Jesse Smith - Mistakes were made
“Not all of Brother Branham's teachings were from God, as far as I understand.”— Jesse Smith, September 2020 debate with Rod Bergen (Part 5) [Listen ▶]
🔊 Listen: https://offtheshelf.life/podcast-player/552/episode-71-the-2020-debate-part-5.mp3
Context
This is an extraordinary admission from a sitting Message pastor — that some of Branham's teachings were not from God. This directly undermines the foundational claim that Branham spoke only as God directed.
“Every word on tape is Thus Sayith the Lord. That's heresy. That's idolatry. And what they've done is they've worshiped the creature instead of the creator as Romans 1:25 and 26 say.” — Jesse Smith, "I'd Rather Have the TAPES Than The Bible! HERESY!" — Bride of Christ Fellowship, 2025-12-17 [1:58] [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith calls the position of Branham Tabernacle — that every word on tape is "Thus Saith the Lord" — heresy and idolatry. Cites Romans 1:25-26 about worshiping the creature instead of the creator.
Analysis
Jesse Smith's position is remarkable because he remains a Message pastor while making concessions that would get him expelled from most Message churches.
The 69 Documented Tape Errors (compiled by Smith across a 4-part video series):
Click to view all 69 errors ▼
- Called Billy Paul the "promised Joseph," but Joseph Branham was born 4 years later
- Prayed Billy Paul would be "a full prophet," later said Billy Paul had no call to preach
- Said "prayer changes the mind of God," later taught prayer cannot change God's mind
- Called the Holy Spirit "the third person of the Trinity," later declared trinitarianism "of the devil"
- Said the Promised Land typed the millennium; later said it typed the Holy Ghost baptism
- Said "Christ died a sinner" (slip of tongue)
- Said "Christ broke the law" (He fulfilled the law)
- Said "Jesus never did commission to teach" — contradicts Matthew 28:19
- Called Moses "the greatest of all prophets," later said John the Baptist, then Jesus
- Said "you can lose your salvation," later said you cannot
- Predicted daughter Rebecca would "take his place" seeing visions — did not happen
- Said his ministry was "closing in America" (noted NOT Thus Saith the Lord)
- Said the new birth is NOT the Holy Ghost baptism; Church Age Book says they are the same
- Predicted total annihilation before 1977 — did not happen
- Admitted lying to the IRS and causing his wife to lie
- Said Mary had the egg for Jesus's conception; later said God created both egg and sperm
- Said Elisha (not Elijah) was on the Mount of Transfiguration
- Said 16 men died at Ai; Joshua 7:5 says 36 men died
- Said he "was a cockle burr but became a wheat"; later taught you were always wheat
- Said "Rebecca met her bride" (meant bridegroom — repeated multiple times)
- Said the white horse rider of Rev 6 was the Holy Spirit; later said it was the antichrist
- Said Jesus is NOT on his heavenly throne; later said Jesus IS on the throne
- Said trinitarians are saved; later said "you're lost" if you make God a second/third person
- Said Jesse lost some mules; Scripture says Kish lost asses (1 Sam 9:3)
- Said "a prophet cannot get out of the will of God"; earlier said Moses did
- Said "we are commissioned to baptize using Father, Son, Holy Ghost"; later said no Scripture for it
- Said Revelation 6-19 is "all Jewish"; gentile Bride appears in those chapters
- Said Christ was rejected in AD 33; later said about AD 30
- Said Samson used an "old jawbone" of a mule; Judges 15:15 says a NEW jawbone of an ass
- Said the human spirit was the deepest part of man; later said the soul is
- Said "I'm no prophet"; later said "do you believe me to be his prophet"
- Said Luther did not have the Holy Ghost baptism; Church Age Book says Luther was "spirit-filled"
- Said "P0 weren't the Word"; later said a true prophet IS the Word
- Apologized for an expression, but taught "God doesn't have to apologize to nobody"
- Switched Columba and Martin as 3rd/4th church age messengers (reversed from Church Age Book)
- Dates for Columba don't fit within the Thyatira church age dates he assigned
- Said there were seven additional seals on the backside of the book; later corrected this
