William Branham's Arizona Cloud Claims:
A Story Contradicted by the Record
A critical examination of the “seven angels,” the 1963 cloud, and the changing story
In December 1962, William Branham preached two sermons in which he claimed to have seen a vision of himself in Tucson, Arizona, where he heard a “great blast” and was caught up into a “constellation of angels.”[1][2]
He said he did not know what the vision meant, but suggested three possibilities: “there will be a blast that will kill me,” the Lord had “something for me to do,” or the angels were “coming to give me my new commission.”[2]
By March 1963, Branham claimed that an encounter with seven angels near Tucson had fulfilled the December vision. In his March 18 sermon, “The First Seal,” he reiterated key elements of that vision, saying they had occurred during a hunting trip:
“What if that was the Angel that sent forth there, that blasted, almost, me off of the ground, the other day, standing back there, when three witnesses are standing close. That I told you before I went, ‘There would be an explosion that would almost send me up.’ And I was caught up by seven Angels, and come eastward. The thing like to shook me from the ground. Is that right, Brother Norman, Brother Fred Sothmann, who was standing with me when it happened, above Tucson? And the--the... Setting, picking the burrs off of my clothes, exactly what the vision said. And it was south of... towards Tucson. If that's right, raise up your hand, Brother Fred, Brother Norman. There they are. Stand up on your feet, so the people can see that you were there, a witness. I never heard anything like it, in my life.
And, immediately, they didn't hunt, the rest the day. I begged Fred, the next morning. He don't know this. I begged him to go out hunting, kept saying, ‘Do it. Do it.’ But He said, He told me back there, ‘He won't do it. You're going East, right now.’ And them seven Angels! The first blast, she opened. Yeah.”[3] “The First Seal” (63-0318).
In that account, however, he made no mention of a high cloud or any connection between a cloud and the angels.
On March 24, in “The Seventh Seal,” Branham again presented the angelic encounter during the hunting trip as the fulfillment of the December vision,
“Notice, there is witnesses, of three, sitting in here, that a week ago, a little over a week ago, I was up, way back into the mountains, nearly to Mexico, with two brethren that’s sitting here. Picking cocklebur, or sandburs, off of my trouser leg; and a blast went off, that almost, looked like, shook the mountains down. Now, that’s right. I never told my brethren, but they noticed a difference.
And He said to me, ‘Now be ready. Go east. Here is the interpretation of that vision.’ See? Now, to let you know, Brother Sothmann has not got the game that he went after. We was trying to get it for him. And He said, “Now, tonight, for a sign to you, he isn’t going to do it. You must consecrate yourself at this time for the visitation of these Angels.” And I felt beside myself, you remember.
And I was in the west, the Angels was coming east, and as They come by, I was picked up with Them, (You remember that?) coming east.”[4] “The Seventh Seal” (63-0324E).
In that sermon, he further described the angels as messengers who had come to interpret the secrets of the Seven Seals. Thus, he had already described the vision’s fulfillment and connected the angels’ appearance with the revelation of the Seven Seals, without mentioning a high-altitude cloud or any connection between a cloud and the angels.
Serious Contradictions in Branham’s Own Sermons
Although Branham presented the angelic vision as a divine experience that led to the opening of the Seven Seals, his accounts contain significant inconsistencies in his descriptions of the angels and the instructions he claimed to have received from them.
Five Angels Become Seven
On December 23, 1962, Branham described the vision involving five angels. He first explained their arrangement and then counted them aloud:
“And looked like in the form of a pyramid, like
two on each side, with one in the top, came
five of the mightiest Angels I ever seen in
my life.”
“one, two; three, four; and then one right at
the top, see, making five.”
He even attached a spiritual meaning to the number, stating, “Five would be grace.”[5] “The Reproach for the Cause of the Word” (62-1223).
Just one week later, his account had changed. On December 30, he said there were
“no less than five, and not more than seven,” adding,
“I didn’t have time to count. I didn’t have time no more than just look.”
Yet later in that same sermon, he repeatedly referred to seven angels.[2] “Is This the Sign of the End, Sir?” (62-1230E).
Despite previously claiming that he “didn’t have time to count” them, by March 1963 he was explicitly counting out seven angels in a precise new configuration with three on each side and one at the top:
“They were in a constellation; three on a side, and one on top. And the one right next to me here, counting from the left to the right, would have been the seventh Angel.”[4] “The Seventh Seal” (63-0324E).
Why did Branham first count five angels in a specific arrangement, then describe an uncertain number, and later count seven angels in a different arrangement?
