Questions 155 (COD Page 666)
Brother Branham, is it not Scriptural that women should not speak in the church?
105 He’s got two questions here. That is true. That–that is true. It’s not right for women to be ministers and–and speak in the church. That is right, First Corinthians the 14th chapter.
106 Of course all of the church here, you all know this. And this may be a stranger in here this morning; I don’t know. But it’s not right for–for women to–to be a–to minister. That–that is true. I’ll just read it to you here, and you–you can find out. And then you’ll–you’ll know: First Corinthians the 14th chapter I believe. I’ll get it just in minute, if I can find…Yeah, here it is.
Let your women keep silent in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. (Now, the law didn’t permit women priest and so forth back in them days. See?)
And if they will learn any thing, let their ask their husbands at home: for it’s a shame for a woman to speak in the church.
107 Now, if you’ll notice Corinth here…Many of these Corinthian Christians and many of…The great goddess of the world in that day was Diana, which was a Roman goddess. And she was a goddess of Ephesus. And she was worshipped throughout all the world. And now, her ministers…Of course, her being a woman, then that made her ministers women. And when they were converted into Christianity by Paul…Now, Paul was in prison when he wrote these letters, of course, at Rome.
108 Now, they wrote him letters, you see, after they’d begin to speaking with tongues and got great gifts working among them. Well, these women thought they should continue on their ministry.
109 Now, if you’ll notice, you that’s reading your Bible, the 36th verse he said. What? came the word of God…from you? and came it from you only? If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.
But if…he be ignorant, just let him be ignorant.
110 Now, in otherwise, the women…Now, if you’ll take the history to this letter (see?), of the church, these women thought that they were…continue on with their ministry just as they was a–of the priest to the goddess Diana. God is not a woman; God is a Man. And there’s only really One, and that is a Man. A woman is a by-product from a man. Man was not made for woman, but woman was made for man. See? If you’d just open up your spiritual understanding, you see. See?
111 Man–when man first come on earth, he was both male and female, feminish and masculine before he become sex. See? A feminish spirit, the lower spirit, it’s the one that’s timid. And then he was also masculine, man. But when He made and put him into different…In order to reproduce the world, He brought the feminish spirit off of him and put from him a rib from his side and made a female.
112 She was not to be ruler! When she first started that, she caused the whole human downfall. See? All, and even it was a…She was the cause of the fall. And then God taken her up and brought life back into the world through Christ by the woman. But nowhere was a woman ever permitted to–to be a minister in the church.
113 On over in Second Timothy the 3rd chapter, he said, “I suffer not a woman to teach or to usurp authority over man, but to be in silence.” You see? And it isn’t right for the woman to preach; that is true.
114 Now, I know I’ve seen some women that were real preachers–they could preach too–like Aimee McPherson and many of those women there. But just put your hand on them just for a little while. See? It’s not…I know people who could speak with tongues this morning setting right in this church. If there was no interpreter, they’d be daresn’t to do so. See?
115 You got to remember them women was borned under a certain line, that when they are…Your birth has a lot to do with it. It’s your name, your–all about you (you see?) has a make up to it, no matter what it is.
116 I could get out here and pull a trigger on a gun and kill a man this morning, but I’m daresn’t to do it. But I can do it all right, sure. See, I could kill a man the same as you could a squirrel; but you–you ain’t supposed to do that. See? And that’s the same thing. You’ve got to watch those things, now that you do not…This is the commandments of the Lord.
117 When they wrote over and said, “Why, the Holy Spirit told us!” (See?), Paul said, “What? came the Word of God out of you? And came It from you only? If any of you all–if you got any prophets over there, they’ll acknowledge that what I say is the commandments of the Lord. (See? That’s right!) But if there’s any man shows his–his–he wants to be contrary, if he wants to be ignorant, just let him be ignorant. (See?) Just let him alone and let him go on. (See?) Don’t do any contrary to it.” But remember, she’s not supposed to speak in the church.
118 And therefore, there’s where you can judge your pastor or whatever it is, whether he’s spiritual or not. See? He said, “If any man be spiritual or a prophet, he’ll acknowledge that what I say is the commandments of the Lord.” See?
119 That’s the reason I command the people to be baptized over again in the Name of Jesus Christ. Paul did that, and he said, “If a angel from Heaven come and taught anything else, let him be accursed.” And this is what’s already taught here also. If any man comes…If a angel come from Heaven and said, “Let the women preach and be preachers, ordain them ministers!” the Bible said, “Let him be accursed.” This is the commandments of the Lord here.
