QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON THE SEALS
This Message by Brother William Marrion Branham called Questions And Answers On The Seals was delivered on Sunday morning, 24th March 1963 at the Branham Tabernacle in Jeffersonville, Indiana, U.S.A.
The tape, number 63-0324M, is 3 hours and 6 minutes, and consists of 2 cassettes. This message is available in book format (Seals).
This text was taken from the 1999 Infobase, provided by
Voice Of God Recordings
P.O. Box 950, Jeffersonville, Indiana 47131 U.S.A.
Phone (812) 256-1177
Fax (812) 256-6187
Many thanks to Br. Neil Halava and his team for their hard work.
The tape in RealAudio and MP3 (as linked above) is supplied by
Cloverdale Bibleway.
"457-1 / 1 Our heavenly Father, we are indeed grateful for this time that we can fellowship again around the Word of God in the Presence of God. We're so thankful that You're with us this morning to help us and to bless us. We ask forgiveness of our sins, that our lamps might be filled with Oil and trimmed and burning; that You would use us now to honor Your great Name, for we ask it in the Name of the beloved Son of God Jesus Christ. Amen. Be seated.
457-2 / 2 I was just coming in when I heard that message go forth. So I'm... It's true that we need to keep our lamps filled, keep our... You know, when they--as you burn... You can't go on what you have done now (See?), because fire burning out of oil makes a carbon; so that's the reason the trimming of the... Have your lamps trimmed, because the carbon on top of the--of the wick...
Many of you people about my age, when we used to use the--the coal oil lamp. See? They... It--it--it'd get a carbon on top where it'd burn, and therefore, it would interfere with the light. So you must keep all the carbon trimmed off and that we might press on forward towards the mark of the high calling in Christ.
457-4 / 3 Now, it's a--it's a great beautiful morning outside and in, as this Easter season is approaching now. And--and we're now coming up to the last Seal tonight, the Lord willing. And it's a very mysterious Seal, very, very, because it's not even... It's not even mentioned in the Scriptures nowhere, no symbols, anything to hold onto. It's got to come right direct from heaven. See?
And it--it's a kind of a straining hour for me. It has been all week. Now, this is my, be my eighth day in a room. And I noticed in here many... In these requests, I had to kind of pick out. There was many of them that was wanting interviews. And I--I love that. I'd like to--to give that now (See?), but I--I can't right now, 'cause you understand that--that the whole... What we're trying to do now is find the revelation of--of the will of the Lord. You see, and then when we have the interview, then it pulls you off over onto another side and--of something else. See?
And then, and like in prayer for the sick, that's altogether different. You... Visions and things, you study different, and you--you're anointed different. Just like in--in the Bible said there: "A--a tree that's planted by the--the rivers of water." Rivers of water.. See? Same water but there's an outlet comes this a way, this a way, and this a way. It depends on what outlet. It's the same Spirit.
458-2 / 7 Paul, I Corinthians 12, did the same thing, talking about there were many gifts, but it's the same Spirit. So you see, if you're working, like with one thing, then be changed to come over to this other thing over here (you know what I mean); you--you study down that line, you get the people and a...
Now, their hearts are all set. What is these Seals? Their attention's, "What is it?" Night by night when I come in here there's such a tension, till I have to talk about something else to kinda get--get it quietened (You see?), and then the Holy Spirit breaks forth the Seal. And then--then I have to... Each night like that... Then when we change that to healing or something (See?), you--the people's all set on one thing; you can't hardly change it back to the other right away.
458-4 / 9 And--and then also knowing that right among you, things are happening (See?) that I--I'm just... I--I know... I know you, that you don't see it. See? I'm just positive that you don't see it. See? And you say, "Brother Branham, that's a hard thing for you to say that." I know it is. But look; let me just say this now. I suppose this is just tapes for ourselves and so forth. But let me say this (See?), that you--you don't--you don't get it (See?), and you're not supposed to get it. So don't try to interpret anything. See? Don't try to put your interpretation to it. You only--you only get further away.
Just take my advice, if you believe me now. If God has--has give me favor in your sight and you know that them revelations and things... I--I've been here with you a long time, and it's always been right. And now, to double prove it right, it hooks right in with the Word. See? So you know it's THUS SAITH THE LORD. That's exactly. See? It's proved to you.
