in the back,” behind Him, in the tent, He had never seen her, “saying, ‘These…How can these things be?’” She said, “I never said it!” Oh, ooh, my! Tell God that He is a liar, to His face? But He couldn’t take her. Why? She’s a part of Abraham. Amen. He couldn’t hurt her without hurting Abraham. Now you women see where you belong. And the Bible said, “You women be like Sarah was, which adorned herself in modest apparel, lived honest and true to her own husband, loving him so much that he…she called him her ‘lord,’” ruler, ownership. And you, some of the women, put on these nasty clothes and get out here to throw yourself before man. Jesus said, “Whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart.” Then who is guilty, the man or you? He is a male, made so he could take this act, see; and you’re the female, that ought to refuse.

• ¶272–¶275 Now on the Marriage And Divorce, see, it has to be revealed. Until it’s revealed, you don’t know it. But He promised in this last days, in this age, that every hidden mystery in the Bible would be revealed. How many knows that? Revelation, the 10th chapter! Jesus promised it, that all of these hidden mysteries on—on Marriage And Divorce, all these other hidden mysteries that’s been, would be revealed in the end time. Now you remember, the Voice said, “Go to Tucson.” Remember the mystic Light in the skies? the seventh Angel standing there? come back, and the opening of the Seven Seals. Watch what’s taken place. That is true. Now just a little bit farther. But now, hear ye! I know it’s getting time for you to go eat, but I’m just eating fine. Notice, now, the woman has got her place, and she is a jewel. Solomon, this man that had ten thousand wives…or had a thousand wives, rather, he said that, “A man that’s found a wife, has found a good thing.” He said, “A good woman is a jewel in his crown,” that’s an honor. “But an unrighteous one is water in his blood,” that’s his life. He said, “There might be one righteous man found in a thousand,” Solomon said this, “but,” said, “you wouldn’t find one righteous woman in a thousand.” Solomon said that, see. Now notice that, that how it is. But, you see, woman, you are—you are a jewel if you want to be a jewel, but the desire has to be by you. And you see why the Marriage And Divorce was, that Jesus pointed back yonder, it was because your kind was the cause of all sin. That’s the reason polygamy and divorce, and things, was introduced. At the beginning it never was so, and it won’t be so in the world over yonder.

• ¶290–¶297 “No, because a chimpanzee’s blood won’t mix with a woman, no other animal will mix with her. No, it won’t, nor neither will a man’s sperm mix with the—with the female. It won’t do it.” “Then where is that certain animal? Now, God said, ‘Let everything bring forth of its kind.’” I waited just a minute. And the sweetness of the Holy Spirit said, “Tell him, ‘It’s here.’” Now, at first I said, “Well, it may have become extinct.” He said, “But, Brother Branham, that, we are talking about the Word, aren’t we?” I said, “Yes, sir.” And I said, “They, course, claim that the other things, like dinosaurs and—and mammoth, and so forth, mammals, or mammoths, rather, they are extinct, and so forth.” I said, “It could have been that.” He said, “Brother Branham, we are talking about proof of the Word. If sin is here, then, the original sin, it ought to be here also.” And I said, “Lord Jesus, You said, ‘Take no thought what you shall say when you come before man, because it’ll be given to you in that hour.’ Lord, what shall I say?” He said, “Tell him, ‘It’s here.’” Just the same, I see the visions on the platform. I said, “It’s here,” not knowing where. He said, “Where?” And before I could even think, He said, “It’s the serpent.” That’s exactly what it was, for he is no longer a beast. He was cursed and put on his belly for the rest of his days. He is here. Is that right? And still in that act that he done, there is still the same sin works around a woman, like a male sex like that. There is where she has her walleyed conditions and things, when she has her sensations far beyond what any man could ever do.

• ¶298–¶303 I’ll stop there ’cause we’re in a mixed crowd. I’ll get some men, I’ll…we’ll talk more about it. Got all the papers and things laying right here, right at my hand right now, and I was going to bring it to you this morning. I was going to take the full day in this, but I’ll close now in saying this. This is to my church only. Not my church…The little flock that believes me and follows me, this is to them. The other day, knowing that when I tell you anything, it must come THUS SAITH THE LORD, then I had the Scriptures as He revealed it to me. But, “Lord God, what can I say to that congregation? I’ll have separations. Man will be sitting on the porch and out in the yard, and everywhere else, ‘Shall I leave her?’ Women, ‘Shall I leave my husband?’ ‘What shall I do?’” I said, “Lord, what can I do?” Something said to me, “Go up yonder in the mountain, and I’ll talk to you.” And while I was up in the mountain, not knowing that down in Tucson they were seeing It. But even the teachers called the children from…my little girl and them, from the schoolroom, and said, “Look yonder in that mountain! There is a fiery-looking amber Cloud going up in the air and coming back down, going up in the air and coming back down.” Mrs. Evans, are you here? Ronnie, you here? I come on back down by the station, this young boy by the filling station, the Evans’ filling station there. And before I knowed what the boy was going to say, he took me on my feet, he said, “Brother Branham, you was up in that mountain over yonder, wasn’t you?”

• ¶311–¶314a And in First Corinthians, the—the 7th chapter, the 12th and 15th verse, in the New Testament prophet, Paul, who met the same thing in the church, and spoke this, “This is I, not the Lord.” That right? Because of the divorce conditions. “It wasn’t so from the beginning.” But Moses was permitted it, and God recognized it righteousness. And Paul also had a right, when he found his church in that condition. Now you believe This to be true, and believe It to come from God! And by the vindication of His Cloud and His Message that’s brought me this far, should not God upon the mountain permit me to do the same thing, to suffer you to go on the way you are, and do it no more! Go with your wives and live in peace, for the hour is late. The Coming of the Lord is at hand. We haven’t got time to break these things up. Don’t you dare try to do it again! I’m speaking only to my congregation. But if you are married…And God bore me witness of that, on the mountain, that I could say This, a supernatural revelation, because of the opening of the Seven Seals, and this is a question in God’s Word. “Let them go on and, as they are, and sin no more!” “It wasn’t so from the beginning.” That is right, it wasn’t so, and it will not be at the end. But under modern conditions, as God’s servant…I won’t call myself His prophet; but I believe maybe, if I wouldn’t be sent for that, I’m laying a ground for him when he does come. So under the modern conditions, I command you to go to your home, with your wife now. If you are happy with her, live with her, raise your children in the admonition of God. But God be merciful to you if you ever do that again! You teach your children to never do a thing like that, bring them up in the admonition of God.