“It Wasn’t Told” — Then the Angels Give Specific Instructions
Another serious contradiction concerns what the angels supposedly told Branham to do. On December 30, 1962, Branham said he asked the Lord what he was supposed to do. His answer was:
“It wasn’t told. I may have to go, first, to find out. I don’t know.”[2]
“Is This the Sign of the End, Sir?” (62-1230E).
At that point, he was uncertain about the vision’s meaning and what he should do next.
But on April 12, 1963, he gave a much more specific account. He claimed the seven angels had instructed him:
“Go to Tucson and wait there for a while, and you’ll hear a blast go off. When it goes, return back.”[7] “The World Is Falling Apart” (63-0412M).
These statements are difficult to reconcile. In December, Branham said he had not been told what to do. In April, he claimed the angels had given him precise instructions about where to go, what to wait for, and when to return.
If the angels had given him those specific instructions during the vision, why did he first say that he had not been told what to do?
The Cloud in LIFE Magazine
At the end of May 1963, one of the individuals on Branham’s hunting trip, Gene Norman, showed William Branham a LIFE magazine article about a mysterious cloud that had appeared over northern Arizona.
Branham’s daughter, Rebekah, later recounted the exchange, and how Norman asked Branham if he ever saw anything like it,
“The May 17, 1963 issue of Life Magazine contained an unusual photograph, and the first person to take notice of it was Brother Gene Norman. . . .The following Sunday, he showed the magazine to his friend. 'Brother Branham, have you ever seen anything like this?' he asked.
'I guess you noticed that it is in the form of a pyramid,' was the only reply he was to receive on that occasion, but a few days later, on June 1, Brother Branham acknowledged the significance of the photo.”[8] “The Road to Sunset,” Only Believe, vol. 5, no. 1, June 1992, p. 7.
On June 1, William Branham confirmed his unfamiliarity with the photo, but described how it had attracted his attention,
“And they took a picture, you know, in the sky. And I didn't think much about it, never noticed it. So it begin to impress me somehow the other day. And Brother Norman, Norma's father here, told me, said, ‘Did you notice this?’”[9] “Come, Follow Me” (63-0601).
This interaction highlights an apparent contradiction: if Gene Norman had witnessed the fulfillment of the vision, as Branham claimed in March, why did he later show Branham the photograph and ask, “Have you ever seen anything like this?” If they had both actually witnessed the phenomenon together, why did the photograph appear to be a new discovery rather than a recognizable record of their shared experience?
Footnotes:
[1] “The Reproach For The Cause Of The Word” (62-1223)
[2] “Is This The Sign Of The End, Sir?” (62-1230E).
[3] “The First Seal” (63-0318).
[4] “The Seventh Seal” (63-0324E).
[5] “The Reproach for the Cause of the Word” (62-1223).
[6] “Perseverant” (63-0802).
[7] “The World Is Falling Apart” (63-0412M).
[8] “The Road to Sunset,” Only Believe, vol. 5, no. 1, June 1992, p. 7.
[9] “Come, Follow Me” (63-0601).
The Cloud: Appearance and Location
The May 1963 article in LIFE about the high cloud, which Norman had shown to Branham, described it as ring-shaped and appearing at sunset over Flagstaff, Arizona, on February 28, 1963. It specifically stated that “the cloud was at least 26 miles high and 30 miles across.”[10]
These details are confirmed in an article in Science that was published by atmospheric physicist Dr. James E. McDonald on April 19, 1963. In it, he stated that from approximately 150 observers’ reports, “it was quickly established that the cloud lay overhead in the vicinity of Flagstaff, Arizona.” He also noted that the cloud was observed and photographed by numerous people before it disappeared from view, approximately 28 minutes after sunset.[11]
In that article, Dr. McDonald added that many observers reported the main cloud also had a second smaller and similar-shaped cloud off to the northwest of it, which was established by some of the initial photographs.[11]
In a subsequent status report from May 31, 1963, Dr. McDonald also established that the cloud moved across northern Arizona from west to east.[12]
When Branham Began Linking the Cloud to His Alleged Vision
After Branham declared the vision fulfilled in March 1963 and was shown the photo of the cloud in LIFE in May 1963, he began actively linking the vision, the angels and the cloud together.
In his June 23, 1963 sermon Standing In The Gap, he made his first claims of being at the scene and personally witnessing the cloud:
“How many saw a mysterious cloud in the sky? Lets see the hands. And now, the "Life" Magazine picked it up. And I have the--the article here this morning in the "Life" Magazine there, of the show... Now, here it is, the same time I was there. See the pyramid or the Cloud? I was standing just below this. And there, see the distinctive Angel on the right-hand side?.”[13] “Standing In The Gap” (63-0623M).