- Said Luther was NOT a prophet, one day after saying all seven messengers were prophets
- Said eagle age was promised in Malachi 1:4 (meant Malachi 4:5-6)
- Said 700 had not bowed to Baal (Bible says 7,000; Branham later apologized)
- Said "all messengers came at the end of the age"; historically they came at the beginning
- Exalted himself during the Seals Q&A, then was checked by the Holy Spirit and apologized
- God told Branham to stop saying "Ricky and Ricketta," but he continued afterward
- Predicted MLK would lead millions into a "Hitler-like death trap"; admitted no word from the Lord
- Said Caleb and Joshua held up Moses's hands; Exodus 17:12 says Aaron and Hur
- Agreed with a woman's dream predicting his death by gunshot — did not happen that way
- Said the 6th vision was "not actually a woman but a church"; earlier said literal woman president
- Said church ages started in AD 33; Church Age Book says AD 53
- Said Pentecost to Day of Atonement was 50 days (wrong); later caught and corrected it
- Said "Jesus never referred to himself as Son of God" — contradicts John 9:35-38
- Called each person "three people in one"; Church Age Book calls this "lack of intelligent reasoning"
- Said Judas "never had real faith"; earlier said Judas had genuine justification
- Said Judas's name was on the Lamb's Book and was blotted out; Church Age Book says names CANNOT be erased
- Said Jacob had "at least a dozen wives"; Bible says Jacob had 4 wives
- Said Jesus knew all things; Bible says Jesus did not know the day or hour (Matt 24:36)
- Said Arizona could not have another generation — multiple generations have passed
- Said the body is 80% water and petroleum — petroleum is toxic, not a body component
- Called the first four OT books "Genesis, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Exodus" — omitted Numbers
- Said the Rapture is in "2 Thessalonians 4" — there is no 2 Thessalonians 4
- Said "nobody set before a prophet"; but Paul corrected Peter
- Said unbelievers go to "eternal hell"; four months earlier said "no such thing as eternal hell"
- Said nothing hindered the Lord's coming except the church; OT prophecies about Israel unfulfilled
- Church Age Book quotes John 2:17 about "zeal of the Jews" — John 2:17 is about Jesus's zeal
- Church Age Book references "Revelation 14" for the beast wounded — correct reference is Rev 13:3
- Said "I don't believe in pre-existence of souls"; but twice said believers were "sons of God shouting for joy" at creation
- Said "this generation shall not pass" re: Matt 24; 57+ years have passed
- Said Enoch walked with God for 500 years; Genesis 5:23 says Enoch lived 365 years total
- Said names are being written on the Lamb's Book now; later taught all names were written before the foundation
- Believed he would turn Israel back to Christ before he died — did not happen
The September 2020 debate with Rod Bergen was the first-ever formal English-language debate between a Message pastor and an ex-Message critic.
Sources & References
- 60+ Proofs Part 1 — YouTube
- 60+ Proofs Part 2 — YouTube
- 60+ Proofs Part 3 — YouTube
- 80+ Proofs Part 4 — YouTube
- The 2020 Debate — Off The Shelf podcast
- BelieveTheSign: The September 2020 Debate
- 60+ Proofs, Part 1 (Errors 1-21)
- 60+ Proofs, Part 2 (Errors 22-42)
- 60+ Proofs, Part 3 (Errors 43-69)
- 80+ Proofs, Part 4 (Errors 70+)
Why This Matters
If a Message pastor has found 69 errors on the tapes and acknowledges some teachings weren't from God, the question becomes: who decides which parts are from God and which aren't? This is precisely the problem Protestantism faced with papal infallibility — once you admit the authority can be wrong, you need an external standard to judge by. But the Message claims Branham IS that standard.
“It's too much emphasis on brother Branham. We're not getting to heaven on brother Branham's testimony. And I know that gets some people's feathers ruffled.”
— Jesse Smith, "The Mystery of the Church as Bride" — Bride of Christ Fellowship, January 10, 2021 [44:55] [Watch ▶]
Context
A sitting Message pastor (Jesse Smith, who also compiled 69 documented tape errors) openly saying the movement puts "too much emphasis" on Branham — and acknowledging this admission upsets people.