• ¶323–¶326 I say it now so the ministers will understand. This is to them that follows this Message only! Oh, are you happy? [Congregation says, “Amen.”—Ed.] I have told you the Truth, THUS SAITH THE LORD, all the way through! [“Amen!”] Now let us stand and raise our hands, as we sing it again, “I love Him.” I love Him for His grace. I love Him for His mercy. I love Him for His Word. “And the Word of the Lord came to the prophets!” I… Come on, brother. Go ahead.

2. A MAN RUNNING FROM THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD — 1965-02-17

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• ¶134–¶136a So in this coming week, just a little prelude tonight, to let you know. When I’m crying out, I’m solely responsible for a Message, brethren. You ministers setting here, I’m not here to hurt your feelings. And you women and men, on this marriage and divorce case coming up, I want you to remember tonight. I’ve said all this, to get this to you, that I am responsible only to God. And then, again, I’m responsible to you, to tell you the Truth. And I’m not going to tell you nothing but the Truth, as long as God lets me know what Truth is. Until I know the Truth, I won’t say nothing about it, see, I won’t say nothing about it. But I do believe that God shows me the Truth on Marriage And Divorce, and I trust that He’ll let me bring it out. And other Messages I aim to have this week, is, Who Is This Melchisedec? Where Did God Choose To Put His Name? And a few of those things like that, which are Messages coming up, and Birth Pains. And—and a few things, that on—on that order, and complementary to A Man Choosing His Wife. And a few things, them Messages, I want to bring up this week. But I just want the congregation… Where, if there would be a minister here; I’m not here, my brethren…I don’t want you, or some of you members, go back to your church, and say, “Brother Branham said thus and thus.” I am duty bound to a Message that’s been given to me from Almighty God. As I stand here tonight, and God knows that’s true, that right down on this river…There is people, perhaps, setting here, when that Angel of the Lord come down there and told me what He did, right there in 1933, right down on this Spring Street here. If you’re a stranger here, drive right down. It’s corner of Spring Street, there where you hit the river, and there is where it happened. That’s been in 1933. It’s probably been about thirty-two years ago, then. Oh, it’s been thirty-… it’s been thirty-…thirty-two years ago, thirty-two years ago. And how that He has brought that right down, everything.

3. THE INVISIBLE UNION OF THE BRIDE OF CHRIST — 1965-11-25

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• ¶32–¶35 I am thankful to God to be living in this time of the closing scenes of this world’s history. I don’t know. If I would have had a say-so before the foundation of the world, and if God would have laid out the whole program to me, and said to me, “I—I want you to preach. And now what age do you desire, to go to the earth to preach?” I would have chose this age, for I think this is the golden age. I certainly would have loved to have been here during the time of His visit to the earth. But, still, I think this right now is a greater time, because it’s a time that He’s coming to take the people that He’s redeemed, nearing the resurrection when all the redeemed will come forth. What a glorious opportunity we have, to speak to a dying people, great time! We are enthused about it. And we know that history is closing out. The world’s history will soon be over, then we’re going to step into a new day, to the great Millennium. That, as one believer, I believe in the…in a Millennium, a Millennium reign with Christ, a thousand years upon the earth; the physical return of the Lord Jesus, to take a physical people, glorified, by His cleansing Blood. Paul here is giving an illustration, in our Scripture, about the law and grace, and illustrating it like marriage and divorce. This passage is very seldom preached on, because it’s, more or less, pertains to, like, marriage and divorce. But it also pertains to a greater portion of marriage and divorce, of how that he’s trying to set in order here that we, as a—as a Church, can no more be married to the world and to Christ, at the same time, and—and be legal and lawful about it, than it can be for a woman to be living with a husband while she’s got a living husband. And I have my own thoughts of that, and I believe that what the Bible says is the Truth.

• ¶53–¶56 Luther was the messenger of one day, of justification, and the Church lined right with it, some of them. The rest of them continued on. Wesley come with sanctification, the Church lined right with it. Pentecost come with the restoration of the gifts, the Church lined right with it, the Elect of that day; and then faded away, went right back off in denominationalism and went right out with the rest of them, all of them right down along the line. Now, but you notice, when the people begin to try to line with the Word, there comes a fresh Message from the Word of God, right straight to the people. And they catch that Message and line up, every time. It’s just in God’s…We have that. We have families. Every family in here is custom to that. Sometimes everything will run fine for you, for years. Then, all at once, you’ll hit a spell where, we say it many times in the South here, “When it rains, it pours,” and everything goes wrong. You’re going through a nighttime. Then there’s a daybreak, then a nighttime. Everything runs in continuity. The prophet, Paul, here is saying that a woman cannot remarry until her first husband is dead. She cannot remarry as long as her first husband is living; she, by no circumstances, at all. She must remain single as long as her first husband is living. And if she should do such a sin, “she shall be called an adulteress.” I’m speaking of the natural now, to type it with the spiritual. If this woman would commit such a sin, then she is marked, “an adulteress,” if she has two living husbands at the same time. Therefore, she has forfeited, by doing this, her rights to God and Heaven, by doing so. She sure has. She is an outcast from the economy of God, according to the Scriptures that I’ve just read.

• ¶148–¶153 And that’s exactly what happened here. Cain that…Satan, that morning, in the serpent; and Adam, that afternoon. When she…And she had two children. Now, Adam knew his wife again (the second time); and she bare a son,… Remember, there is nowhere in the Bible that said Cain was Adam’s son. Said, “He was of that evil one,” not Adam, “the devil.” …knew his (the second time), and knew…and had a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed… (That wasn’t the real Seed.)…appointed me another seed instead of Adam, whom Cain slew. So… And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: and then began men to call upon the name of the LORD. Not out of Cain’s, that generation genealogy, but out of Seth’s genealogy. So, “Cain is the evil one.” There come the serpent. Now notice. The Bible plainly says here, that, “Her first husband must be dead,” not just put away. He’s got to be dead. I just got through preaching on Marriage And Divorce, and you all know about that. I’m not speaking now, altogether, this congregation here, but out across the nation. All right. Now you see what happened there, in Marriage And Divorce. When it…?…The Seven Seals was opened, that brought out the real Truth of it. So, to be married to the Second Adam, Christ, the Word, you must separate yourself by death, from your first denominational husband, ’cause there isn’t a one of them that can take all the Word of God. Just show me where that one is at. “Oh,” you say, “mine.” The other fellow says his, too. Put them together, and you find out you’re both wrong, soon as you denominate. Read Revelation 17. So, you see, you’ve got to be dead from that thing.

4. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS — 1964-08-23

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• ¶135–¶137 Ever who you are, Sister or Brother, whoever it is, I agree with you one hundred percent. It’s a disgrace, but tell me what to do about it! I preach it just as hard as I know how to preach it; they do it the same. So it’s their judgment, ’cause the Word’s went forth. Yes, I’m certainly against them little old skintight dresses that look like…I constantly fuss at my kids, Becky and Sarah. I don’t care how little they are, I… that…I just fuss at them all the time. I think they even wear their dresses…Meda takes Becky apart every day about it. See? Dresses plumb up…Cause kids, you can expect that in kids, and you have to correct them; but when it comes to a woman, there’s something wrong there. See? Don’t hurt feelings now, I’m just answering questions. You ask me from your heart; I’m telling you from my heart. If you find the solution, I—please come tell me, I’ll sure do it, if I can do anything about it. Like somebody said the other day, he said, “Well, I tell you, Brother Branham,” said, “I tell you what Adam and Eve…” Said, “It was just exactly; they had a apple!” And I noticed they changed that now; they said they had a what? I believe it was called a something? [A brother says, “Apricot.”—Ed.] Apricot, yeah, it was a apricot they eat. Well, it’s time to pass the apricots again if it makes them realize they were naked. See? 245. Brother Branham, I have accepted God’s Message of today, and also our son. And we both have been baptized in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. My husband—my husband hasn’t accepted the Message and is fighting this Message. And he has influenced our son and is taking him to a Methodist church. He wants me to go with him to church when we are not in service here at the tabernacle. Would it be right for me to go with him or would it be better to stay out of that denomination?

• ¶138–¶140 Well now, dear Sister…She never signed no name, but perhaps you’re listening to your question; if you don’t, you’ll hear it on tape. Go with your husband, but don’t be partakers of—of what they’re doing. See, you’re supposed to love your husband, and love is what does it. You just be real salty; he’ll get thirsty if there’s anything in him. Don’t join their denomination. He said, “Stay away from that denomination.” Don’t join it; go to it. If you can’t get a whole loaf, get a half; can’t get a half, just get a slice. See, see? But that’s the way you’ll win your husband, by doing that. Don’t be arrogant, then he’ll know he’s got just as much as you have. See? But when you can show something that you have that he don’t have, that’ll make him thirsty to be like you. The sanctified wife sanctifies the husband. That was just an advice. So I—I could spend a long time on that, but we just want to get through as many as we can, ’cause I see I only got about twenty-two minutes then. All right. 246. Brother Branham, I believe the Message you teach with all my heart. It thrills my soul; however, my wife and son do not rejoice in the Word. They do not desire to separate themselves from some of their worldly habits. You said that we should claim our—claim our families. I find that difficult to do, seeming that they do not live for the Word or in the Word. What is my course, sir? Do I claim them and believe, or do I pray, “Father, Thy will be done,” and be content in the state I find myself in? I would appreciate your guidance, Brother Branham.

• ¶206–¶208 Now, on this here, let—let—let’s just kind of…You…Here’s what I say. Let me say this, not the Lord, let me say it. If you are married at this time, and you both are saved, and you’re filled with the Holy Spirit, and you love one another, and you’ve got little children (now, remember this is me, not the Lord. See?), go ahead and live together; be happy; ’cause you couldn’t live with your first wife or you wouldn’t have married her. Then if you leave this and go back to your first one, you’re doing worse than you did in the first place. See? So you see, you’re all messed up; there’s no way of getting out of it. There’d only be one way truly that I can say from the Bible: both of you live single. See? Now, but…That’s the only way I could say right now, but there is another thing in there, that I—I can’t tell you now, and the reason I say, “Not I, but the Lord, continue on.” If you’ll ever bring that to a tape, and someday, if I ever bring it, you remember the way I said that. If you were wise, you could’ve picked it up (see?), on how I said that then, and then you would know. 256. Brother Branham, should we go to the other churches even when they disagree with you? Sure, yep! Jesus did when they disagreed with Him. Go ahead. We notice here, says, “Should we go to another church that disagrees with you?” Sure, I don’t…I’m not the only pebble on the beach, you know. There’s—there’s just other godly men everywhere; I hope I’m one of them. See? But don’t never get down here…

5. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS — 1964-08-23

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• ¶79–¶80 But Paul said that as long as they…unbelieving husband has a unbelieving…or believing wife or so forth, let the believing wife remain with the believing husband, as long as is not contrary now to God. If he’s pleased to dwell with her…“Go ahead, Honey, if you want to go to church, that’s all right; but I ain’t going. I don’t believe in it; don’t have nothing to do with it. But you go ahead; that’s all right.” But when he says, “You can’t do it,” now there’s a different thing. You’re not bound to that then; you separate everything for God. 286. Brother Branham, is it (Let’s see.)…for a person who has a— who has a living, divorced mate who remarry before coming unto the Message to minister? Well, in First Timothy 3:2, if you want to put that down, and Titus 1 to 6 (I wrote that one down), I want you to read that for this question. See? If a man—if a man desires the office of a bishop or a preacher (something another in church), he’s got to have just one wife. That’s right! A minister. Now, that’s First Timothy 3:2, and Titus 1 to 6. Now, Titus 1 to 6, yeah! All right. Now, notice that the Bible said that that man that’s a minister in the house of God will have one wife. Now. 287. Dear Brother Branham, approximately ten years ago God met me now and healed what the gift of love, or, revealed what the gift of love was, and same then my prayer is for…that I will return. Will I receive it before I die? Will my husband hear the Word, and what am I to do?