Branham Claimed He Stood Beneath the Cloud
William Branham did not merely claim to have witnessed the mystery cloud over northern Arizona on February 28, 1963; he asserted that he stood directly beneath it when the angels appeared.
He first did so in Standing in the Gap, as follows:
“I had to go to Houston . . . And then I went back, and I went hunting up there with the brethren. . . . And that morning, . . . And just above me was the Angels of the Lord that sent message back for me come here to break these Seals. . . .And now, I didn't know at the time, that they were taking pictures of that, scientists was, as the Angels lowered themselves from heaven to bring the message. . . .How many saw a mysterious cloud in the sky? Lets see the hands. And now, the "Life" Magazine picked it up. And I have the--the article here this morning in the "Life" Magazine there, of the show... Now, here it is, the same time I was there. See the pyramid or the Cloud? I was standing just below this. And there... See the distinctive Angel on the right hand side? See the pointed wing of It?”
. . . and you know where I was at? North of Tucson, east of Flagstaff, just exactly, positionally, where I told you months before it happened I'd be standing. And exactly, according to this paper here and the papers--or this magazine, and our own testimony, exactly where it taken place. God is perfect and cannot lie.”[13] “Standing In The Gap” (63-0623M).
In O Lord, Just Once More, he likewise claimed:
“And science is baffled. Standing right under where it was happening there... Now science took the picture of It, you seen It, went on Associated Press. They didn't know what It was. There is a Cloud hanging, twenty-six miles high. That's fifteen miles, or twenty, above even where vapor is at. They don't know what it's all going about, and they are trying to investigate It. And there, right under It, I was standing.”[14]
“O Lord, Just Once More ” (63-0628A).
In Perseverant, he not only claimed to have been standing right under the cloud when it formed, but he claimed the seven angels picked him up off the ground and told him to return home to bring the Seven Seals:
“I seen the rocks tumbling off the side of the hill, rolling down. And I looked up, there was that white Circle above me there, circling around. Here come seven Angels, come moving down out of the air, picked me up, and said, 'Go back to your home, to the East, right away, and bring those Seven Seals. For, there is seven mysteries, for the complete Word is revealed now in these seven mysteries.' . . .And you know, not in that time, I didn't know it; but cameras from all over the country was taking the picture of that, as the white cloud settled down, went on the Associated Press. I think your Chicago paper packed it, all around. "Life" magazine packed it. How many has seen it in there, that Mr... That (See?) that was it right there, just exactly the way it said, standing right under it when it come down and formed. They said, "It was way beyond, and they hunted the country, and there's no airplanes or nothing in there. And it was too high, twenty-six miles high, where there is no vapor or nothing.[6] “Perseverant” (63-0802).
The textual evidence therefore confirms a clear narrative shift: while none of Branham’s sermons before he saw the LIFE magazine article mentioned him witnessing the high cloud, his subsequent accounts retroactively placed him directly beneath it, claiming that the seven angels not only descended from the formation, but physically lifted him off the ground.
Footnotes:
[10] “...And a High Cloud Ring of Mystery.” LIFE 54, no. 20 (May 17, 1963): 111.
[11] McDonald, James E. "Stratospheric Cloud over Northern Arizona." Science 140, no. 3564 (April 19, 1963): 292–294.
[12] McDonald, James E., Status of Investigation of the Northern Arizona Stratospheric Cloud of February 28, 1963 (Tucson: Institute of Atmospheric Physics, University of Arizona, May 31, 1963), 5.
[13] “Standing In The Gap” (63-0623M).
[14] “O Lord, Just Once More ” (63-0628A)
Branham’s Claims of Hunting Javelina When the Cloud Appeared
William Branham also specifically claimed that he was hunting javelina in the morning and desert north of Tucson when the 26-mile high cloud appeared, as follows,
“. . .Life magazine has It, the—the May issue, May the 17th, I believe it is. That right? May the 17th, issue. . . .It’s a mysterious cloud. The cloud is twenty-six miles high and thirty miles across. And that’s what we were speaking of here. That’s where the Angel of the Lord came down and shook the place. . . .the animals, in which we were hunting . . .I found them, the day before . . .javelina is what it was. . . I said, “That’s strange. Look how perfect north I am of Tucson, kind of northeast. Makes…” “Tucson,” you remember, I said, “little southwest.”. . .If you never been there, that’s a desert country. . . .It was about, oh, it was up in the day, I say eight o’clock, or nine. . .I run over on this side, quickly, to keep the javelinas from seeing me. They’re a wild boar, you know, and they’re pretty scary. ”[15] “Is Your Life Worthy Of The Gospel?” (63-0630E).