458-6 / 12 Now, take my advice as your brother: Don't put your own interpretation to anything. You just go on and live a good Christian life, 'cause you'll only wind yourself away from the real thing when you do it. See? You--you'll only wind your way again away from the thing. And all of you are conscious and know that there's something mysterious happening, and it is happening, and I know what it is.
Now, I'm not saying that. It's the grace of God that lets me know that what it is. It's something that's tremendous, and it's gone right now, and there's not a way in the world for you to see it, and it's a--I... But so help me, with this Bible in my hand, I know what it is.
459-2 / 13 It's been told to you before, so just--just don't try to put any interpretation but just believe me as your brother (See?); we're living in a great hour.
We're living in a time where the... Well, we're... Well, you just be real humble, be a Christian, and try to live for God, and live honest with your fellowman, and love those who don't love you. Don't try to--to make any... You see, you do, you only make it a mysterious something and mess the real program of God up. See?
Yesterday afternoon something happened in my room that I--I'll never be able to--to leave it. You see? And so, you... And about two weeks ago something happened that'll never be able to, as long as I live on this earth, I--I'll never be able to get away from it. See?
459-5 / 16 And so, but if the--the church here not supposed to know these things, so don't put no interpretation to anything. See? You just go ahead and just remember what you're told; live a Christian life. Go to your church, be a real light wherever you are, and just burn for Christ, and tell the people that how you love Him. And just let your testimony be with love all the time with the people (See?), 'cause if you don't you twist yourself out into something there, and then you're--you're off the beaten track.
See, every-time you try to do it, you've done that. See? So just don't--don't--don't try to make no interpretation. And especially tonight, when that Seal becomes up in front of you. See? Just don't try to interpret it. You just go ahead and just be humble and go right on with the same plain message. Now you say, "Brother Branham, is that... we, being the Church of the Living God, shouldn't we..."
Well, as I was trying... Look here, I want to say... Say, "Why can't I? I ought to have..."
No, no. I... Don't... You remember, I'm saying this for your good. See, I'm saying it so that you'll understand. If you believe me now, listen to what I tell you. See, see?
460-2 / 20 Now here, now here's a post, and that's--we'll call that a listening post (See?), and in it--got radio. See? And there's warnings and things can be done, like a sword in your hand. See? It can pick from the evil or pick from only as it's--it gets its message. See?
Now. But now, for instance, to the ordinary man, there's been so much cults and clans rise up over little outpourings of the Spirit until people gets all worked up in a bunch of stuff, go out and start another little move, and, you know, and things. See, you don't want to do that now. See?
Now, just remember, just stay the way you are. And you say, "Well, the Lord showed..." No, now just be careful. See?
460-4 / 23 Now, look here. Let me show you something. See? Did you know there's ten thousands of voices in this room right now, literally voices of people that's coming through the electronic waves of radio? Why don't you hear them? They're voices. Is that right? They're waving right through here now. There's people, forms, and bodies moving right through this room now. Is that right? Well, why don't you see them? They're here, actual voices, like my voice. Well, why don't you hear it?
See, it's got to strike something first to reveal it. See? Now, do you understand? So just don't interpret nothing. If God wants you to know anything, He will send it to you (See?); so just be real, real solid now. Hold still. Something has happened. And now just be real... You understand what I mean, don't you? And just be...
460-6 / 24 Don't try to make yourself odd to be a Christian, because (You see?), you take yourself away from God and you--you--you... If you can understand it, this is that third pull. You should've caught that the other day. See. So then just...
You remember, there'll be no impersonation like there was of the other two. See? So that's as far as you--you should know. Now just--just remember that you see now there's something taking place in this room, and there's something here, there's... There's actual in this room, Angels, voice of God (See?), but how do you... You can't... If you can't hear the natural voice without something to send it out, how are you going to hear the spiritual voice?
461-1 / 27 Now you might make believe that somebody is singing this certain song that might not even be there. See? But when it actually strikes the crystal that it's supposed to strike, then it gives a true interpretation and vindicates it by showing the picture. See what I mean?
Now, the Spirit of God, when it speaks through the true Word, It vindicates Itself to show Itself that It's right. You understand now? All right. Now, let's pray just again.
461-3 / 29 Heavenly Father, we are about to un--open the lids of this Book as the physical part of--of trying to give back to what You have opened to us in the spiritual realm. And now, I pray, God, that You will help me to give the--the right interpretation to these questions, that it might be said that--that they are--they're to help the people. They are to give them understanding.