• ¶142b–¶145 Brother Branham, will there be any children born during the Millennium…thousand years Millennium, one thousand years reign of Christ here on earth? Or will there be any sign on earth…any sin (pardon me) on earth during that time; and will there be people on earth in corporal bodies during that time? I’ll try to just run through them right quick. Now, in Genesis the 6th chapter, 12th verse, God said all flesh had corrupted…Yeah, that was marriage, divorce, and everything else. The Bible said, “As it was in the days of Noah, how they married, and give in marriage,” and so forth like that. That is one of the signs of the end time, just one of the signs. Now, if that’s all the world was doing, I couldn’t call it the evidence of the end time, no more than I can call speaking in tongues the evidence of the Holy Ghost. It is true that there’s supposed to come a time when marriage and divorce is just like it was in the days of Noah, but there’s so many other things goes with it; it’s just one of the signs. And speaking in tongues is one of the signs of the Holy Spirit, but not an infallible sign of the Holy Spirit, no more than just women and men marrying and divorcing and marrying again. That wouldn’t be the only sign. If that’s the only one there was, I couldn’t call it that. See? Other things has to go with speaking in tongues or any other gift to make it God.

• ¶189–¶192 Suit yourself, either one. I sure love you, I don’t care where you go, what you do. But now, as advice, I believe I’d come to Jeffersonville. If you’re going to move anyhow, I’d come to Jeff. I believe I’m here more than I am in Arizona. That’s fine. 310. Brother Branham, is—is it too late to preach to sinners anymore? No! No! Don’t get that in your mind, brother. Keep on building on the house. Keep doing everything you can. Just keep on going till you’re called away. See? 311. Question number two. Should the saved separate themselves from sinners in worship? Should the saved separate from sinners to worship? I don’t know exactly what you mean by that. If you mean sinners like out in the…You worship God everywhere. But I think if we did, how we going to have church, ’cause the sinners come right into the church and set down by the side of the Christian. Don’t never separate yourself from anything but sin, not the sinner. Get the sinner if you can, but don’t be takers of his sin. 312. Should a saved wife refuse herself to her husband if he is a sinner? No, sir! No, sir! That’s your husband. You’ll drive him farther away from God than ever by doing that. See? That’s right, Brother, Sister. You married him; he’s yours, and you’re his. 313. Brother Branham, what is the meaning of a annulment? Are people free to marry or is this just another word for divorce? I would like some information on this.

6. THE FAITH THAT WAS ONCE DELIVERED TO THE SAINTS — 1953-11-29

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• ¶95–¶99 Now, you’re going to get angry with me, you just might as well get started. But, you men that’ll let your wives go out and act like that, and smoke cigarettes, and walk around, that shows how much man’s in you. That’s right. A real true-blooded man won’t permit such stuff as that. That’s right. Brother, that may be hard to digest, but if it is, take it, ’cause it’s good for you. Amen. That’s exactly right. I tell you, a real red-blooded man… My wife may do it sometime. When she does, that’s the day she leaves the Branham home. That’s exactly right. I wouldn’t permit it. By the grace of God, I couldn’t permit it. That’s right. And when men will stand up… Excuse me. That thing’s got more voice than I have. But look. I’m not excited. I know where I am. I know what I’m talking about too. Now, look. That’s right. This little ol’ girl started across the floor hollering, “Tootle-dee, doodle-dee,” and when this…she said…They was going to have some kind of old barn swing dance, or something or other, and she got down there to—to the radio, and she throwed a kiss to that guy through the radio. So excited she didn’t even know I was at the door. She said, “Tootle-loo, honey. I’ll see you out there tonight.” And I thought, “Yeah, it’s true, you’ll be there. No doubt at all. You’ll be there.” And she walked over, she kept going around the floor hollering, you know, like she was dancing. She said, “Oh, excuse me.” She said, “I just love to donce so well.” I said, “I noticed it.” And—and she said—she said, “Oh, I just love it.” I said, “I—I believe that.” I said, “Here’s your change.” And—and I went on back, and I was coming down a pole.

7. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS — 1964-08-30

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• ¶134–¶138 I got that one even this morning. See? It’s one thousand years. All right. Brother Branham, the problem of what… Yeah, I got that. The wheat and the tares, you remember we got that. I believe we’re coming right down now. I may have throwed a bunch of these back. Let’s see. Same thing. Brother Branham, I am a mother of six wonderful children and my husband wants me to go to work for a while to help finance. Should I? Also want to pray to God to grant me faith that… to give me…Abraham and—and…like faith…like Abraham and Daniel and the Hebrew children. Should a Christian raise tobacco? I’ve just went through that. And… 416. Brother Branham, is it wrong for a woman to shave her legs? Am I seeing things? Does that say that? I can’t…I don’t know. I’m going to leave that with you. Is—is this day wrong to limit your family? Did it mean practice complete birth control? I answered that, of course, to the…each individual. Let’s see. If a woman while in sin gets a divorce and remarries and… I answered that. You remember I said, “Leave the divorce cases till…” 417. I have a friend who I love very much. She has had some tapes and letters that I believe that have…never talked to her. Really, I guess I am afraid of destroying her and losing her as a friendship. What should I do? Speak to her in love. I don’t…I believe I answered that, but I— I’d…Don’t—don’t try to push anything on anybody. Just be salty; they’ll long to be like you. Brother, sister, I believe I’ve answered these. Brother Branham, please explain about the five foolish virgins. I—I know I got that one. It’s wrote, and it’s red paper. I believe we’re…I got that one. I believe I have answered all of these. Praise the Lord. Let’s see. Excuse me just a minute. 418. Dear prophet of God, Saint Mark 16:18, I…part of laying hands on the sick…I’m around snake handlers. What about it?

8. WISDOM VERSUS FAITH — 1962-04-01

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• ¶63–¶66 And she said, “I was anticipating suicide, planning it, to leave my lovely husband and my little girl.” She said, “We live in Kansas. I love it, because I see the grain ripening, and think of the harvest.” I think she was a Methodist. And said where…And then, over at the Methodist college in Bloomington, Illinois, they picked up a paper, that I was to be there, eleven months ago. Many of you remember the Bloomington meeting. You were there. And she said, “My husband got me, and some friends, and took off.” And said, “The Lord knew I couldn’t stand it one more day.” She was so far gone. And said, “I was the first person. Your son, Billy Paul, give me a card. And that night, when your—when your husband called the numbers, I was the first one in the line, to be prayed for.” And said, “As soon as I come to the platform,” said, “he told me my life and told me what I done, and ever what all about it, and said, ‘THUS SAITH THE LORD, it’s over.’” Said, “That very split minute, I’ve never had another pain.” Said, “I weighed seventy-something pounds. I weigh a hundred-and-sixty-something now.” And said, “Sister Branham, when you’re lonesome,” said, “I know how you feel, sharing your husband with the world, and things like that. But,” said, “just remember, a little Kansas housewife is free today, because he was willing to mind the Lord.” I showed Billy. I said, “Billy, I want you to send this over to that Methodist college.” He reached over and got a pile, said, “Read some of these.”

9. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS — 1964-08-30

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• ¶182b–¶185 He said, “Just a moment!” He said, “I’m kind of curious; I’m a stranger.” Said, “You all gettin’ married?” Said, “Yes!” “Without a preacher?” He said, “No!” Said, “We been married forty years.” He said, “We got married right here at this altar forty years ago, and every year we come back and renew our vows.” That’s a good idea. See? But as far as married, when you promise her, she takes your word; you take her word; and God takes both your word. See? But just don’t promise less…[Blank spot on tape—Ed.] 343. When they cut it in…Is long—is long hair when they cut it in front? (Now, wait a minute, let me get this here.) Is long hair when they… Well, I—I…Maybe they mean this: “Is it long hair any longer when they cut it in front?” Not any longer, they’ve cut it off. See? But like the man that had the trousers cut them off three times and still too short. What say? What say? [Someone speaks to Brother Branham—Ed.] Oh, that’s what they’re talking about. As I tease my little girl, she said…The “booms” I call them, you know, bangs, or whatever it is, you know, across the front here. Well, I imagine those kids that’s cutting their hair in front…You, maybe your mother could tell you about that, see, if she wants you to do that way. I think it’d look kind of—kind of a little bit like a woman was looking through the rear-view mirror if she passed about twenty- five years old and wanted to cut them off in front like that, look like some little kid. Look on out here where you’re going, sis, not where you’ve been. See?

• ¶239–¶243 I can’t explain that, for one place it said they saw the Light and never heard the Voice, or something like that; and the next place, they saw the…heard the Voice and never saw the Light. I can’t explain it. See? I—I don’t know what happened, and I won’t know until the Lord reveals it to me; no more than I could tell you about marriage and divorce. I didn’t know until He revealed it to me. And even this morning, the Lord God, Creator of heavens and earth knows this to be the truth, this morning He finished up the whole thing, telling me about marriage and divorce. That’s right. That’s the reason I say, let me get it all together. Search… When one of those things like the serpent’s seed, when it was presented to me, I—I couldn’t see it, nothing; but I just kept following that, and the first thing you know…Then have to get way away to yourself, and then the Holy Spirit begins to open it up. Now, I want somebody try to condemn it now. See? Can’t do it. 362. Please explain the mystery of the translation of the Bride. Just a change, see, our bodies. Now, let’s say our. You know what I mean when I say that? I don’t mean to be sacrilegious. I don’t mean to say ours; I don’t mean to say this church; I mean to say every believer. Abraham, he was looking for a promised son, that was promised him. Is that right? And the Church is looking for a promised Son. The Bride (is that right?), the Bride is looking for the promised Son.

10. SOUTH AFRICA TESTIMONY — 1954-09-02

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• ¶29–¶30 I said, “Oh, no you haven’t. It’s way back there, and it’s just cut till you don’t feel it any more, but it’s there just the same.” I said, “Now, you know I don’t know you. And you know nobody in the world knows that but you, that man, and God.” And I said, “Here it is revealed to you now.” And she said, “I just can’t do it, Reverend Branham,” said, “I’m sorry, break my home up.” I said, “Well, it’s going to break your home up anyhow, ’cause you’re not going to go very much longer.” I said, “You’d better go get your husband and talk it over.” She said, “I just can’t do that.” And my wife said, “Well, there’s somebody else at the door.” So she went out. Said, “Well, that’s up to you, lady.” I said, “That—that’s all I can do now. I’ve told you what He said, and that’s…You know whether it’s the truth or not.” I said, “Well, that’s all; I just have to go, and so, there’s someone in the other room then, people coming in.” SOUTH AFRICA TESTIMON Y So she said, “Just a minute, don’t.” She said, “Oh, Reverend Branham, I—I can’t do that.” And I looked, standing by the side of her there stood a tall black- headed man in a vision again, had his hair kind of combed sideways like that, wavy hair, real tall man. He turned his back to me; he had wrote on the back with a white coat, Chevrolet. I said, “Don’t your husband work for a Chevrolet company?” She said, “Yes, sir.” I said, “He’s tall, dark head and got wavy hair?” She said, “Yes, sir, that’s right.” I seen a vision of him. I said, “He’s got the same thing to confess to you.” She said, “Not my husband, he’s a deacon.”

11. THE THIRD EXODUS — 1963-06-30

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• ¶25–¶30 Thank you, brother, Brother George Todd, if the man is here this morning. Now, I would have the Sunday school lesson. I’m usually kind of long with it. There’s something that keeps moving on my heart, I don’t know, since yesterday. Now we…if the Lord…is a—is a subject. I’m getting old, and I—I don’t know how much longer I’m to be here. But there’s a great question in the church, that’s got men at variance, and different ideas. Just like the eating of “the apple.” And I preached on this Message, and I believe, firmly, can prove it by the Scriptures, that it was not apples. See? Caused a lot of confusion. So, maybe, before we leave…We got to go back now, in about thirty days, you know, back to Arizona. And so if, before I leave, the Lord willing, I would like to take the Scripture. And don’t tape it. If they do, don’t sell the tape. Don’t let it get out. I want to explain the real Truth of marriage and divorce. It’s a question. And this is the last hours, that, “When all the mysteries of God should be finished.” And yesterday, coming up across the mountains, about daylight, the Holy Spirit seemed to say to me, “Tape that and lay it away,” I don’t know why, but, “the real Truth of marriage and divorce.” Some of them says, “People can marry, if they can swear they was in adultery.” And others says, “Well, if they mistreat one another, and— and they can’t live together; it’s better to live, earth, in peace, than live in hell on earth.” And all those different questions! And some marry them just any old way. And some wants to sprinkle holy water on them, and turn them back, and say, “They never was married.” And bless them, and turn them over to the church again. There’s all kind of confusion. But, if there’s that much confusion, there’s a Truth somewhere.