“Brother Fred went out there and there was no hogs. He waved at me and I seen. I went down in a canyon, some big chasms, the sun was just coming up. I come around the other side of the hill, not thinking nothing about the prophecy. Set down, waiting, resting, I thought, "What happened to those hogs?" And I picked up my... Set down like Indians do, you know, cross-legged, and I looked on my overall leg and there was a bullheader. I picked it up, and I said, "That's strange! Here I am, about forty miles northeast of Tucson.”[16] “What is the Attraction on the Mountain?” (65-0725E).
As is fully demonstrated below, all of William Branham's claims that he was “standing under” the cloud and hunting javelina when it appeared are completely false.
William Branham, in fact, was not even in the state of Arizona when the cloud appeared during the evening of February 28, 1963 just north of Flagstaff. He also was not hunting javelina in the desert country near Tucson when the cloud appeared because Arizona's javelina hunting season had not yet opened.
Those facts are evident in “The Road to Sunset” article that his daughter, Rebekah Branham wrote in the June 1992 issue of her “Only Believe” magazine:
“The 1963 hunting season for javelina in Arizona began on the first of March and lasted for ten days. Normally, Brother Branham would have been on his way to Sunset for opening day, but, unexpectedly, he had been invited to speak at a prayer gathering on the fourth of March in Houston, Texas, and he accepted. On the third, he drove to Houston with Billy Paul, preached on the evening of the fourth, and started home immediately after the service. On the return trip, he rode with friends from Tucson.”[17]
“Only Believe”, Vol. 5, No. 1, June 1992.
In that article, she also states that William Branham did not arrive in Arizona until March 6, 1963 and it wasn't until the morning of March 8, 1963 when he was hunting javelina in Rattlesnake Mesa in southern Arizona that the “seven angels” appeared to him with the aforesaid instructions to return home.
William Branham's hunting partner, Gene Norman, also provided the following testimony that is entirely consistent with Rebekah Branham's account above and further demonstrates that William Branham was not hunting javelina when the “cloud” appeared on February 28, 1963, as he claimed,
“After he moved to Tucson, he invited Brother Fred Sothmann and myself to hunt with him at Sunset during the javelina season of 1963, which opened on the first day of March and lasted for ten days. Brother Branham had to go to Houston, Texas, on the fourth of March for a meeting, so we missed the first few days of the season. But just as soon as he got home, the three of us headed for Sunset in Brother Fred's truck early one morning.” [18]“Only Believe”, Vol. 5, No. 1, June 1992, p. 13.
From William Branham's own words, we know that he was, in fact, in Houston on March 4, 1963, as his daughter and Gene Norman stated. Here are the opening words of his sermon that he preached that evening,
“Good evening, to Houston. I certainly deem this a great privilege, of being here again tonight in Houston. It's been many years since I've had the privilege of being here. And I've been setting, listening tonight to each of these speakers.”[19] “A Absolute” (63-0304).
From the following statements of his, we also know he, in fact, did not start hunting javelina in southern Arizona until after he first went to Houston and returned home to Arizona,
“I was going hunting with a friend, not knowing what was going to happen. . . . I had to go to Houston about his son, . . . Then we went back, I went up in the mountain to hunt. And there Brother Fred and I, one morning when I walked out, I had already got my javelina, . . . Here I am, about forty miles northeast of Tucson.” [20]“What is the Attraction on the Mountain?” (65-0725E).
Based on all of the above, it is abundantly clear that William Branham could not have seen and “stood under” the “cloud” after a visitation from “seven angels” while hunting javelina, as he claimed, because
-
the “cloud” appeared on February 28, 1963, but he did not arrive in Arizona until March 6, 1963;
-
he was hunting javelina in southern Arizona near Tucson, but the “cloud” was in northern Arizona near Flagstaff;
-
he claimed he saw the “cloud” and “seven angels” when he was hunting javelina, but the “cloud” appeared on February 28, 1963 before the javelina hunting season ever began;
-
he claimed to have seen the “cloud” and “seven angels” in the morning, but the “cloud”
did not appear until the evening and was only visible for 28-minutes after sunset.
Branham's claims that he “stood under” the cloud are also negated by the physical location of javelina in Arizona.
