Was William Branham Honest
- “I'm not upset that you lied to me, I'm upset that from now on I can't believe you.” - Friedrich Nietzsche
For those who have been in the message for long, to question the honesty of William Branham appears almost blasphemous. But the Bible says that we are to discern all things and, in particular, those that claim to be prophets are to be judged (1 Cor 2:15, 1 Cor 14:29) and those in leadership in the church are held to a high standard (Titus 1:6-8, 1 Tim. 3:2-9).
- “If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.” ― Mark Twain
The Biblical standard
Proverbs 14:5 states:
- A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.[1]
If William Branham told lies, that would make him a false witness, according to the Bible.
Revelation 3:14 tells us:
- And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God...[2]
If William Branham was a false witness, and the Bible says Jesus is the true and faithful witness, then are we to be listening to the one who was wrong or right?
Was William Branham the messenger to the Laodicean church? It is not possible if he violated Proverbs 14:5 and bore false witness.
Problems with William Branham's Credibility
| We reject all shameful deeds and underhanded methods. We don’t try to trick anyone or distort the word of God. We tell the truth before God, and all who are honest know this. ~ 2 Corinthians 4:2 (NLT) |
Was William Branham honest? If he can be shown to have distorted the truth or if his stories are constantly changing over time such that they vary significantly from their first telling, this would cast doubt on virtually everything that he said. The following list contains issues that raise questions regarding his honesty and truthfulness. Some of these concerns have only recently come to light but they are now sufficient in number that they should raise genuine concern on the part of anyone who is a follower of William Branham.
Congressman Upshaw
Initially William Branham's retelling of the story of Congressman Upshaw's healing was in basic agreement with the story as told by the Congressman himself. However, it changed over time to become something that bore absolutely no resemblance to what actually happened. How many other stories that William Branham told were also wildly embellished?
Roy Davis
There is a heartbreaking story that is familiar to all followers of William Branham. Bro. Branham first encountered Pentecostal people at a convention in Mishawaka, Indiana. While he was drawn to them and was invited to speak in their churches, he refused to join with them because he listened to his mother-in-law instead of God. And, as a result, his wife and daughter died as a direct result of his disobedience to God.
But, is this the truth?
According to Roy Davis and Douglas Weaver, William Branham attended a Pentecostal church pastored by Roy Davis prior to 1933 when he started his own church. Roy Davis himself says that William Branham received the baptism of the Holy Spirit in his home. This all precedes the death of Hope and Sharon Rose Branham in July 1937.
The original name of Branham Tabernacle was the Pentecostal Tabernacle.
This makes the story of William Branham's story that his wife and daughter died because he rejected the Pentecostal people to be highly suspect.
The Cloud
Why did William Branham state that the cloud was directly above him while he was hunting, when it actually appeared 8 days earlier 200 miles away? Why did he say that Life Magazine said the cloud appeared at the same place that he was hunting when it clearly didn't? Why does William Branham state that the pictures in Life Magazine were taken on the day that he heard the blast when they were actually taken over a week earlier?
1933 Ohio River Experience
Why was there no mention of the voice on the Ohio River by William Branham prior to 1952? Why did the books by Gordon Lindsay and Julius Stadsklev make no mention of the voice (both books were written based on information that came from William Branham)? Why is there no evidence of the newspaper articles that William Branham referred to?
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the act of taking someone else's work or ideas and passing them off as one's own. Are you aware that William Branham stole multiple messages, doctrines and concepts from other ministers but never properly gave them credit for them. Are you aware that some of these stolen ideas he said came directly from God or the Angel?
Why would he do this when God speaks against this practice in Jeremiah 23:30 - So I, the LORD, affirm that I am opposed to those prophets who steal messages from one another that they claim are from me. (NET)
Prophecy of the Cloud
On December 23, 1962, William Branham relates a vision in which he sees five angels in a constellation. One week later, he changed the number to seven. Why?
| Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. ~ Ephesians 4:25 |
Quotes
- In the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie, since they themselves often tell small lies in little matters but would be ashamed to resort to large-scale falsehoods.
- It would never come into their heads to fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously. Even though the facts which prove this to be so may be brought clearly to their minds, they will still doubt and waver and will continue to think that there may be some other explanation. For the grossly impudent lie always leaves traces behind it, even after it has been nailed down, a fact which is known to all expert liars in this world and to all who conspire together in the art of lying. These people know only too well how to use falsehood for the basest purposes."[3]
Conclusion
If you try to say that William Branham was a true and faithful witness, then you aren't following Jesus. And if you are following Jesus, then you can't follow William Branham. It's one or the other.
Video Transcript
Did William Branham embellish the stories he told, or do his stories accurately represent the events as they happened?
Let’s look at just one story – here Bro. Branham explains the origins of his hillbilly English…
- He said, "Why, the people that you speak before," said, "you ought to be ashamed of that grammar."
- I said, "I am, but it doesn't do me any good. I just don't know no better."
- And he said... "Well," he said...
- I said, "When I was a boy, my father died. I had ten children to take care of, and I had to work and support my mother and the children. Then since the Lord has sent me out, why, I have--haven't had a chance." (November 29, 1953 – The Faith that was once delivered).
It’s very clear that his poor English was from a lack of education, which was a direct result of his father passing away when he was a child.
Or is it? Let’s look at the facts…
William Branham said that his father died at the age of 52:
- But my father died at fifty-two; drinking killed him.(January 22, 1956, Junction of Time)
And William Branham said that he was born when his father was 18 years old:
- ...Daddy was eighteen years old; mama was fifteen when I was born, just children. (April 15, 1951, Life Story).
So if William Branham was born when his father was 18, then he was 34 years old when his father died at the age of 52 in 1943.
Let’s call a spade a spade: William Branham did not have poor English because his father died when he was a child. It’s just not true.
So why did William Branham feel it necessary to invent the story that he was a boy when his Dad died?
Was it to make people feel sorry for him? Or do you feel that he was being completely honest with this? If he wasn’t honest regarding his childhood, how do we know he was honest about other things?
And Please don’t get mad at us, we are just letting you know what he said.
Footnotes
- ↑ The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), Pr 14:5.
- ↑ The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), Re 3:14.
- ↑ Adolf Hitler