And I pray that You'll give to me understanding that I might send it out to Your people that they might have understanding, that together we might live to the glory and honor of God through Jesus Christ's Name. Amen.
461-5 / 30 Now, I--I just wanted to say that, and I thought this thing here controlled those tapes, but it doesn't (See?), and this is a--a desk light. And I thought the tape controller used to be here. But I was told to just make motion to the brethren in the--in the room there, the recording room, and they'd know when to stop tapes and when not.
See, the tapes has a worldwide ministry everywhere (See?), everywhere. It goes into all kinds of languages and everything, so there's things that we'd say right here we wouldn't say somewhere else (You see?), and that's the reason that we stop it.
461-7 / 33 Now, answering questions is quite a thing. So I--I... Now, in--in--in answering this, the most of them, the most of the questions, outside of... Now, every one... Some of them don't even pertain to the message at all, but I'm going to--or the Seals at all, but I'm going to try to answer them. And they was given to me, and as they was told... I was told the most of them, or a great deal of them was about requests for prayer and the sick and afflicted and--and different things like that--that goes on, and so, it didn't pertain anything to any question to be answered. And then they--I was give a bunch that was--that was about different things (the Scripture and things). But maybe, if we have time, we'll try to answer them the best we can.
462-1 / 33 Now... And if I make a mistake, why, remember, it's not intended to be made a mistake. So does everybody feel good? Amen. It's just so, talk about heavenly places in Christ Jesus... What a wonderful place. What a wonderful time.
Of all the times that I've been behind the pulpit at the Tabernacle, I have never, never in any time of my ministry ever worked into the realms of God and the spiritual realms as it's been this time. Yeah, it's beyond anything I ever did in any time of my ministry, in any meeting at anywhere like this. Mostly, it's on healing; this is revealing of Truth by the same Spirit (See?) same Spirit.
462-3 / 36 And I--I been to myself altogether, and been boarding at a place, or going down eating at a place. And I've just been alone; so it's been really a great time.
And now, right away, either in the morning or the following morning, I, probably, if we can get through in time, I'll just pray for the sick this morning, if these questions don't last too long; so I--I must get to myself a little while. See?
The human mind can only stand so much. See? And when you get to a spot where you set a hour numbed with the Presence of God, and a Pillar of Light hanging there before you, you--you--you can't stay there too long. You see? The human being can't--can't stand it. And so...
462-6 / 39 Now, these questions are really nice. I appreciate... And the wisdom and things that people use... Now, for the first one... And I'll try to answer them, and then if I--if I don't get it right, well, you--you forgive me then.
And if you have a different interpretation and believe that your idea of it's right, just go right ahead; that won't hurt, because there's not only but about one or two of them that pertains to anything to salvation. It's only... Most of the questions is asked on this other side of the trib--on the rapture of the church. So see...
It's questions over here, which is to come and will come to pass over in the other parts, 'cause we're now beyond the church age in our teachings in--in the Book. We're beyond, over in the time of the calling of the hundred and forty-four thousand.
463-2 / 41 Now, the first one here.
1. Are the five wise virgins of Matthew 25 attendants to the--to the Bride, or are they the Bride? (See?) If these wise virgins are attendants to the Bride, where is the Bride? (See?)
Now, to the best of my understanding, these five virgins... There were ten of them, you know, that went out (See?), and this here is only a symbol or a parable (See?), that--that I'm going to tell you. See, there were ten of them. 'Course, there were more than ten; that was just made a number.
But then, the--the wise virgins had oil in their lamps; the unwise did not have oil in their lamps. So if that ten there of Matthew (if this is the--the person's question), if those ten there... Did that mean that that would be the... Or these five rather, that would be just five (See?), just five people?
No, it doesn't mean that. It's just a symbol of the virgins (You see?) of the virgin that went out with oil in her lamp; they are a portion of that Bride. And to my understanding, and then you notice now that they was the virgins of the last watch.
463-4 / 45 Coming down through the watches, there'd been seven watches. And in the seventh watch, the midnight hour, as we're on--striking now... See? Now, in this midnight watch, these virgins woke, and trimmed their lamps, and went in, while the sleeping virgin...