Javelina are a medium-sized pig-like mammal that look similar to a wild boar. As is the case with many of Arizona's animals, Javelina are not native to the region. They are originally from South America and migrated north through Mexico into Arizona over the last few centuries.
Because they thrive in hot and dry climates, they
can be found in the desert areas of southern
Arizona.
The distribution map here shows that the range
of javelina does not extend into northern Arizona
where Flagstaff is and the 26-mile high cloud
appeared on February 28, 1963.
Thus, it is apparent that William Branham was misleading the public by claiming that he was hunting javelina in a part of Arizona where they don't even live. Without question, he consequently negated his claims that he “stood under” the 26-mile high cloud after “seven angels” visited him when he was hunting javelina.
Was he exploiting the public's lack of knowledge of where javelina actually live and when they were allowed to be hunted? Did he not think that anyone would recognize the many untruthful aspects and inconsistencies with his story?
What was the real origin of the 26-mile high cloud?
By the time LIFE published its article about the “mysterious cloud” in its May 17, 1963 issue, neither the military nor scientists had identified and explained the cause of it. William Branham apparently believed that its cause would remain unknown and decided to assign “supernatural” meaning to it.
What he did not know, however, was that the late American physicist, Dr. James E. McDonald would release a scientific report on May 31, 1963 in which facts would demonstrate that the military was the probable cause of the cloud. In the report, Dr. McDonald established that Vandenberg Air Force Base in southern California had intentionally detonated a Thor rocket booster on February 28, 1963 at an altitude of 27.65 miles and that “[t]he altitude at detonation was close to the photogrammetrically estimated cloud altitude.”
The former Chief Officer of History of the United States Air Force later confirmed that Dr. McDonald was “absolutely correct” about the high cloud being the aftermath of a missile from Vandenberg AFB.
He confirmed that fact in a letter dated 26 January 1995, which he sent to a chaplain named George B. Greene. In that letter, which can be read in full at the end of this page, he also established that the cloud “was the result of a military operation, not divine intervention.” Here are transcribed excerpts from the letter,
“Based on the information you sent me and a cross-check of the missile launch records at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Dr. James McDonald, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, University of Arizona, is absolutely correct; the cloud that appeared over Flagstaff, Arizona, on 28 February 1963 was caused by the release of unburned missile propellant particles and water deposited into the less dense upper atmosphere by a missile launched from Vandenberg. When a residual cloud is form (sic) it is known as the “Twilight Phenomenon.” Although the phenomenon is most often visible at night, the cloud of frozen water and propellant can occasionally be seen after a daytime launch.”
On 28 February 1963, the Air Force launched two missiles from Vandenberg. The first missile was an Atlas D, nick named “Pitch Pine.” Launched at 0102 local time, the vehicle was aimed toward the South Pacific where it was targeted by an Army Nike-Zeus missile. The second missile was a Thrust Augmented Thor (TAT) space booster, fired at 1348. Because of an engine malfunction, Range Safety Officers destroyed the vehicle two minutes after liftoff. It is difficult to say with absolute certainty which of the two missiles was responsible for creating the “mystery” cloud that reportedly drifted over Arizona, a few hours after the launch. In any even, (sic) the sighting reported in Life was the result of a military operation, not divine intervention.”
When did William Branham first become aware of the “cloud” and claim he saw and stood under it?
After the “cloud” was seen by people in Arizona on February 28, 1963, William Branham did not ever mention it or claim that he saw it in any of the sermons he preached in the month of March that followed. In his March 1963 sermons, he only claimed that he experienced a “blast” when he was hunting.
He apparently was unaware and did not know about the “cloud” until May 1963 when “Brother Norman” showed him a picture of it in the May 17, 1963 issue of LIFE Magazine. As Rebekah Branham stated in her article, “The Road to Sunset”,
“The May 17, 1963 issue of Life Magazine contained an unusual photograph, and the first person to take notice of it was Brother Gene Norman. . . .The following Sunday, he showed the magazine to his friend. 'Brother Branham, have you ever seen anything like this?' he asked.
'I guess you noticed that it is in the form of a pyramid,' was the only reply he was to receive on that occasion, but a few days later, on June 1, Brother Branham acknowledged the significance of the photo.”
William Branham's unawareness of the cloud is evident in the following statements he made when “Brother Norman” first showed the picture of it at the time,
“And I didn't think much about it, never noticed it. so it begin to impress me somehow the other day. And Brother Norman, Norma's father here, told me, said, "Did you notice this?"” “Come, Follow Me” (63-0601).