"Defending The Message" Podcast Admits Plagiarism SourcesJesse Smith & Ameen LeeConcession🎥🔊📄The podcast acknowledged that Branham's Sixth Seal teaching closely matched Clarence Larkin's published work — a significant admission about the originality of the Seven Seals "revelation."
“It should be noted that brother Branham referenced Larkin on Daniel's 70th week in 1961, and then he did state he read Larkin's work on the Seven Seals a year after he preached the seals, in 1964. "I'm very grateful to Dr. Larkin of his views, I'm grateful to all these great Scholars for the reviews on this, and in reading them it enlightens me much that I can find places that looks right, then just leaving it at that and pursuing. After a while we preach on the seals not knowing what the seals was, and I read Mr. Larkin, I'd read all, so many different ones of their commentaries on this."”
— Jesse Smith, "Jesus Revealed The SIXTH SEAL - NOT Plagiarized From Larkin", March 4, 2023 [Watch ▶]
Context
This admission is significant because the Seven Seals are presented as Branham's supreme divine revelation. Acknowledging he was reading from published commentaries during this "revelation" fundamentally undermines its supernatural origin.
Analysis
The Seven Seals are considered the pinnacle of Branham's prophetic ministry. The "Defending The Message" podcast's admission that Branham was reading from Clarence Larkin's published dispensational charts during this period raises an obvious question: if the revelation came from angels, why did it match a book published decades earlier?
Sources & References
Why This Matters
When the movement's own defenders acknowledge the sources that match their prophet's "divine revelations," they are conceding the core argument against supernatural origin.
“1977 — this is a false accusation. Brother Branham did not prophesy of that, he predicted it. I have a video on the 1977 prediction that Brother Branham made numerous times — at least, I think, 18 times or more. Brother Branham said it's a prediction, not a prophecy. Now he said he got it by divine revelation which, if you notice, was not spoken with Thus Saith the Lord; it wasn't in the name of the Lord.”
— Jesse Smith, Bride of Christ Fellowship, 2025-02-08 [12:53] [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith simultaneously claims "Thus Saith the Lord" never failed while admitting Branham failed the brown bear vision — the "blame Branham" defense that tries to separate the man from the office.
“The municipal bridge the prophecy brother Branham said he predicted 16 men died right now there's only two men that died on record at least in Jeffersonville's record. Well there's a couple things. Perhaps brother Branham forgot the number of men from the vision. Maybe he said two. Maybe he said — hey, we don't know.”
— Jesse Smith, "Prove All Things, Part 15" — Pastor Jesse Smith, 2020-10-08 [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith's earliest defense: maybe Branham simply "forgot the number." This is remarkable — a prophet who forgets what God showed him in a vision.
“I said I'm only siding with brother Branham. I can't prove 16 people died there but I said you can't prove 16 people didn't die there. You can't. The only way you know is if you sat there and were — it never went to sleep and had a video camera and recorded every single day.”
— Jesse Smith, "Prove All Things, Pt. 9" — Bride of Christ Fellowship, 2020-02-16 [Watch ▶]
Context
The "you can't prove a negative" defense — demanding that critics prove 16 men did NOT die, shifting the burden of proof away from the one who made the extraordinary claim.
“The bridge you know brother Branham prophesied sixteen men fell. There's no newspaper articles about it. Some families that believed the message went and spent four months studying all the historical newspapers in Jeffersonville — there's no record. They left the message and caused many others to leave with them.”
— Jesse Smith, "Prove All Things, Pt. 6" — Bride of Christ Fellowship, 2020-01-21 [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith acknowledges that families who researched the claim found NO supporting evidence in the newspaper archives — and left the Message as a result.
“The municipal bridge prophecy. I believe it was a cover up. They admit two people died. It's Brother Branham's words against the words of the accusers. Government records are not thus sayith the Lord, just like there's no record in Egypt of the 2 million Jews that escaped during the Exodus.”
— Jesse Smith, "The Donny Morton Reader's Digest Accusation v. William Branham" — Pastor Jesse Smith, 2026-01-15 [Watch ▶]
Context
By 2026, Smith has escalated to a government cover-up theory and compares it to the Exodus — as if the Jeffersonville city government had reason to hide construction deaths.