Now, this part here, this five (if that's the meaning of the question was--meaning, "Was there just five?")... And we've got many questions in here about the--the seven thousand, so forth; now, that--that was just a symbol, a part of them. And all that wakened in this last age here, the seventh watch, that--if there wasn't but--but five that wakened at that time that was translated, went in with the Bride and so forth, the Bridegroom...
Now, if they, themselves... That don't mean there's only going to be five, because they're sleeping all down through the ages as we've come this week. See?
463-8 / 48 In the days of--of Paul, the angel of the church at Ephesus, Paul, founding this church, being the messenger to it... Remember, Paul, founding the church at Ephesus, become the messenger to that church, and the Spirit was in the land at that time was a lion spirit. And the lion is the Lion of the tribe of Judah which is Christ, and Christ is the Word. Paul, with the Word of that age...
Thousands fell asleep in that age. That right? Then come the next age, and the--the time the church got settled down in--in dark age, the ox spirit went forth: work, labor, and sacrifice and give their lives. Thousands times thousands fell asleep under martyrdom and everything. They're waiting. See?
464-2 / 50 Then, and the next age come, the Lutheran, the reform age. There went the wise with the cunningness of man. If you notice, man went forth with that, and when he did, he added his own shrewdness. That's what married him into the other part. See, see? If he'd just stayed with God's wisdom, just reforming and pulling out... But what did he do? After that man that had the message, Luther, after the death of Luther, they had a Lutheran organization. After the death of Wesley, they had a Methodist organization. See? There... You keep going that way. It--it just... It does that.
Now, I want you to--to--to notice this. See? Now, someone might ask about the Pentecostal, which was the--the third age.
464-4 / 52 You see, each one of those ages only taken a dip into the Holy Spirit. Justification is a work of the Holy Spirit; sanctification is a work of the Holy Spirit, but the baptism is the Holy Spirit.
That's the reason it took a prophetic prophet to come down, no messenger to the age, 'cause the Holy Ghost came Himself in His fullness of the baptism. But at the end of the age, as it always ends upon the others, we find there then, the messenger sent; and all these scruples and things are to be placed in their places (See?), like that. Then the rapture comes for the Church.
But as many is writing all these different things: the sun turning to darkness, the moon... They put that way back there in the Christian age. They just failed to see them three questions was asked our Lord there (See?), when He answered them.
465-1 / 55 Now, last night I think there's no question at all. We took each one of those questions and put them right under the Seals. And the Seals is the whole Book together Itself. You believe that, doctor? See, the whole thing just wrapped together...
And we took what Jesus said here. They asked three questions (See?): "When will these things be? What'll be the sign of Your coming? And what's the end of the world?" And He come right down, and we pulled them every one, under that but one. What was that? the Seventh Seal. Why? See, it's not known. That's it.
465-3 / 56 Every one of them come right out. I paralleled them right exactly back and forth, and me, when I wrote last night and got in--in there and got to... I went back to look at my old note I'd took it off--off back there, well, I seen where I put one in the other one's place; I got it, crossed them back and forth. That's what I done. I guess you caught it. You--you catch it? See?
I'd wrote down here what I was going to write over on this other side, and wrote it over here, But said... Put both of them 9, 11, or 9, 6, or what--or 6 and 11 and--and--and 9 and 11, which it wasn't so. It was vice versa, the next verse under it. See? And that was it, the answers between the pestilence and the war. You see? That's what it was.
So I was just so happy, I was just a carrying on like a... I was enjoying the stimulation from the revelation. So I--I put it just over here setting there with a pencil or a pen, and I put down 11 on both places when it shouldn't have been. I think it was 9 instead of 11 for the other side.
465-5 / 60 But now, did you see how perfectly they paralleled? Now, don't forget that. They parallel down to the Sixth and stopped. See? And watch the--watch the opening of the Seals that comes down to the Sixth and stops, just silence in heaven (that's all it says) for the space of a half hour.
Now, now, in these... See, I--I have to hurry up and answer these, because (See?), each one of them is a sermon four weeks long (You see?) on--on each one; you can just get off on something else. But I--I don't mean to do that, 'cause I want to get everybody's question as far as I can.
465-8 / 62 These virgins (See?), they're made up of... That's just part of them in that age. See? Each age has the virgins. See? The Seal... The angel comes to the church: "To the angel of the church of Ephesus, write." See?
Then get over here and then after the writing to the church of Ephesus (compare that back), a Seal's opened. That's just the way we're bringing it, try to get it all to you. See what I mean? if the Lord willing.