His unawareness of the “cloud” is further evident by the fact that he had to look to “see when it was” and “where it was at” when “Brother Norman” first showed him the picture of it,
“I looked to see when it was, and it was time, same 'bout day or two before or, day or two after I was up there. I looked where it was at: northeast of Flagstaff, or Prescott, which is below Flagstaff. Well, that's just where we was at (See?), just exactly.” “Come, Follow Me” (63-0601).
Had William Branham seen the cloud and “stood under” it as he later claimed, he certainly would have known “when it was” and “where it was at” and would not have needed to have “looked” to find or determine any such information about it.
Not only did he not mention the “cloud” in any of the sermons that he preached in the month that followed the cloud's appearance, but he also did not mention it in any sermons he preached in April or May of 1963. The very first time he mentioned the “cloud” in a sermon was NOT UNTIL AFTER “Brother Norman” showed him the picture of it in May 1963.
His very first mention of it, in fact, was in the sermon he preached on June 23, 1963 wherein
he stated,
“How many saw a mysterious cloud in the sky? Lets see the hands. And now, the "Life" Magazine picked it up. And I have the--the article here this morning in the "Life" Magazine there, of the show... Now, here it is, the same time I was there. See the pyramid or the Cloud? I was standing just below this.” “Standing In The Gap” (63-0623M).
Whereas there were no sermons in which William Branham mentioned the cloud BEFORE “Brother Norman” showed him the picture of the “cloud”, there were a total of fourteen
different sermons in which he claimed the “cloud” was part of his “angelic visitation” AFTER “Brother Norman” showed him the picture of it.[5]
Based on all of the above, it is even more apparent that William Branham not only did not see and “stand under” the 26-mile high cloud when it appeared on February 28, 1963, but he, in all likelihood, also did not even know about it until months after the fact.
What's more, William Branham's claim above that he “was up there” where the “cloud” was “'bout day or two before or, day or two after” proves that he never even saw it and negates his claims that he “was standing right under it” when the “angels” appeared,
“And just above me was the Angels of the Lord that sent message back for me come here to break these Seals. . . .And now, I didn't know at the time, that they were taking pictures of that, scientists was, as the Angels lowered themselves from heaven to bring the message. . . .How many saw a mysterious cloud in the sky? Lets see the hands. And now, the "Life" Magazine picked it up. And I have the--the article here this morning in the "Life" Magazine there, of the show... Now, here it is, the same time I was there. See the pyramid or the Cloud? I was standing just below this.” “Standing In The Gap” (63-0623M).
“And I looked up, there was that white Circle above me there, circling around. Here come seven Angels, come moving down out of the air, picked me up, and said, 'Go back to your home, to the East, right away, and bring those Seven Seals. . . ."Life" magazine packed it. . . .that was it right there, just exactly the way it said, standing right under it when it come down and formed.” “Perseverant” (63-0802).
How Gene Norman contradicted William Branham's claims about the “cloud.”
William Branham claimed that his two hunting partners, Gene Norman and Fred Sothmann, were standing with him when the 26-mile high cloud appeared, as is evident by the following statements of his,
“And I'll be picking some kind of cockleburs, or goat-heads, they call them there, off of my trouser leg." And I said, "A blast will go off." And we were up there at that day, and I was over to myself. There's a man. I think Brother Sothmann is here tonight, that was with me, he and Brother Norman.” “Perseverant” (63-0802).
“And there the--the "Life" magazine packed the article of it, this great flame going up into the air thirty miles high, twenty-seven miles across, and they said they couldn't make out what is was, don't know yet. And men setting right here in this building tonight was standing right there with me when it happened, just exactly the way it said.” “Choosing of a Bride” (65-0429E).
“Like the March 17th, the March issue of the Life magazine, you seen that circle of Light in the skies, thirty miles high, twenty-seven miles across. Why, moisture is only about nine miles high, and they can't even make up what it was.
And right standing beneath that, a man that is sitting right present now, was right standing there by me, when seven Angels come down from God, visibly standing right there, and told me about the end time, and these revelations and things of the Book of Revelation, the Seven Seals, and said, "Return home, and one by one will bring the Message."” “Testimony” (63-1128M).