12. THE KEY TO THE DOOR — 1962-10-07

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• ¶26–¶27 Now, if the Lord willing, I had something here that I might announce that the services, if they come up for this next week, if I’ve placed them in here, or at least I thought I did, about what I was going to speak on for the—the—the coming, this coming service of the following week. If I—I think…I thought I put it in this book, I don’t know whether I did or not. Yes, here it is. The Lord willing, Saturday night I want to preach on the subject of Why One Man Influences Another’s Life. And Sunday morning I want to preach on The Capping Of The Pyramid. And Sunday night I want to preach on My Guide, the subject, My Guide, for this coming Sunday night. Now may the Lord bless those things and help me, as I’ve been out, and just a little context to pick them up. Now tonight, we want to hurry and have a few things. By the way, I have a letter here that—that just come in the mail, as Billy picked it up a while ago, that some brethren are in Michigan, and this comes from the ministerial association that’s got a lot of things. That’s what gets things scrupled up, you see. That, they claim in here that some brethren up there that said that I sent them up there, and they’re preaching that men should leave their wives and hunt for their spiritual mate, and that— that I am perfectly infallible. That there’s nothing…And, oh, some of the awfulest things you ever heard. And the ministerial association got a hold of it, and they’re writing me a letter about it, and that I sent them up there and it’s causing a lot of confusion. And some of them prophesying and saying that one man should leave this wife and go marry that one. Now, this church knows that we don’t stand for no such tommyrot as that.

13. THE KINSMAN REDEEMER — 1960-10-02

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• ¶1–¶2 Thank you, Brother Neville. The Lord bless you. So good to be back again, this morning, back in the house of the Lord. I believe it was said, one time, “I was happy when they said unto me, ‘Let us go into the house of the Lord.’” Charlie, come out behind that post, and come up here and get you a chair. Come on up here. Sister, is there a chair back in there, somewhere, we could squeeze in? Here’s a place right up here, lady. Come right up here. Here, Charlie, come here and sit down by Banks up here, so you won’t have to stand up. Every time that boy comes from way down in Kentucky, gets up here, he stands up every morning. And we’ll get him right up here. Here’s a place here, on the end of the seat here, for someone else. [Brother Neville says, “There’s a lady back here, too.”—Ed.] There’s a lady standing up in the back, back there. Come right up here. Here’s a seat right here, sister, right up close. Come right ahead. And I suppose somebody is in the wheel chair there. Are they? [A sister says, “Brother Branham?”] Yes. [“There’s a seat right here.”] There’s another seat right over here. If someone wants one, back there in the back, right here is a seat right here. [A brother says, “And here is one, Brother Branham.”] Here’s one right up here, also, just suit yourself. [“Another one, over here.”] Yes. You can have one right here. Now, come right on, take your seats. And just feel real…

14. THINGS THAT ARE TO BE — 1965-12-05

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• ¶73–¶74 Someone got after me; a great, noted minister, not long ago. Said, “Brother Branham, come. I want to lay hands on you.” Said, “You’re going to ruin your ministry.” I said, “What?” Said, “Bawling them people out like that.” I said, “I’m telling the…” Said, “I believe that.” Said, “I’m a Pentecostal, too. I believe that women shouldn’t wear short hair, shouldn’t wear paints, and these things like that the way they do, paint their faces up.” Said, “They shouldn’t do that. But,” said, “God called you to pray for the sick.” I said, “He called me to preach the Gospel.” Yeah. And he said, “I believe in that. But,” said, “you think that?” I said, “Yeah. Look what you got, all these big programs, televisions, and everything else. I ain’t got nothing but God to answer to.” That’s right. I said, “I don’t have nothing but God to answer to.” He said, “I—I—I…You’re going to ruin your ministry.” I said, “Any ministry that the Word of God will ruin, ought to be ruined.” That’s right. Certainly. That’s exactly. He said, “Well, you’re going to ruin it.” I said, “Who is going to tell It then? See? Somebody has got to say It. Somebody has got to stand for that what’s Truth, no matter what It hurts.” And friends, as Christian, as people that believe we’re going to Heaven, the Holy Spirit Itself will type us in the Word of God. He said, “You know what you ought to do?” Said, “People believe you to be a prophet.” Said, “You ought to be teaching these women how to get gifts of prophecy and things like that, and great, higher things instead of little thing.”

• ¶92b–¶94 You don’t live any laws, and so forth, you live by the grace of God, the Spirit of God. I’ve often said this. As a missionary, I’d be going overseas. What if I brought my wife in, my children, “Now looky here, children! Listen here, Mrs. Branham! I am your husband. Thou shall not have any other husbands while I’m gone. If you do, I’ll skin you when I get back home”? Uh-huh. See? Stomp my foot, “Children, hear what I say?” “Yeah. Yes, papa. Yes, papa.” “You let me hear of one transgression? See?” See? Now, wouldn’t that be a home? Now what if she say, “Now, you through, sir? Now I want to tell you something. Mr. Branham, I am your lawful wedded wife! Thou shall not have any other girl friends while you’re gone, either”? Now, wouldn’t that be a home? Now, that would be something. We don’t do that. I love her, and she loves me. When she knows I’m going, she knows I don’t go ’less the Lord calls me to go. We get down on the floor, and get the children around. We pray. I said, “Dear God, take care of my little companion, my children.” They say, “God, take care of daddy while we’re gone, while he’s gone.” And then when we go over… Now, what if I did do something wrong over there? What if I did transgress, do something wrong? And I come back and went to that poor little wife of mine, stood there and look at her face wrinkling, and her hair turning gray, I walked up and said, “Honey, I want to tell you something. You know I love you.” “Sure, Bill, I know you love me.”

15. THE SIXTH SEAL — 1963-03-23

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• ¶44–¶52 I said, “You don’t teach that in your church at home, do you, for that?” So said, “No. But,” said, “you know, I had a vision of it, Brother Branham.” I said, “Well, that’s fine.” I said… He said, “Do you mind?” Said, “I believe I could straighten you out a little bit on your teaching about that.” And I said, “All right.” And he…I said, “I—I—I would be glad to know it, sir.” And he said, “Well,” said, “you know, in this vision,” he said, “I was asleep.” And I said, “Yeah.” I seen, then, it was a dream. See? And he said, “My—my wife,” said, “she had been living with another man,” and said, “and running around on me.” And said, “Then she come to me, and she said to me, ‘Oh, darling, forgive me, forgive me!’ Said, ‘I—I—I—I’m sorry I did it. I’ll be true from now on.’” Said, “Course, I loved her so much, I just forgive her, said, ‘All right.’” And said, “Then…” And said, “Do you know what? Then I got the interpretation of this vision.” Said, “That was the woman.” Said, “Sure, she has been married, and—and so forth, and all these times.” And said, that, “It’s all right for her to marry, because the Lord loved her so much. She can marry as many times as she wants to, far as…” I said, “Your vision was mighty sweet, but it was way off of the beaten Path here.” I said, “That’s—that’s wrong, see. You shouldn’t do that.” So that…See? But when you see Scripture dovetailing with Scripture, making it a constant continuity where they come together. The Scriptures, where This one leaves off here, This other one over here comes and dovetails in, and draws the whole picture out.