466-2 / 64 What'd I have first? Church ages. Is that right? Next thing, the message to the church ages. Everybody get that clear now? See?
First we got the church ages and got the history (laid down the Nicaea councils and pre-Nicaea councils and everything that we could find in history), and found out that the correct interpretation of the Word was exactly with the history. And bring it on down to this day in this Laodicea, and you--you don't have to have history of that; this is making history now. See? There it is, and then showed what would be in this age.
466-4 / 66 Now, we come back with the Seals and open that Seal... God opens that Seal for us. What's that? First there's a messenger: church age; next is the Seven Seals.
Now, we find out the corruption that hits in the seventh church age... But the Seventh Seal doesn't reveal anything, what's going to happen to it (See?), because at the end of that church age is to come a prophetic gift to reveal these things. See? Are you following it? All right.
466-6 / 67 Now, notice how each one of those Seals... Then I come over here, and those three questions asked Jesus Christ: "What... When will these thing be, there won't be one stone on another? When will this be taken down, this religious center of the world, and another be set up? See? When will it be, antichrist ride?" See? And what went out to meet it? The Word, the Word against the word.
466-7 / 69 Then it settled down to politics and everything else; and there went the ox labor. See? That's exactly second it, then Jesus said so in Matthew 24. See? Then we come down from that to the cunningness of the reformers, the man beast went out to meet it. That's what taken place. Then we come down, the next or the Fourth Seal when antichrist become a conglomerations and had a name, Death.
Now, watch what Jesus said: "And he would throw her to the fires and even kill her children." That's death riding. That's both Protestants and Catholics: mark of death on each one of them (See?), her and her children be destroyed. So if you're depending on your denomination, you better get away from it right now.
And then when it come to the Seventh Seal, Jesus stopped right there.
467-2 / 71 He opened the Sixth Seal by saying the moon would be turned into blood and darkness and everything, these things would take place. We come right over here, open up the Sixth Seal. After the Sixth Seal's opened, and swing right back and show the same thing.
There you are with three different places in the Scripture, tied them together with the revelation. See? Watch. The place that Jesus said so, the place that when He opened the Book it was hid from the foundation of the world, and then the revelation of this day, here, placing it right in there, ties the three together. And three is a witness, so it's true. It's absolutely true.
467-4 / 73 Now, these virgins that come along here, they are the ones that fall asleep, and then the whole body's made up together of that group, that goes to make the (See?) to make the--the wise virgins. And the unwise virgins are the ones that started back there at the same time the wise virgins started, antichrist, and they are the ones that tries to buy oil.
467-5 / 74 Now, just look here. You see how perfect everywhere you go. If I could stand here and talk the things that's revealed in that room, I tell you, it'd swing your heads around; but how you going to do it when you got a whole thing here.
And then you, somehow or other, when you get away from people, there it begins to open up, mysteries; then you see things that you're daresn't to say to the people too, 'cause (You see?), if they would they'd start little isms.
And then just look what this little gift of healing has done, how it confused the church. Everybody had a sensation; everybody had this. And right down in my heart, God knows it's the truth, I knowed it wasn't right 'cause He told me so. See? But it's a false impersonation; it's only, throw the people off. Now, that's right.
468-1 / 76 Now, but see, you can't say those things; best to just leave it alone. And you remember the third pull; it said, "Don't tell nobody." What did I say was that... How many remembers that? Oh, sure. Remember standing there trying to lace that eyelet in that little shoe in the vision? He said, "You can't teach Pentecostal babies supernatural things."
And I said this will be the third pull and it will not be known, so help me, by the grace of God. Now, now, we're--we're right down at the end time now. Won't be too long until mercy seat will be judgment seat.
468-3 / 78 Why, if you see these things coming in and these people coming in, you better come in too if you're not already in. See? Now, gathered in heavenly places (See?) it also means more than just to be rejoicing. In heavenly places, if you're really assembled in Christ, it's a fearful thing.
Standing by the--that Angel of the Lord, you think you'd just be shouting and screaming. That--that's not it. It scares you to death nearly. See? So you see, there--there's a difference in just rejoicing and bubble dancing (which is all right), and then coming down to the real thing. See, see? There's where the fear... It's a fearful thing. Not that you fear that you're lost, but you're really before Angelic Being and the Holy Ghost Himself standing there.