Gene Norman acknowledged that he was on the hunting trip, but contradicted William Branham's claims by providing the following testimony at a church in 1985,
“I had hunted, oh, probably about a half an hour, and that blast went off, and it sounded like it was right above my head. And I looked up and I didn’t see nothing-uh-I seen something-I didn’t see the Cloud in the form it shows in the picture. When I looked up I seen two long streaks of-like a plane, you know, leaving a trail. Two streaks with a great-miles one way and miles the other way, with a big space in between it. But I couldn’t see no planes. I thought what it was that probably a plane busted the sound barrier, but there were no planes in the area. There just wasn’t any there, you know. And I didn’t know what it was. And first thing when I got on top, the first thing Brother Branham asked me was, “Gene, did you hear that noise?” I said, “I’ve been here many times and never heard anything like that”. But he didn’t say anything more about it.”[6]
What was the cause of the “blast” that William Branham heard during his javelina hunt?
As stated previously, William Branham claimed that he heard a “blast” before the “seven angels” and “the cloud” appeared during his javelina hunt near Tucson, Arizona.
He alleged that the “blast” was part of the fulfillment of his “prophetic vision”, which he described, in part, as follows,
“And I was at Tucson, Arizona, in the vision, . . .There was a blast that actually shook the whole earth. . . .And I thought it sounded like a sound barrier, ever what you call it when planes cross the sound, and the sound comes back to the earth. Just shook, like, roared, everything. Then, it could have been a—a—a great clap of thunder, and lightning, like; I didn’t see the lightning. I just heard that great blast that went forth, that sounded like it was south, from me, towards Mexico. But, it shook the earth. And when it did, . . .I could see those Angels, those shaped-back wings, traveling faster than sound could travel. They come from Eternity, in a split, like a twinkling of an eye. Not enough to bat your eye, just a twinkle, They were there. I didn’t have time to count. I didn’t have time no more than just look. Mighty Ones, great, powerful Angels, snow white; wings set, and heads. And They were, “Whew-whew!” And when it did, I was caught up into this pyramid of constellations.” “Is This The Sign Of The End, Sir?” (62-1230E).
In these statements of his, he claimed the “vision” was fulfilled accordingly,
“And that morning, I was standing there picking cockleburs, or—or what they call goatheads there, burrs off of my trouser leg. And the blast did just exactly the way It said it. Is that right, Brother Fred? And I—I—I must have jumped way off of the ground. And just above me was the Angels of the Lord that sent Message back, for me to come here to break these Seals.” “Standing In The Gap” (63-0623M).
“So I—I went over the hill this way, and cut, started, run up the hill. And I just run along, in a little, what we call, a dog trot. And all of a sudden, the whole country just rung out. I never heard such a terrific blast! Just shook, and the rocks rolled. And I felt like I—I must have jumped five feet off the ground, looked like. It just—just scared me. I thought, “Oh, my!” I thought I had gotten shot.” “Is Your Life Worthy Of The Gospel?” (63-0630E).
“And I run over a little ravine, and along a ledge. And as I was running along there, all of a sudden it sounded like the whole country come apart, with such a blast. And it scared me till I thought…I was wearing a black hat, big black hat, and that just looks like a javelina anyhow, I thought somebody had shot me. And—and it just scared me till I jumped up in the air. Just then I thought, “What is this all about?”
I seen the rocks tumbling off the side of the hill, rolling down. And I looked up, there was that white Circle above me there, circling around. Here come seven Angels, come moving down out of the air, picked me up, and said, “Go back to your home, to the East, right away, and bring those Seven Seals. For, there is seven mysteries, for the complete Word is revealed now in these seven mysteries.” “Perseverant” (63-0802).
It is important to note that William Branham characterized the “blast” as shaking the “whole country” and “the most terrific blast” that he ever heard, but Gene Norman referred to it in less than dramatic terms,
“I hunted, oh, probably about a half hour, and that blast went off. It sounded like it was just right above my head. And, I looked up, and, I didn’t see nothing.”[6]
Assuming that there was a “blast” of some kind that day, was there a reasonable explanation for why a “blast” occurred of which they were unaware?
What neither man apparently knew is that they were hunting in a part of Arizona where a U.S. Air Force base was conducting heavy operations with F-5 and T-38 super sonic fighter jets. “Blasts” were frequently heard by the public in the vicinity of Springerville, Arizona, which is which is about 114 miles from Rattlesnake Mesa, where the hunting trip took place.
On March 1, 1963 (a week before William Branham heard a “terrific blast”), the Arizona Republic Newspaper published a news story entitled “Shaken Up By Sonic Booms.” Therein,
it is evident that the residents were accustomed to hearing “terrific blasts” of their own.
Here is a transcribed copy of the news story, which can be viewed at the end of this page,
“SPRINGERVILLE – What residents termed the loudest sonic booms yet heard in this community caused more than $500 damage Wednesday morning.
The double boom occurred at 10 a.m.