16. WHY ARE PEOPLE SO TOSSED ABOUT? — 1956-01-01

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• ¶189–¶192 Man, a fine man, he come to me and he said, “Brother Branham, we’re going to have a divorce, I guess.” Said, “I just can’t get that devil to move out of her.” I said, “Brother, you’re going at it the wrong way.” I said, “When she starts like that, say, ‘All right, Dear. Bless your heart, Honey,’ and be real kind to her, just see how much you can do for her.” Said, “Brother Branham, well, how will I ever get the devil out?” I said, “You do as I say, and just keep praying in your heart.” See? I said, “God will take care of the rest of it.” He called me up, about two or three weeks later and said, “My home is revolutionized.” He said, “My wife is a different person.” I said, “Which is the most powerful? Screaming and kicking and stomping, or putting your arms around in love?” God is love. “That God so loved the world!” Ever since by faith I saw the stream Thy flowing wounds supply, Redeeming love has been my theme, And shall be till I die. (That’s right.) A man calling, said, “This woman has got three devils.” Said, “One of them’s name is Jess, and the other one’s name is Bess, and they just call the other one anything.” And intelligent people sitting there, supporting that meeting by the hundreds, and hundreds, and hundreds. Said, “One of them is green, the other one is blue, and the other one is pink.” “O” I thought, “God! O God, there’s something wrong! Don’t let that happen, God. Those people that were struggling so hard to try to get to the Kingdom of God!”

17. WE HAVE SEEN HIS STAR AND HAVE COME TO WORSHIP HIM — 1963-12-16

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• ¶63–¶66 Look at Jeremiah, before he even was conceived in his mother’s womb, while he was yet there, God said, “I knew you, and sanctified you, and ordained you a prophet to the nations.” See? “Gifts and callings are without repentance.” And you can only be, that can only work when there’s something there for it to work with. Like if there’s a right hand to work, and you got a right hand, then let it work for the Kingdom of God. If you got eyes to see, then see the right things; lips, voice to speak, speak the right things. Whatever it is, do the right things. And convert all you’ve got, to God, to His glory. Now, we find out that the forecast foretells future events before they happen. Strange as it seems, that almighty God foretold, and took the welfare of the Baby, Jesus, and revealed it by a dream, what to do. Now that God, in this secondarily way, to His Own Son, revealed it to Joseph by a dream. The Bible said He did. Yes, sir. Now, Joseph was a good man, he was the son of David, and he was espoused to Mary. Now I’d like to pass this on, before we go further. “Espousing,” in the East, was the same as marriage, is betrothal. As soon as they—as they were espoused, they were married. When that sacred vow between them was taken, read Deuteronomy 22:23, and you’ll find out that when this woman and man agreed to be married (yet they did not take the vows for months later), if they even broke that vow, they were guilty of adultery. That’s right. When they was espoused, they were just the same as marriage. The law had not given them rights to live together as husband and wife yet, but before God, when they promised one another, their words were sealed in God’s Kingdom. And, to break that, was just committing adultery. And now Joseph was “espoused” to Mary. If minister brothers, if you’d study that right good, it’d clear you up on this marriage-and-divorce case that’s so—so hard and different amongst the people today. Now notice Joseph, her husband, being a just man, see, now we find out that this could not be broken.

18. HEBREWS, CHAPTER SEVEN 1 — 1957-09-15

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• ¶81–¶83 Here not long ago, a good preacher friend of mine, he had a boy, and that boy had been going to church, his own church. He got to a place where he started running around with a little ol’ girl who smoked and drank and carried on. Preacher said, “Of course, that’s his business.” A very bosom friend of mine, and a nice boy. But he got all infatuated with some young woman; and she had been married, had some children, her husband was living. He was afraid they was going to have…that boy would marry her. So, the brother was all tore up. And he said to me, “Brother Branham, I want you to go to this certain-certain boy of mine. I want you to talk to him.” I said, “Brother…” I almost called his name. “You have a better way. Don’t send me. If the boy is not living up, and the church has saw him doing wrong, then it’s the thing for the church to do this business. That’s left with the church. And the church goes over and tells him.” So he took a brother, and went over and told him. And he got back at the brother, let him know he was attending to his own business, for him to do the same. He took another brother, two more, two deacons went over and told the boy. He wouldn’t listen to it. They told it to the church. And he never come for several nights, to be reconciled to the church after his sin was told before the church. Then, the church loosed him.

19. THE ONCOMING STORM — 1960-02-29

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• ¶176–¶180 God bless you, Sister…?…[Brother Branham prays with the people at the altar, many of his words are indiscernible—Ed.]…?… Oh, nevermore… Won’t you just raise up, and come down with these others standing around the altar here? Come. It’s coming to judgment now. Won’t you come? Come now, your sins confess now, you won’t have to go to the judgment. God bless this couple that just come. God bless you, sir. That’s good. God bless you, young lady. Come right on down. Come, sir. I’ve wandered far… Come on, my Spanish brother. …away from God, Now I’m coming… Won’t you raise up now, and come down here? Let’s pray. Come to the Shelter. …of sin too long I’ve trod, O Lord, I’m coming home. May I say this, just while the organ is continually playing. The Message, tonight, is a Message of love, grace, and warning. Tomorrow night, this Message may be in your ears somewhere else, a Message of condemnation and judgment. While It has mercy in It, come and receive It. Won’t you, friends? I’ve got to meet you with This, what I’ve said tonight, someday. Won’t you come? Let It speak for mercy, for you. While we sing once more, “Now I’m Coming Home,” won’t you do it? Just stay right here, sister, dear. You all stay right here if you will, just a moment. We want to have prayer with these at the altar. Just let them stay right where they are. Once more now. I’ve wandered far… Rise up, come. Won’t you? I invite you. Now I’m coming home; The path of sin too long I’ve trod, Lord, I’m coming home. Christians, pray now. Coming home…

20. JEHOVAH-JIREH — 1961-03-12

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• ¶195–¶201 You say, “Brother Branham, that’s not so.” All right, we’ll just see if it’s so or not. You can’t read the Bible like a newspaper, It’s a love Letter. My little wife back there, when we, I start overseas, now what if I went to her…? That’s where you have to get away from so much of this, “I can’t do this, because I’m professing this. I can’t do this.” If you want to do it, you might as well as do it, certainly. Let you, get it out of your heart, it’s love, grace that does it. What if I—I started overseas, and Mrs. Branham there said, walked up to me, and said, “Listen here!” I say, “Listen, Mrs. Branham, thou shalt not have any other husbands, I’m your husband. Thou shall not…If I hear you’ve been with any more husbands, I’ll divorce you when I come back.” She would say, “Wait a minute, my dear man! Thou shalt not have any other, more wives, too, because if—if—if you have any more wives, I’ll divorce you when you come back.” Now, wouldn’t that be a home? That’s the way the church tries to be to God, “I am Presbyterian.” “I am Pentecostal.” Oh! See? Nothing, “nothing,” is right. Look, what do we do? I love her, she loves me. We just get down and pray, and I ask God to help her, and she asks God to help me, I kiss her good-bye, and go overseas, that settles it. She don’t have to worry about me, I love her too much; I don’t worry about her, she loves me too much. As long as we love one another that way we’ll be all right.

21. THE CHOOSING OF A BRIDE — 1965-04-29

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• ¶129–¶136 I know, sisters, many of you say, “The Lord called me to preach.” I’m not going to argue with you. But I’m going to tell you, the Word says you not to do it. “She shall not teach, or usurp any authority, but to be in silence.” “Well,” you say, “the Lord told me to do it.” I don’t doubt that one bit. Did you hear my Message the other night about Balaam? Balaam got the first, straight-cut decision of God, “Don’t do it.” But he kept on fooling around till finally God told him to go do it. God might permit you to preach. I don’t say He didn’t. But it’s not according to His original Word and plan. “For she is to be under obedience, as also saith the law.” It’s true. Therefore, she’s not supposed to do it. Now, notice again how the natural bride types the spiritual. The Word says, that, “She was made for man, and not man made for her.” Now I’m going to speak, and why, in a few minutes, on the Bride of Christ, but I’m trying to show you the background of it. “Woman was made for man, and not man for woman.” That’s the reason, under the old laws, that polygamy was legal. Look at David setting down there with five hundred wives, and the Bible said, “He was a man after God’s own heart.” With five hundred wives, and Solomon with a thousand, but not one of them women could have another husband. You get my tape on Marriage And Divorce. That, up on top the mountain at Tucson, here not long ago, I was up there praying about it. They dismissed the schools, to watch that Pillar of Fire circle the mountain and go in a funnel, back and forth, up and down. People around here knows it, there, and saw It; and It…when He told me the Truth of this marriage and divorce questions. If there’s one side going this way, and one going that way, there’s got to be a Truth somewhere. After those Seven Seals, He showed what was the Truth of it.

22. SPEAK TO THIS MOUNTAIN — 1959-11-23

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• ¶48–¶52 So he called me out there, Mr. Wood did. And I was dirty, and you know how you be, and hot and sweaty, and overalls just white with perspiration, and, where they had been the day before. He come in, he said, “And you’re the preacher that took Banks on this wild chase?” And I said, “No, sir, I’m not.” I said, “I’m his brother in Christ, preaches the Gospel.” And he looked me all up and down a few times, we set down to talk. Not an unreasonable person, nice, but he said, “Mr. Branham,” said, “we were raised strictly Jehovah Witness, our father is a reader in the Jehovah Witness.” I said, “That’s fine. I’m certainly glad to hear that, that…And you have a nice name, and I sure appreciate a daddy that would raise you, and a mother, to be honest and upright people as you are.” And so while I was there the Holy Spirit in the goodness of His mercy, a vision came over, and I said, “Mr. Wood, I see you’re a married man. You have a wife, she’s a blonde-headed woman, you have two little boys about six and eight years old.” And he looked around towards Banks real funny, looked back. I said, “You thought Banks had told me that. He has not.” I said, “Perhaps maybe you know this: You have left your wife, or you’re untrue to her. Last night you was with a woman that had auburn hair, she’s much younger than you are, you were in a place where she and you were in a room together, and there was a man knocking at the door. You slipped to the window, and it’s a good thing you didn’t go at the door, you would got your head shot off, ’cause he had a pistol in his hand.” And he fell to the floor, he knowed that Banks didn’t tell me that. He said, “Mr. Branham, I want to know more about this.” Right there in the room the Lord Jesus saved him.

23. FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD — 1953-09-05

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• ¶19–¶20 She was…When she was married, her husband went overseas, and she went out with a man which was blond-headed, and she had went out and lived untrue to her marriage vows, while her husband was overseas. She come back, and on the road coming back she was almost struck by a train, which would’ve took both of their lives. She just missed the train. And when I…The vision left, she was falling over in the floor like that, fainting, and she begin screaming. My wife come in. I picked her up. And she said…I said, “Lady, and you a Sunday school teacher.” She said, “Brother Branham,” said, “I—I’ve confessed that to God a long time ago.” I said, “Look. No one knows that but you, and the man that was with you, and God Almighty.” She said, “That’s right.” I said, “No psychiatrist could ever pull that out of you. No,” I said, “that had to come Divine.” I said, “Now, you go to your husband and make that right.” She said, “I can’t, Brother Branham. I got three children.” Said, “It’d break my home up.” I said, “Well, it’s going to break it anyhow.” I said, “Because you’re not going to live like that. You’re going completely insane.” I said, “You can’t keep that.” And I said, “That’s way back in the gable end of your soul.” She said, “Well, I’ve confessed that to God.” I said, “It wasn’t God you sinned against. It was your husband. If you’d have been a single woman, it’d been different, but you sinned against your marriage vow.” And I said, “They might…” She said, “Well, Brother So-and-so told me.” I said, “Sister, that don’t have nothing to do with it. That unconfessed sin, and they could pour oil on your head till they got a gallon on there. They could stomp, and kick, and snort, and run across the platform, and scream, and holler. That’ll…That devil will stay right there. He’s got a right to, and as long as he’s got a right to stay there, he will hold his grounds.” And I said, “You’ll never…” I said, “I’ve done all.” She said, “I just can’t do it.”