“Mark my word, write it in the pages of your Bible, for it's Thus Saith the Lord — remember, when we land in India, you're going to hear of tens of thousands times thousands being saved.”
— Jesse Smith quoting Branham, "Prove All Things, Pt. 9" — Bride of Christ Fellowship, 2020-02-16 [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith reads Branham's own "Thus Saith the Lord" prediction about India on tape — then spends the rest of the sermon trying to explain why it didn't happen as stated.
“Brother Branham says the 1954 Indian meetings were not the success they should have been because he didn't obey the vision fully. So they were supposed to go to Africa first then to India, but I think they went to India first.”
— Jesse Smith, "Prove All Things, Pt. 9" — Bride of Christ Fellowship, 2020-02-16 [Watch ▶]
Context
The standard excuse: the vision failed because of disobedience (wrong travel order). But as Hefflin points out, if God said "Thus Saith the Lord," He already knew which order Branham would travel.
“I believe the vision was fulfilled but brother Branham just didn't understand it, just like John the Baptist had a vision fulfilled about Jesus.”
— Jesse Smith, "Prove All Things, Pt. 9" — Bride of Christ Fellowship, 2020-02-16 [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith's most creative defense: the prophecy WAS fulfilled, but Branham himself didn't recognize it. This makes Branham unreliable as an interpreter of his own visions.
“Brother Branham kept looking for the vision of the 300,000 Indians to be fulfilled all the way up to 1965 till the time he died. Yet there are numerous quotes where he said there may have been up to 500,000 in his meetings in Bombay, India.”
— Jesse Smith, "Prove All Things, Pt. 9" — Bride of Christ Fellowship, 2020-02-16 [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith admits Branham himself considered the prophecy unfulfilled until his death. Yet Smith argues it WAS fulfilled — contradicting Branham's own assessment.
“George J. Lacy, an official examiner of questioned documents, verified the photo was not retouched but light struck the negative.”
— Jesse Smith, "Elijah Shall Restore All Things" (audiobook, Chapter 13) — Pastor Jesse Smith, 2021-11-12 [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith correctly identifies Lacy as a "questioned documents" examiner (not FBI) and accurately states what Lacy found: "light struck the negative." Smith does not make the false FBI claim.
“And see how they're always pushing out the little preachers that serve God? I've seen it, of course, when I went to South America, and it continues to go around the world. Voice of God and other tape boys will come into little churches and convince the pastor just to sit down and press play. And that's what Brother Branham said the Antichrist Spirit is doing.”
— Jesse Smith, "B.B. MODERN KORAH Invades Pulpits = Tape Churches", January 19, 2026 [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith calls VGR "tape boys" who "invade" churches to convince pastors to sit down. Compares them to Korah (the biblical rebel who challenged Moses’s authority).
“Some of these same believers say "say what the tapes say," yet those who say "say what the tapes say" are in the case of 1977 saying "don’t say what the tapes say." How can we say "say what the tapes say" in some cases and in other cases we can say "don’t say what the tapes say?"”
— Jesse Smith, "The 1977 Prediction of William Branham", May 12, 2022 [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith exposes the hypocrisy: "say what the tapes say" is applied selectively — believers quote the tapes when convenient and ignore them when embarrassing.
“Brother Branham explains there is a divine side to him and it always speaks with "thus saith the Lord" but there’s also a human side to him... Be careful not to make something thus saith the Lord that wasn’t thus saith the Lord, that was only his human opinion or idea.”
— Jesse Smith, "Bro. Branham’s Human Side Welcomed Correction", December 28, 2021 [Watch ▶]
Context
The "two sides" framework: errors get filed under "human side," correct statements under "divine side." This makes Branham unfalsifiable.
“You can't look at a quote that was in 1953... you can't look eight years later where brother Branham says three persons is Thus Saith the Lord. You can't look at that. Understand — brother Branham corrected himself. No, he's got to so worship and adore every word on tape — that's an idolatrous spirit.”
— Jesse Smith, Bride of Christ Fellowship, "A Double Minded Man Pt. 3", September 29, 2024 [52:58] [Watch ▶]
Context
Smith calls refusing to acknowledge that Branham changed positions "an idolatrous spirit" — the strongest language any Message pastor has used.
Footnotes