Residents here, accustomed to sonic booms, called Williams Air Force Base to complain of the apparent increase in loudness.
An investigator from the Air Force base will be sent within a few days and the matter will be referred to the base commander, an Air Force official said.
In the last few weeks the booms appear to be getting closer and louder an dconsequently (sic) Cox, manager of the Becker Mercantile Co.
Three windows of the store were cracked, Cox said.
“I thought every window in the store was going to cave in,” Cox said. “It's the worst blast yet.”
Based on the above facts, the most reasonable explanation for the “blast” that William Branham and his hunting partners heard was a F-5 or T-38 breaking the sound barrier. The “two long streaks of-like a plane, you know, leaving a trail”, which Gene Norman stated he saw is consistent with that apparent event.
Conclusions:
As demonstrated above, the “cloud” and “terrific blast”, to which William Branham assigned “supernatural” meaning to himself, ultimately were not “supernatural” events at all, but were caused by a missile from Vandenberg Air Force Base and a F-5 or T-38 fighter jet breaking the sound barrier, respectively.
His many false claims about them render any and all of his other related claims to be less than credible. By specifically linking the “seven angels” to the “cloud”, which he clearly never saw, his claims that he was “commissioned” by the “seven angels” to “return home” and preach the “seven seals” are also not believable. That is a significant upshot to William Branham's teachings, because with the loss of credibility to his “cloud” and “seven angels” claims, his related “seven seals” and other teachings also lose their credibility.
Footnote [5]:
1. STANDING.IN.THE.GAP_ JEFF.IN V-6 N-7 SUNDAY_ 63-0623M
2. LORD.JUST.ONCE.MORE_ HOT.SPRINGS.AR V-20 N-10 FRIDAY_ 63-0628A
3. CHRIST.IS.THE.MYSTERY_ JEFF.IN V-3 N-7 SUNDAY_ 63-0728
4. PERSEVERANT_ CHICAGO.IL V-21 N-4 FRIDAY_ 63-0802
5. SHALOM_ PHOENIX.AZ V-22 N-1 SUNDAY_ 64-0119
6. RECOGNIZING.YOUR.DAY_ JEFF.IN V-5 N-1 SUNDAY_ 64-0726M
7. MARRIAGE.AND.DIVORCE_ JEFF.IN V-3 N-13 SUNDAY_ 65-0221M
8. RISING.OF.THE.SUN_ JEFF.IN V-3 N-12 SUNDAY_ 65-0418M
9. CHOOSING.OF.A.BRIDE_ LA.CA V-2 N-28 THURSDAY_ 65-0429E
10. SPIRITUAL.FOOD.IN.DUE.SEASON_ JEFF.IN V-8 N-7 SUNDAY_ 65-0718E
11. WHAT.IS.THE.ATTRACTION?_ JEFF.IN V-8 N-8 SUNDAY_ 65-0725E
12. WORKS.IS.FAITH.EXPRESSED_ SHREVEPORT.LA V-7 N-1 FRIDAY_ 65-1126
13. TRYING.TO.DO.GOD.A.SERVICE_ SHP.LA V-7 N-2 SATURDAY_ 65-1127B
14. RAPTURE.THE_ YUMA.AZ V-5 N-14 SATURDAY_ 65-1204
Footnote [6]:
Quoted from page 2 of “Gene Norman's Testimony”, which can be read here.
See also Jorgensen, Owen. page 106, “Supernatural: The Life of William Branham, Book Six: The Prophet and His Revelation (1960–1965)” here.
Here is a video that further demonstrates how William Branham's claims about the “cloud” are untrue and shows how the “cloud” was likely the aftermath of a detonated Thor rocket booster that traveled from Vandenburg AFB to northern Arizona:
Here is the article about the cloud in the May 17, 1963 issue of LIFE Magazine:
Here is a link to the 1963 Javelina Hunting Regulations for Arizona, which demonstrate that javelina hunting season did, in fact, begin on March 1 and end on March 10, as Rebekah Branham stated:
Here is the news story entitled, “Shaken Up By Sonic Booms", which the Arizona Republic Newspaper published on March 1, 1963 (a week before William Branham heard the “blast”):
Here is Rebekah Branham's article, “The Road to Sunset” that provides the full timeline of the javelina hunting trip of her father, William Branham:
Here is the letter of the former Chief Officer of History of the United States Air Force in which he confirmed that Dr. McDonald was “absolutely correct” about the high cloud being the aftermath of a missile from Vandenberg AFB and said that the cloud “was the result of a military operation, not divine intervention”:
