T HOU SON OF DAVID,

HAVE M ERCY ON M E
 Let’s just remain standing just a moment for prayer. How many
would like to be remembered tonight before God in…?
2 Our Heavenly Father, we are so glad that You answer prayer. So
glad to find after many years, meeting the people from way back in
’46 and ’47, still healed, when they were dying with cancer, crippled
in wheelchairs, blind, couldn’t see. And here they are, here, shaking
my hand, saying, “Brother Branham, I was crippled; I was blind; I was
given up with cancer, and I’ve never had a sick day since.” O Lord, we
know that could only be Your grace to them. We’re so happy for this,
and we pray, God, that others that are suffering today will remember
that You are the same yesterday, today, and forever.
3 We pray that You’ll bless us tonight as we fellowship around the
written Word, that the glory of God might come into our midst. We’re
so glad to hear the results of last night’s meeting, receiving the Holy
Ghost and being saved. O Lord, how we thank You for these things.
Pray now that You’ll bless us in further part of the service as we wait
on Thee. In Jesus’ Name we ask it. Amen.
4 It is such a privilege to have a nice audience like this to speak to,
and—and it makes it so easy for you to—to believe God when these,
takes place like this. Now, I’ve been for a few nights preaching, and—
and just the Gospel, because I think if a—if a person is healed, if they
live very long, they’ll probably get sick again. But if you’re saved, that’s
Eternal, and you have Eternal Life. And it’s so…getting so late in
the evening lights that I feel that one great thing is needed most of all:
That’s salvation.
5 And Divine healing is merely a…Just like Brother Bosworth used
to say, “Divine healing is a bait that you put on a hook. The fish doesn’t
see the hook; he just takes the bait and gets the hook.” So that’s the way
it is. People see the—the supernatural, the phenomena of supernatural,
God healing the sick. And then they—they reach for that, and the first
thing you know, they…the first thing you know, they’re right in the
arms of the Lord Jesus with great faith to believe. And—and it…then
they become a Christian, have Eternal Life.
6 Now, a great percent of our Lord’s ministry, about eighty percent
of it or better, I think it was, it’s estimated about eighty percent of His
ministry was Divine healing. So He did that to catch the eyes of the
2 THE SPOKEN WORD
multitude, and also to show that He was their Messiah. He showed
them Messianic sign to say that they were Messiah.
7 Last night I believe Brother Arganbright asked the audience about
how many would like to continue on in—in preaching services, and or
how many’d like to go and have just healing services. And I think about,
oh, just a very small percentage of them for the healing services; but
however, if we’ll open our hearts to God, God will do it anyhow. See?
We just see it like that.
8 A little tired tonight. I been…I have anywhere from one to three
services a day, you know. So at the time I get here I’m pretty near wore
out again to start. So I was up at the old Pisgah church this afternoon,
and or the Pisgah Home, whichever it’s called; and I tell you, we had
a glorious time. The…I found out that some of the old timers off of
Azusa Street is up there yet in that church, worshipping, the old Azusa
Street. I seen them old women and men setting there. I—I just wanted
to get my arms around them and hug them, you know. They—they look
so sweet.
9 I think a—a real young child, or an old person, you know, they seem
to be helpless the second time. And I—I really, I—I like to get with a
young person and try to stir them on the right road; and then get to
the old person and find out how many ditches he’s crossed and how he
crossed them, and then I’ll know how to cross them when I get there…
So—so, I like the young and old, and in-between too. I like everybody.
I—I can say that from my heart.
10 If I knew tonight that I had an enemy, I may have. I perhaps have.
But if I do, I don’t know just who it is. If it was, I sure wouldn’t go
to preaching till I went, first, and made that right, see if I could get
it straightened up, ’cause we’re not supposed to have anything against
anyone, or if anything we can do, let no one have anything against
us. See? And now if…And It don’t say, “If you have ought against a
brother,” but, “if the brother has a ought against thee,” see, “you go to
him,” see, “if he has the ought.” And that way, why, we live peaceful.
Brother Goad here, a precious boy…Sometimes someone says,
“Why…what’s the success of your service, Brother Branham?”
Of course, it’s Christ.
“How do you hold up so, and just keep going night after night?”
11 My boys, the—the people that with me; this boy here goes
sometimes days without even eating, laying on his face, crying to God
for help for me. Now, God just can’t turn that down. See? My wife at
home, my children, my loved ones, people, my friends, fast and pray.
There’s the success.
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 3
12 See, every one of us…All of us can’t preach, and all of us…some
of us can’t do one thing, another. But we can all do something, and that
helps out. You see?
13 Just like this watch here. It’s got a—a hand on it, it tells time.
Now, I wouldn’t know how many times that little thing switched back
and forth in there to tell what time it was; the hand tells. But if that
little wheel hadn’t been jumping back and forth like that, it—it—it—it
wouldn’t be any hand here to make any time. See? I wouldn’t know
where it was at. And if there wasn’t a winding spring to wind that little
thing up there, why, it wouldn’t be jumping back and forth. See?
14 So we—we…Everything has to work together. All the church has
to pray, and all the laity has to pray, the deacons and the trustees and
the pastor and all together we come into the Presence of God like that,
as one great unit.
15 See, now, say for instance, that piano will make a sound. How do I
know? How do I know it’ll make a sound? Well, I believe it will. That’s
my faith. Now, what would you do to make a sound on that piano? My
finger would have to touch it. All right, now, first thing, my head, my
mind, has to think of it. My heart has to tell me whether it will or not,
that’s by faith. Now, say, my finger, it’s a great thing. My eye, that’s the
prophetic side, the seeing.
16 Well, now, if I just sat and looked at that piano, say, “Well, it’ll
play,” well that—that doesn’t—that doesn’t make it. Now, see, I’ve got
to make…My feet has got to work.
17 Now, what if my feet say, “Well, I’m not the eye, so I’m just not
going to do anything about it.” Well, my—my feet says, “I’ll take you
over there.” All right, here we go. See? My feet is taking me over. Now,
now, I’m here, I’m over here. Well, my eye is still looking, but it—it—it
can’t touch the key. Feet says, “Well, I don’t touch the key.” But it takes
the finger. See?
And see, if the—if the nose say, “I will,” that won’t help.
18 The eye say, “I’ll try to hit it,” won’t help. See? It got to have my
finger. So with everything working together, [Brother Branham plays
some notes on the piano—Ed.] I have it. See? That’s it.
19 Now, what is faith? How many senses are there to the human body?
Five: see, taste, feel, smell, hear. Is that right? Well now, faith is the
substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things you do not see,
taste, feel, smell, hear. Is that right? It’s the sixth sense. If I had another
week I’d preach on some of those thing, the sixth sense, or, in a healing
service, rather. Now, it’s just like your…
4 THE SPOKEN WORD
20 Come here, Brother Borders. Now, let me show you. Have you ever
heard people say, “Seeing is believing”? How many ever heard it? Oh,
you’ve heard it, “I’m Missouri,” you know, “you got to show me.”
21 And now, there’s a man standing before me. He’s got brown hair,
wearing kind of a brown-looking suit, brown tie with a white shirt on.
How many believes that? See? Well, now I’ve got one sense that declares
him there, that’s my sight. Now, step back just a little bit. All right, now,
it’s impossible for me, my sense of sight to say he’s there, but I know
he’s there now just as well as I know I’m looking at him. Why? I can’t
see him. You want to argue with me he’s not there?
Now, you say, “You might have got Brother Buntane up.” Oh, no,
no, no, no. It ain’t Brother Buntane, it’s Brother Roy—Brother Roy
Borders.
22 “How do you know it is? You just got a hold of a man’s hand.” You
haven’t switched men on me. He’s got a real wide wedding band on,
see, and I know that’s him. See? So I—I know that’s…Now, I cannot
see him, but yet I know he’s there just as well as if I was looking at him.
So seeing isn’t believing, is it? No, no, huh-uh, not this time. Certainly
not, because feeling is believing. Is that right?
23 Well, now. See now, what is…(Thank you.) What is faith? Faith is
the substance of things hoped for, the direct evidence of things you do
not see, taste, feel, smell, or hear. See? That’s it. You say, “That shirt’s
white.”
Well, what if I’d tell you, “That shirt’s red.”
You’d say, “Wait a minute, Brother Branham, that shirt’s white.”
24 Well, I’d say, “No, it’s red.” Well, now, the only way it could be…
Could it be possible it could be red? Yes. If you was color blind it might
be red. See? So seeing wouldn’t be believing yet. See?
25 But your faith…When faith is positive, you can be not…be too
positive. Like if you’re setting in a—a—given a—a trial, in a trial and
you look through a window and seen an accident. It’s hard for them
take your evidence, ’cause you might have had a optical illusion. You
never seen it that way. See? And sometimes you think you’re positive
right.
26 Did you ever go down the road and see a mirage on the road? Looks
just exactly like it’s water. I read in the paper here some time ago where
a bunch of ducks thought it was—was water, and must have seen it there
with their eyes, and lit right on the road. It killed them all, see, because
it was a mirage.
27 Many a time human beings sees a mirage, and they think, “Oh, this
is just it,” wind up killing themselves. See? See them out in the desert
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 5
when they out in there and prospecting. They get out of water, and
their canteen’s gone, and they have no water. And they—they begin to
see mirages and they think it’s water, and they run and fall down and
begin to throw, think, water upon them. And what is it? Heaping hot
sand. And that’s the way the devil does. Sometimes he shows you a false
mirage. And you think it’s something great, but when you get there, you
find yourself just heaping hot sands and sin upon you more and more.
See, don’t go after the devil’s mirage; let your faith anchor right in the
Word of God. Stay right with it, see, like that. It’s got to pull out. See?
28 That sixth sense will—will—will defy any of the other five. We
do…The five’s all right as long as they agree with the sixth. But man
wasn’t given to live by the five senses; he was…to let the five senses
guide him. He was given, prone to, born here to be led by the sixth
sense, that’s what God give him the sixth sense for. That’s God’s place
in the heart to lead us. So we are led by the sixth sense, if we’ll just let
it. Now, if the sixth sense says that the—the Word is wrong, then don’t,
you’re not in the sixth sense. See? That’s the five senses, but the sixth
sense will believe things that the five senses doesn’t declare. It’s kind
of complicated but it—it’s true, see, that the sixth sense is what we’re
guided by.
29 I just, out there just a few moments ago, prayed for a dear old
woman that’s been laying there for four days waiting to be prayed for.
And such a thing, I tell you, I just feel like I ought to change it to a
healing service somehow, to see the Spirit of God move on like that.
That poor old thing, I caught her by the hand, and—and I seen what
was wrong. And well, that…
30 (What did you read now? Luke, yeah, uh-huh, all right.) Now, I
want to take a text out of that, the Lord willing. Now, if God is willing,
tomorrow night I promised, I want to preach on The Seal Of God. You
all like teaching lessons like that? The Seal Of God, and then The Mark
Of The Beast the following night. And tonight I want to take a text out
of this, or, for a subject, out of where he’s read here, Saint Luke the—
the 18th chapter. And he read from the 35th to the 43rd verse, inclusive.
31 Now, I want to take the 38th verse for a text. Thou Son Of David,
Have Mercy On Me. And let’s take it more like a little drama tonight.
I’m tired a little bit in my throat, and let’s just have a little drama of it
for a few moments.
32 Our—our scene opens on a cold, spring morning, and it’s at the
walls, the old tore-down walls of Jericho. And there is a—a man
setting there which we know to be a beggar called blind Bartimaeus,
or Bartimaeus; it would be either one, be pronounced all right. And so
in that day there were many beggars. And all night long he’d tossed and
6 THE SPOKEN WORD
rolled, he couldn’t sleep. Many of us know what them kind of nights
are, just no rest at all. And he’d roll from one side of the bed to the
other, and there was no rest for the poor old fellow. And he’d got up
late, so he’d come to his post late. Therefore, if—if they’re not there
early, the merchants and so forth, coming in, there’s so many beggars
and people, incurables, like blindness, and leprosy, and cripples, and so
forth, and people that were poverty stricken. And about the first beggar
they met they give him a coin, and that just about settled it. That’s all
they could afford for the day.
33 So he’d come to his place late. Let’s say it’s up about eight o’clock
in the morning, and he should have been there about six. But the reason
he was late was because he missed so much sleep. All night long he’d
rolled and tossed and couldn’t sleep. And he’d…he was dreaming all
night that he could see again. He dreamed that he had his eyesight. And
he’d wake up, he’d go back to sleep.
34 You know I believe God warns us many times in dreams. Don’t
you think so? He always has, and He promised in the last days that
He would show visions and let them dream dreams. And let’s think of
Bartimaeus, and he dreamed that he could rece-…he’d received his
sight and he could see again.
35 So when he got there that morning he was late, and all the
merchants had done gone into the city, and—and the great city of
commerce, as it was. But all—all of them had went in, got early at the
market places to sell their goods and so forth. So perhaps he’d have to
do without that day. He didn’t…wouldn’t have his coin for the day
to eat by. And I can just imagine, as many times we’ve pictured him:
his old, ragged cloak on, like that, and his little old shriveled-up arms,
and the beard all over his face, and that gray, and—and blind along the
road, kind of trying to get to the place to where he set down and beg.
Each one had their own private place where they’d beg.
36 That’s a pitiful thing. I’ve been in India and watched them there
where there’s—there’s four hundred and seventy million people in
India; and honest, I’d almost say four hundred million of them
are beggars. You…Just everywhere is beggar, beggar, beggar. And
they each have their post and their place, and some kind of a little
enchantment that they do to attract the attention of the tourists: and
such a pathetic sight.
37 And then we find him setting there. And after a bad night, well,
he seen there was no one there, so he thought maybe that he would set
down on a rock. You know the walls had been torn down in his day
from where Joshua had went in, and big rocks was laying out to one
side. So he must have found his way out by the side of the northern
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 7
gate that leads up towards Jerusalem. And he sat down there in the
sunlight. And he was thinking, “Well, it’s coming on springtime now,
and I believe I’ll just set here in the warm sun; I’m chilly this morning,
and my clothes are thin. I’ll just set here in the warm sun for just a little
while, and—and maybe there might be one left out that I could get my
coin. If I don’t, my family will—will be hungry today.”
38 And as he set there he begin to think about his dream: “Last night I
dreamed that I could see. Oh, how the skies must look pretty. The hills
are beginning to bloom again.”
39 Then his mind goes back to the time he was a little boy when he
used to live around the bank there on the Jordan, and along in that
early spring, why, there used to be the big buttercups would come up,
and the little flowers. How, a little boy, how he used to roam over the
hill and set down and—and pick those flowers, and lay out there, and
oh, of the morning, and think of how pretty the skies was, and the
big white clouds coming by in the springtime, and—and how the green
was coming up, how blue the sky, and the Jordan in her swelling time,
the snow coming down out of the Judaea, and how the flowers was
blooming.
40 And then he would hear a familiar voice that we all like to hear,
a sweet voice of a mother, calling, “Bartimaeus, my little one, your
lunch is ready.” And then when his father was in the field somewhere
working, how he would come in, how that little Jewish mother would
wait on the steps for him, and pick him up in her arms, and hug him,
and set him down to his—his dinner.
41 And then after he’d got through, go out on the porch. And he used
to set out on the porch, and how his mother would rock him, and he’d
have to take his afternoon nap. So how she’d rake the hair back out of
his eyes, and—and she…look up and see those pretty, big, soft eyes of
a mother, and how she would kiss his little cheeks and say, “Oh, how I
thank great Jehovah God for a nice little boy like you, Bartimaeus. You
know, Bartimaeus, when you were born I dedicated you to Jehovah. I’ve
always believed that Jehovah would use you someday, Bartimaeus, He
would use you for His glory.”
42 And then he’d think, “Here I am setting here blind, not over maybe
a mile from where I played and seen. And how could Jehovah ever use
me? I’m blind. There’s no hopes for me.”
43 But we don’t always know, you know. God works in mysterious
ways His wonders to perform. If we commit anything to God and
believe it, like our children or whatever more, let’s believe that God will
answer that prayer. Today ’fore I left to go away, the phone constantly
8 THE SPOKEN WORD
ringing, and the mothers with their children and saying, “Now, pray
for them.”
44 I say, “Now, just commit them to God. That’s all you have to do.
And don’t put your hands on it anymore. Let God have it. If you’re
going to do something about it, then God will stand back and let you
go ahead till you get finished. But when you commit it to God and let
Him have it, then He will do it.” You just—you just believe Him. Just
stand back, and don’t work, but believe. That’s where grace is imputed
for righteousness, to believe that God will.
45 Then he said, no doubt, in his heart, that he remembered how
mother used to read him Bible stories. You know it used to be mothers
had time to read their children Bible stories; they don’t have it no more
now. They got to get the new car and get out and go at the ladies’ card
party, and—and everything.
46 And mothers, used to be, they had to pack their water from the
spring and boil it on the outside. I remember my mother have a great
big old iron kettle, and do her washing outside, and she had more time,
now, than a modern mother does just to push a button, like that, and
do her washing, dishes, everything else, just push a button. But I don’t
think our modern conveniences has got us anywhere. And what it is, it’s
made us awful lazy, killing us with heart trouble and everything else.
47 Susanne Wesley had seventeen children. And with them seventeen
children back hundreds of years ago, she could still take from two to
three hours a day, in all of her busy schedule, to read the Gospel and
pray for her children. What happened? She had a John and a Charles,
in out of there, that turned the world upside down. Susanne Wesley,
I stood by her grave not long ago and put my hand on the stone. I
said, “God, give America some mothers like that.” That’s right. She
produced a Charles and a—and a John Wesley.
48 Charles gave the world some of its best Gospel songs. And John,
oh my, he was a—a surely a firebrand snatched from the fire. That is
right. What a great man of God that he was.
49 Now, but today with all of our modern convenience, and instead of
reading the Bible to our children, we’ll turn the television on and let
them look at something that’s not even fit for them to look at. Now,
that’s right. That’s right. And another thing, we’ll give them these little
ol’ comic books, and little ol’ story books off of the…some drugstore
mantel that oughtn’t to even be sold to make—make kindling wood
out of, or fire out of. And yet we poke all that kind of stuff down our
children’s neck. Why, the American…
50 I bet you there is, that nearly every boy in America can tell you
who Davy Crockett was. But I imagine there isn’t one third of them
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 9
can tell you Who Jesus Christ is. That’s right. Oh, the Lone Ranger, or
somebody like that, or some movie star, they know all about it because
it’s laid before them.
51 And the Bible is a Book that’s put away and when the minister
comes, they dig It out, and dust It off and lay It up like that. It’s never
read. What we need today is some good old-fashion mothers back to
take their children back to prayer. That’s the best remedy I know of to
cure juvenile delinquency, that’s right, is good ol’ honest mothers.
52 I hear them talk about the illiteracy of the Kentucky mothers up
around in the part of the country where we come from, up there.
Now, they may be, they wouldn’t…might not know right and left
hand but you let one of their girls come in one night with their hair all
turned inside out, and her clothes all off of her, and lipstick smeared all
over her face and like that, and some little half-drunk, sallow, cigarette
sucker bring her daughter in around daylight: I tell you, she won’t be
able to get out of the bed for three months. I’ll just guarantee you that
now. Yes, sir. You talk about illiteracy, we…that’s…We need more
of them kind of mamas (Yes, sir, yes, sir.) that’ll—that’ll bring back
discipline.
53 In our home we had the Ten Commandments, they hung over the
door, hickory with all ten of them, out on the end like that. And I tell
you, we got our—we got our education off of that. Um-hum. That’s
right. I can see my father, yet, reach over and say, “William…”
I’d say, “Oh, my.” I knew what was coming. But I—I’m glad he did
it. That’s right.
54 Bartimaeus would think of his precious little mother, how she
used to tell him Bible stories about what the Lord did. She’d say,
“Bartimaeus, you know, we Jewish people, by God’s choice, He chose
us to be His people because we loved Him and served Him. Bartimaeus,
you may live to be a great man someday. I’m expecting you to be the
king of Israel. I—I want you to…” Every mother’s anticipations is for
her child to be something great, and that’s what she should be. And
she said, “I have prayed. And I…when I knew you was coming to the
earth, when God placed you under my heart, well, I—I gave your little
life to God. And you know I want you to serve this great God. I’m
going to tell you how great He is, Bartimaeus. And you know we were
coming up out of Egypt. We were slaves once, and He brought us up
out of Egypt, how He opened the Red Sea, fed the children of Israel
out of Heaven by manna, blowed in meat, quails for them, give them
water out of a Rock in the desert, and all the great things He done.”
And, oh, his little bright eyes would just…He’d say, “Oh, mama,
does that, still, great Jehovah live?”
10 THE SPOKEN WORD
“Oh, yes, darling. He’s just the same as He ever was. He’s still
Jehovah.”
55 He used to love that story, and tell about how that the—the children
of Israel used…said, “Right down there at the old ford, one day the
great, mighty Joshua crossed right down there with the children of
Israel. Just around the city where we go get our groceries down there
at Jericho, Joshua crossed right there, the great, mighty warrior, the
servant of God. How Moses stood yonder on top of the mountain,
looked over into the swelling tides of the river, and how that the
unbeliever thought, ‘This is a good time. We’re safe. God is a poor
engineer, pick this time of year to cross.’ But God sometimes just takes
the worst hour to prove that He’s God.” Yes, sir. Look like He’d taken
them when the river…brought them up there when the river was low.
No, that ain’t it. He just wants to prove to you He is God. He—He likes
to manifest His glory.
And oh, I just love that. I just love that, to see and know that He’s
God.
56 Then one of the stories that little Bartimaeus liked so well was
the story of the Shunammite woman, because it had a little boy in it,
you know. There’s a little boy in there that…And she’d tell about
that great, mighty prophet Elisha, how that God made him such a
great, mighty prophet. He lived out in the wilderness and didn’t have
many clothes, and he wrapped a piece of leather around him, and—
and how he was a great, mighty man of God though. He lived under
the anointing of God. And he’d pass through a certain city, and there
was a Shunammite woman there. And she was a kind woman, and she
loved God too. Although being a Gentile, she—she loved God.
57 And I might say that she might’ve said to Bartimaeus, “You know,
Bartimaeus, we are chosen of God but someday there’ll be a great
Messiah come. And when He will…when He comes, He will be the
One that’ll call all nations, because this Shunammite woman…God
is lovely to all those who will be lovable. He wants to come and help
those who wants to be helped.
58 “And Bartimaeus, this great woman, she’d see this holy man pass
through the city. So she wanted to show some favor to him, because
she loved God, and she knowed this was His servant, and she wanted to
help him and do something for him. So she’d—she’d see him coming,
and she would go out and bid him to come in and—and stay with them.
So her husband was rather a rich man. So one day she said to her
husband, ‘You know, dear, this great holy man of God comes by here,
and he goes up there to a cave where he’s living, up in Mount Carmel.
So as he passes through here, I believe it would be good if we built him
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 11
just a little room on the side of our house. I believe that would be real
nice if we’d do that, because both of us believe in God, and He is God,
and that’s God’s representative. That’s the highest order in the earth
now of God is His representative.’
“So the husband said, ‘I think that’ll be fine.’ So they built the little
house on there.
59 “And one day when Elisha and Gehazi, his—his servant, came by
and they seen this little room built on there and went in. They had
them a nice little bed there, and—and a little stool and some water and
everything. So said, ‘Go ask this Shunammite what could I do for her.
She’s been so kind to us; maybe we could return the—the kindness.
Maybe she’d want me to speak to the king, or maybe she’d want me to
speak to the chief captain or someone.’
60 “But you know, Bartimaeus, what that woman, she didn’t ask for
nothing. But when Gehazi came back, he said, ‘I tell you, Elisha, the
great prophet of God, the woman is barren. She has no children. She’s
never had any children.’”
61 And say, “Bartimaeus, you know any mother wants a little, sweet
little boy like you are. See? That’s the reason Jehovah is so good to
me to give you…give me a little boy like you. And that poor mother
wanted a little boy like you.
62 “So Elisha said, ‘Go, tell her to come stand before me.’ And so, no
doubt but Elisha had a vision of what to do. So then when the woman
came in, he said, ‘According to the time of life, you’re going to bear a
son.’ And she went out. And you know what, Bartimaeus? That mother
received a sweet little boy, just a little Gentile boy, just like you’re a little
Jewish boy. How that mother loved that little boy. How she must’ve
thought he was the sweetest little thing.
63 “And when he was about eleven years old, one day he went with
his papa out in the field to—to do the harvest. And I believe he must
have got a sunstroke because he begin to say, ‘My head, my head.’ He
got sicker and sicker.
64 “So the father being real busy with the hired hands, he had a servant
to take the little fellow in, and laid him on his mother’s lap. She kept
him on the lap till about noon, and the breath all went out of him and
the poor little boy died. Now, but Bartimaeus, I want you to notice
what this Gentile woman, now, what she did. She took him in and laid
him on the bed of the prophet.”
65 Now, there’s a wonderful revelation. See? She didn’t take him to his
own bed; neither did she take him to her bed, or the father’s bed. She
took him and laid him on the prophet’s bed in the chamber where the
prophet had slept.
12 THE SPOKEN WORD
66 “And then she said to her husband, ‘You saddle a mule; and you
go forward for me now,’ told the servant, ‘and don’t stop. If anybody
salutes you, don’t salute them back, but you go straight to the man of
God up at Mount Carmel.’
“‘Now,’ said, ‘Now,’ her husband said, ‘it’s neither new moon, or
neither is it Sabbath, so the man of God won’t be there.’
“She said, ‘All will be well.’”
I like that, when you got that real hold on faith, um-hum, stay on
that. That’s a good lesson for all you little Bartimaeuses now. Look.
67 “And then said, ‘Go! Go forward, don’t stop for social calls and
things. Just go forward; just keep on going. Don’t stop till I bid you
stop.’ And of course, when he got close to Mount Carmel, when the
prophet…”
You know, God don’t reveal everything to His prophets. We all
know that. He just reveals to His prophets what He wants them to
know.
68 “And now when he got close, Elisha walked out, probably old and
maybe a little dim in sight. He raised up his hands and he said, ‘Here
comes that Shunammite, and she looks like that she’s worried. But God
has kept it from me.’ So he said to Gehazi, ‘Go out and call to her.’ But
she was pretty well speeding on. When she got there he hollered, ‘Is all
well with thee? Is all well with thy husband? Is all well with thy child?’
“And watch what that woman said. ‘All is well.’”
Amen. See, she knew that God was in that prophet. That’s right.
She knowed that was the highest order God had in that day.
69 I think that’s where Martha got the idea; she must’ve read that
story. When her brother Lazarus died, she knowed if God was in that
prophet, God was certainly in His Son. That’s right. So she went to
Him and said, “Lord, if Thou would have been here, my brother would
not have died. But even now, whatever You ask God, God will give it
to You.” I like that. I like that. See, that startled Him. See, “Even now
whatever You ask God, God will give it to You.”
70 This little boy setting here with this mashed-up foot, another young
fellow setting over here; seen them both shouting last night. Must be
Pentecostal boys, must have God in their heart. You say, “Brother
Branham, I probably never walk again. The doctor says I won’t.” This
one over here with heart trouble, this one with whatever-it-is; whatever
your trouble is, say, “Well, the doctor says I won’t. I won’t never be
able to get over this. I got cancer. I got tumor. I got so-and-so.”
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 13
71 “But even now, Lord, whatever You ask the Father, He will give it
to You.” That’s it. “Even now, whatever You ask God, God will give it
to You.” That must have been where Martha got that story.
72 “The Shunammite woman said, ‘All is well.’ Now, she wasn’t asking
for the boy, but she knowed that God was able through this prophet to
tell her why He took the boy and that would satisfy her. If he could tell
why He took the boy, everything was all right. So she was before God’s
representative, and all things was well.”
73 I imagine little Bartimaeus’ eyes would just brighten. “Mama,
mama, hurry up. Tell me what happened.” You see, little boys get hasty.
They want to find out what the end is.
74 “Well, the great prophet, after she revealed to him and told her—
her story, what the little boy had died and was laying in the chamber,
now the prophet said to his servant, ‘Take my staff and go lay it on the
child.’”
Now, I think, again in the New Testament, that’s where Paul got
the idea of taking handkerchiefs and aprons from his body.
75 “Now, Elisha knew that everything that he touched was blessed,
but if he could get the woman to believe it, that was all. If he could
get the woman to believe the same thing, a miracle would’ve happened
just the same as ever, if the woman would have had faith in what Elisha
told her to do. But the woman’s faith wasn’t in the staff.”
76 Now, I kind of like the way she said it, anyhow. “She said, ‘As the
Lord liveth and your soul never dies, I’m not going to leave you.’” I like
that: determined to hold on. That’s it.
77 If you start out for God, hold on until the Holy Ghost comes, until
everything that you’ve asked for takes place. Just don’t give it up. “I’ll
not leave You. I’m on Your hands, Lord, until You answer me.” That’s
the way to do it.
78 You know, Jesus taught it like that. He said the unjust judge, you
know, how he—he—he wouldn’t avenge the widow of her enemy. But
he said, “To get her off of my hands I’ll go ahead and avenge her of her
enemies. Well, then how much more will your kind Heavenly Father be
willing to give you.” But now not…
He said, “Seek and you shall find; knock and it will be opened…”
Now…“And ask.”
Now, if you notice, it isn’t just [Brother Branham knocks on the
pulpit once—Ed.] “Lord, I want it.”
79 “He that asketh, seeketh.” Keep on seeking, keep on knocking,
just keep on, on, you’ve arrived there, so just keep on knocking till
14 THE SPOKEN WORD
it happens. “I believe it, Lord. I’m—I’m on Your hands. I’m on Your
hands.”
I remember the Lord healed me of stomach trouble. The devil said,
“You—you haven’t healed.”
80 I said, “Just stick around, listen at me testify then, if you—you want
to listen at it. If you want to hear God be praised, just stick around and
listen at me awhile.” He got tired and went on away. So he—he will do
it.
81 The other day he tried to give me a bad cold. He handed it to me,
and I give it back to him. He handed it to me again. I give it back to
him again. And we just fought on it for three or four days, and finally it
went away. So there you are. See? Just keep handing it back to him. Just
don’t receive it, take, give it back to him. Give it back to him. That’s
the way to do it. Just be determined. Hold on.
That’s the way she did.
82 “She said, ‘As the Lord liveth and your soul never dies…’ Now,
see, she believed he had a soul that wouldn’t die. See? ‘As the Lord liveth
and thy soul liveth,’ see, ‘I’m not going to leave you. I’m going to stay
with you till I find out what happened.’ So he couldn’t get her off her
ha-…off his hands. So he just had to gird up his loins, and here he
went.
83 “I notice when he walked into the room, look what that prophet
had to come against. He didn’t know what the Lord was going to do.
There was the father, screaming at the top of his voice, all the people
around the neighborhood screaming. That fine little boy of this lovely
family was dead, laying in the chamber, all hope’s gone.”
84 Now, what did Elisha do? Just like Jesus did, put them all out of
the house; got away from where it was at, like Jesus did when Jairus’
daughter was dead. And watch what the prophet did, he didn’t have to
go out and seek and pray, and pray up and get ready. No, I—I believe
we should stay prayed up all time, don’t you think so?
85 Here not long ago there was a little Irish woman coming over on a
ship, they said. And about thirty, forty miles out, somewhere out of—
of New York harbor, there come a terrible storm. And the little ship
didn’t think they could make it. They sent out SOS. And so they told
them the storm was getting worse and worse. If they could—if they
could storm it for thirty minutes, they’d reach the—the—the harbor,
but if they couldn’t, they’d be in the bottom of the sea. So all the jazz
music stopped and begin to pray, play Nearer, My God To Thee, and
so forth. But all this little Irish woman, she walked up and down the
floor screaming and shouting. “Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!”
she said.
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 15
The captain said, “Did you understand me?”
Said, “Yes, sir. I understood you.”
Said, “Well, why don’t you pray?”
86 She said, “I’m already prayed up.” So that—that’s it, be prayed up,
ready. That’s the way we have to do it. And she said, “I’m so glad.”
And she started shouting again.
The captain said, “What you shouting about?”
Said, “You said if we held out thirty minutes we’d be in New York.
If we didn’t we’d be in the bottom of the sea.”
Said, “That’s right.”
87 Said, “I’m on my road from Ireland to see my daughter in New
York. I got one in Glory. And thirty minutes from now I’ll see one of
them.” So that’s, if the ship went down, she went up, went there. So
that’s it. You can’t lose. See? So she was just shouting anyhow. She
knowed in thirty minutes she’d see one of her loved ones. Oh, that’s it.
Be prayed up.
88 “Ol’ Elisha, when he got on the—on the ship, or, got on the platform
of the little place where that she’d built him, she…walked back and
forth across the floor. And he walked to and fro, the Bible said, in the
room. And then after he felt the Spirit come on him, he went and laid
hisself upon the baby, and just laid there with his flesh upon the baby.
And then he felt the baby was getting warm, so he got up, walked back
and forth again through the room to and fro. Come back and laid hisself
on the baby again, and it sneezed seven times and come to life. He
picked up the baby and said, ‘Call the Shunammite.’”
And, oh, how little Bartimaeus liked that.
89 He begin to think, “Oh, when I used to hear my mother tell those
stories.” About that time he heard something clicking, of a little mule
coming. Must be kind of a rich man, because most of the travel was on
foot or by…Rich people rode a donkey, and the army used chariots.
And so he—he said, “This must be a wealthy man that’s coming in late.”
So he raised up, threw aside his garment, run out and said, “Alms for
the blind; alms for the blind, please.”
90 And the little mule stopped, and he heard a real grouchy voice said,
“Out of my way, beggar. I am the head of the ministerial association
of Jerusalem. They tell me that there’s going to be a…I’m the servant
of the Lord. They tell me they got one of these here so-called prophets
coming in down here today, sees visions and so forth. They’re going
to have a healing service. I’m going to gather the whole council down
here today. I’ve got to get these ministers together to see that we’ll have
16 THE SPOKEN WORD
none of that nonsense around here. Out of my way, I’m on the way of
the Lord.” Down the street went the little donkey.
And so Bartimaeus thought, “Well, and that’s the servant of the
Lord.”
91 Well, made his way back trying to find out where the rock was.
Finally when he found the rock, the sun had moved over a little bit and
it become kind of chilly. The shadows of the wall was on the rock, so
he moved out a little farther, and he said, “Well, I guess I have no coin
for the day. So maybe I’ll just—just wait a little while, and maybe I’ll
set down again. Maybe I will continue my daydreaming of when I was
a little boy.”
92 Then he remembered, too, that his mother told him, that years ago,
that that great prophet Elijah and Elisha, the one that took his place,
two mighty men of God, come right down that same cobbled street,
arm in arm with one another, going down to the Jordan to open the
Jordan up. Oh, my. Passed right by within thirty feet from where he
was setting.
93 But alas, the priest told him, “All the days of miracles are past.
Jehovah doesn’t heal the people anymore, you know.” That spirit never
did die out. So they, that: “Oh, Jehovah don’t do those things no more.
We’re just supposed to live good, and—and pay our tithe, and go to
the church and…at every meeting, and then that’s all we’re supposed
to do. But Jehovah doesn’t heal. He—He was Jehovah back there, but
today He—He’s not concerned about it.”
94 Oh, what a mistake. He’s always concerned. If He ever was
concerned, He’s still concerned. Yes, sir. He cannot change His
motives. He cannot change His attitude. He’s still Jehovah. I don’t care
how many says that He’s changed. His people has changed, but He
hasn’t changed. The reason that we don’t see Him doing those things
is because we won’t let Him do it. He’s willing.
95 We think we’ll—we’ll exhaust His bountiful blessings. We think,
“Well, I asked God to give me my daily bread. I shouldn’t ask Him too
many things.” Oh, my.
96 Could you imagine? little fish about that long, way out in the
middle of this ocean, saying, “Wait, I’d better drink of this water
sparingly. I might run out someday.”
97 Could you imagine? a little mouse about that big under the great
garners of Egypt, saying, “I better allowance myself to one half a grain
of wheat a day. I might run out before next harvest.” My. Well, that
would…Just multiply that by a hundred billion, and you—you try to
exhaust God’s goodness and mercy.
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 17
98 He’s trying to force His way into you, everything He can. “Ask
abundantly that your joys might be full.” He wants His people to be
happy, asking great things, believing for great things. You are a city
sets on a hill, high ambitions, expectations. Well, mercy, if we see the
blind receive its sight tonight, I want to see the dead raised tomorrow
night. Yes, sir. And I want to…I—I just keep on believing for greater
things.
99 When the church begin to receive the Holy Ghost and speak in
tongues, why did you settle down on that? My, just keep moving on.
Go on to the promised land. We’re on our way to the promised land.
Sure, just don’t take just one thing. Say, “Well, we’ll just…Have you
spoke in tongues? Well, you haven’t got a great blessing till you got…”
Well, you ought to be a million miles up the road from that right now,
sure, greater things; high expectations. Certainly.
100 Now, we find out now that Bartimaeus had been told that the days
of miracles was past. So he said, “Now, what if I was setting here,
instead of hearing that man who called himself, this day, the servant of
God…And what was that he said? He was going down to see about
something of what? Wonder what’s going on down in the city. Well,
anyhow, the days of miracles is past. And that’s the kind of servants
Jehovah has today? It’s a lot different from the one that Elijah was,
and Elisha.
101 “Now, if I’d have been setting on this rock, when Elijah and Elisha
passed down by there, going down to the Jordan…And not but just a
little piece below where I’m setting that great prophet took his coat
off, his cloak, fold it together and struck the Jordan, and she give
way (Amen.), hundreds of years after Joshua had did the same thing.”
Amen. That showed Jehovah was still the same as long as He can get
somebody to believe He’s the same. Yeah.
102 Then after he’d got on the other side, now he was weary. He had
fussed with Jezebel and them till he was…about her painting up and
carrying on, till he was tired, he was going Home. And so the young
prophet had take his place. So he knowed just across the river there was
a chariot hooked to some bush over there somewhere, and he—he was
going to take a little ride up Home. You see? But the young prophet was
watching for his new ministry, seeing what this old one was doing, so he
know he had to take his place. So the young prophet caught his vision,
and seen him go up, caught his garment passed back down, picked up
the same garment and struck the Jordan, said, “Where is the God of
Elijah?” Oh, my. And she opened up again. That’s right.
Where is the God of Pentecost? Where is the God that was in Jesus
Christ? What’s the matter with the ministry today in the churches?
18 THE SPOKEN WORD
103 I guess you read that piece in the paper they just sent me. Somebody
from the church here sent it to me, where this Episcopalian minister up
here said the virgin birth was only a myth, and there was no such a thing
as garden of Eden, and all that stuff like that. That man don’t belong
in the pulpit. No, sir! That’s what’s the matter with it today. That’s
what’s…Take great educated people like that stand up, and they get
so much education they ain’t got gumption enough to know how to
hold it. That’s all.
104 What we need today…Paul said, “I never come to you with
excellently of word or education. I come to you in the simplicity with
the power and demonstrations of the Holy Ghost, that your faith would
be rest upon the resurrection and the power of God, and not in some
smooth words,” or something of some so-called bishop, or something.
105 Now, we find out that just a little later, as Bartimaeus set there a
little longer, wondering what would take place. Then he remembered
that, too, just below there, not five hundred yards from where he was
setting, that great Joshua, oh, my, that great servant of God who took
Moses’ place, that come across the Red Sea, and come across, also was
only two of the old group in the wilderness back there that believed
that they could take the land. They looked at the Word of God. They
believed the Word of God.
106 Nine of them said, “Oh, we can’t take it. We look like grasshoppers
up the side of them. The cities are all walled. It’s an impossibility to do
it.”
But not that fellow, no, sir, brother, he said, “We’re more than able
to take it.”
107 Why? It depends on what you’re looking at. If you’re looking at
your crippled hand, just, it’ll still stay that way. If you’re looking at
your tumor, it’ll remain that way. Look away from that. Look at the
promise of God. It depends on what you’re looking at. Christians look
at the unseen. Abraham called things which were not as though they
were, because God said they were. That’s the way real Christians do.
No matter what the world says, what it looks like, that has nothing
to do with it. It’s what God said about it is what does it. Yes. What
was…
108 God told them way down in Egypt, “I give you that land.” But
He didn’t say, “I’ll go out there and sweep it all out, and garnish the
houses, and hang up the curtains, and everything. You all just move in.”
No, no. They had to fight for every inch of ground they took. That’s
right, fighting, and take it by every…fight every inch. But He said,
“Everywhere the soles of your foot lands, that’s possession.” Footsteps
is possession.
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 19
109 That’s the same thing it is today. Divine healing belongs to us, the
Holy Spirit belongs to us, it’s our property, but you’ll fight every inch
of it. Yes, sir. But, brother, footsteps is possession, just keep fighting,
take it. The devil say, “The days of miracles is passed.”
110 Say, “You’re lying. God said He’s the same yesterday, today, and
forever.” Take it over. Everywhere your foot steps, that’s possession.
That’s right.
111 Joshua come right on across the river with them, camped out there.
Oh, blind Bartimaeus said, “What if I would have lived in that day?
Why, as soon as I seen them priests walking, and Joshua with that
sword up in the air, walking across, why, I’d have went down there
and said, ‘Great Joshua, pray for me.’ And I believe I’d have got my
sight, that great man would have prayed for me. Sure. But alas, Joshua
is gone, and God, I guess, is gone. All the days of miracles is past, so
our priest says. So I guess it’s just hopeless. There’s nothing I can do;
so, hopeless.”
112 And then he said, “You know what? After they compassed the walls
around Jerusalem many days, one day Joshua, that great warrior, was
taking a little walk out one afternoon, studying the strategy of how to
take that walls of Jericho, how he was going to do it. He seen that
scarlet streak hanging down of Rahab. He was going to spare that
house, watching it. And all at once he looked, standing out there before
him, there stood another Man with His sword drawed. Joshua pulled
out his sword, and he run to meet Him, challenged Him in a duel. He
said, ‘Are You for us, or are You for our enemy?’
113 “He said, ‘I’m the captain of the host of the Lord. I’m the Lord’s
Captain of His host.’ Joshua threw down his sword, took off his helmet,
and fell at His feet.”
114 Blind Bartimaeus would’ve said, “Oh, if I would’ve lived in that
day, I’d have run up to that Captain of the Lord’s host, and I’d have
spoke to Him.”
115 Little did he know that that same Captain wasn’t a hundred yards
from him, coming right through the city then, the Captain of the Lord’s
host on His road through the city.
116 You know, it’s when we begin to think about Him, that’s when He
appears. It’s when Cleopas and them was thinking about Him, when He
appeared. It’s always when…“Let the meditation of my heart and—
and let all my thoughts, and let all my songs, let all that I am just
meditate on Thee, Lord, day and night.” That’s the way to get God
close to you.
117 Quit thinking about what the Joneses is doing, and what you’re
going to do next week, and all this thing. Just keep…just let…“Fill
20 THE SPOKEN WORD
my way every day with love as I walk with the Heavenly Dove. Let me
go all the while with a song and a smile. Fill my way every day with
love.” That’s right.
118 Go right on down the road no matter what; school keeps, or not.
If it don’t, we turn the teacher out, and just go right on believing on
the Lord. See? Keep the meditations upon God. Think on these things.
The Bible said, “If there be any praise, if there be any virtue, think on
these things.”
119 Well, our thoughts are always negative. We come in the prayer
line…I notice they come in the prayer line, “Oh, if—if—if he will tell
me…Is it this?” Oh my, you never get nothing like that. No. You’re
so negative to begin with.
120 Come like that: “Come to the fountain filled with Blood drawn
from Emmanuel’s veins, where sinners plunge beneath the flood lose
all their guilty stain.” That’s it. Come with faith believing. “He that
cometh to God must believe that He is, and a Rewarder of those that
diligently seek Him.”
121 I’m not going to go through Oral Roberts’ prayer line, then go
through Tommy Hicks’ prayer line, then go through Osborn’s prayer
line, and Allen’s prayer line, and Branham’s prayer line, So and so’s
prayer line, go to this church and that church. Why, you’re just wasting
time; that’s all. That’s all.
122 The thing to do is just—just say and make up your mind that it’s
God, and God said so, and I’m going to meet His requirements and that
settles it forever. Amen. That’s it. God said so. Go out to my pastor,
say, “Pastor, the Bible tells us to call the elders, anoint them in oil, pray
over them, prayer of faith shall save the sick. That’s all I have to know.”
Amen.
123 I got a letter back from a little woman in Germany not long ago.
Why, she’d been crippled about fifteen years with arthritis: couldn’t
move. I sent her a handkerchief. We send thousands of them, a month,
out. And so, she got this little letter. And we got a prayer chain around
the world. So she—she read this, and she said, “Now, it says on here,
‘If your pastor isn’t there, or if he’s an unbeliever, don’t call him. See?
But if there’s a neighbor somewhere that is a believer, call the believer.
Confess all your faults. Ask God to forgive you of everything you
done. Get everything right. Then pray. Put the handkerchief on your
underneath garment over your heart. Then believe.’” So she met all the
requirements that was sent to her. And when she did, she put her hand
over her heart. She said, “Now, old man devil, you’ve been in me long
enough. Get out.” Here she come walking through. That’s just that’s
simple. It’s just that simple to believe.
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 21
124 Here in Arizona, we was out to the Indian, the Apaches. And I
always felt sorry for the Apaches. And there they was out there that
night. And looked like an army setting out there, and I begin to speak
to them about the Lord. And you know, the Indian, he’s kind of a odd
fellow. He’s like a mule: he won’t eat out of the wrong stall. So he
listened to it, he thought it was fake, first. And then he brought…I
said…I called for the prayer line.
125 Well, I heared somebody out there holler “Gloria a Dios.” That
was my Spanish friends. I knowed they’d have a prayer line if they was
around, ’cause they are…they always got faith to believe. So they
was…but they…this was for Indians only.
126 And I looked around there, and the first thing, the Assembly of
God woman back there, she had a little mission. I was standing up on
a—on a steps like this, and all of them was setting out around. It was
beautiful sight. And so she had some back in there. They brought the
first woman out. Soon as she come out, great big, wide wrists, she had
a little baby on her back, in this little papoose back here. And I looked
at her. And I thought I’d try to find favor. I said, “How about giving me
the baby?” She wasn’t going to do that. So I, just catching her mind.
127 Now, I said, “Now…” To the interpreter, I said, “she has a
venereal disease, but it…” And so the interpreter said that. She looked
at me real strong. I said, “Now, it wasn’t caused from immoral living,
but the way she had to live in dirt and filth like that.” Well, she nodded
her head that was right; I prayed for her.
128 Next was glaucoma of the eye. The Indians has much of it, and
prayed for that one. Next come out was a—was a little girl, and she
kept her head down like that. I said, “Now…” She was a little bitty
fellow about like that. And happened to be one of the chief ’s daughter.
I said, “Now, the little girl,” I said, “she’s had a fever, and the fever
made her go deaf and dumb. She can’t speak or hear.”
129 And the interpreter said that, and the mother, “That was right,
every bit of it was right.” Them Indians then begin to look around at
one another, you know. They begin to see something they had never
seen. Yeah.
130 So I said, “Now, I cannot make the—the girl to speak and hear. That
takes God.” But I said, “This is just the—the sign that He’s here, that
His Presence is here. He has us anointed.” And so I took the little girl
by the hand. I said, “Heavenly Father.” They don’t interpret the prayer.
I said, “Let this deaf and dumb spirit leave this child.” And I got down
to her, and I done like that. [Brother Branham clapped his hands—Ed.]
She turned around and looked at me with them big black eyes, and I
said, “You say, ‘Praise the Lord.’”
22 THE SPOKEN WORD
She said, “Lum, lum, lumalum,” or something another, like that.
I said, “She’ll talk better.”
Her mother said, “Her talk heap good right now.” And—and away
she went; so then, “Her talk heap good right now.”
131 Then the next was a mother, then the next was a little ol’ boy come
out there. And I said, “Well, do you believe that God…You speak
English?” No, she didn’t speak English. I said, “Do you believe that
God will heal the little fellow?”
132 And she reached down and got him by the top of the head; they’re
real rough, you know, and his little old hair just as coarse as a mane
on a horse, and so…hold him like that. I said, “He’s got crossed eyes,
but you believe that God…?” She heard the interpreter say, “crossed
eyes,” so she just got him by the nap of the head, and pulled his little
head back, little eyes setting right in like that. I said, “Now, if you’ll
believe that God will straighten its little eyes,” I said, “then God will
do it.” And so the interpreter…I said, “Now, get it slow.”
133 They haven’t got no—no sentence or punctuations. They start real
low, and go high, high, low. They just…You know how the Apaches
are. They’re the…was kind of a rough set of Indians. So then they
said, “Yes,” that she’d believe.
134 I took the little fellow up by…He was just like you’re trying to
tame a bronco. And I had a piece of chewing gum. I put it under his
nose and let him smell it, you know. And then I got him like this, got
in my arms, got the little fellow up in my arms like this. I said, “Don’t
interpret this.” I said, “Heavenly Father, these poor people, this is really
true Americans.”
135 And that’s right. We’re not Americans. Huh-uh. We’re not
American. We’re aliens that come in, took the land away from them.
They’re real Americans. God gave them this land; we come, took it
away from them. I think it’s a stain on the flag the way we treat them.
That’s right. Sending money over there to Japan and all them places, to
blow it back at us like this, and our Indians laying out here and starving
to death, it’s not right. Sure, it isn’t right.
136 And then I looked, and the poor little fellow, I had him on my
shoulder. I said, “Lord, let me find favor with these people. Straighten
the little fellow’s eyes.” I was watching like this, and I seen a vision
come before me, his little eyes was just as straight.
137 I said. “Now…” He had his head over my shoulder. I was patting
him. I said, “Now, to all of youse,” hundreds and hundreds setting
everywhere, I said, “now, if this baby’s eyes are not straight, then I’m
a false prophet. See? If they are straight, then I’ve represented Jesus
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 23
Christ to you. I can’t help what the government does to you. But,” I
said, “I know Jesus will treat you right. Now, you see if this is right or
not.” I took his little head around. You talk about a prayer line. I had
one now. My, there was a stampede.
138 And then the next one coming was an old Indian woman, and she
had a…She was to be next and, oh, they was…you ju-…you just
had…You couldn’t beat them down. And there was a—there was an
old Indian woman come out. She had two broom sticks with a—with
a piece of goods wrapped around a thing she had under her arm here,
and she was trying to get out.
139 And there was a little Indian boy jumped up on there, and he was
trying to cut in ahead of her. And we couldn’t make him understand,
’cause he couldn’t speak English. And Brother Moore, many of you
know Brother Jack Moore; he just got him by the sides, and packed
him over.
140 And I noticed the old woman. She come up close like that. They
were believing then. Oh, you talk about a prayer line. So there, just
coming up, real, like that. And I watched her, and she moving these
two crutches like this. And she’d take that foot, you know, and set it
out, and then the other one like that, just barely could move. She, I
guess, she was eighty years old. And she looked up at me when she
got right close to me. And them great big, deep cuts in her cheek. My
mother is a half-breed, I don’t know as you know that or not, but she’s
got them big, deep cuts, too. And I looked when she come up like that,
and the tears cutting away down through them little, pale-looking eyes.
And I thought, “Somebody’s mother.” And she just looked up at me
like that and I thought, I—I…when I…’fore I pray for her, I thought,
“O God, look at that little chin shaking like that, little old thing.” She
looked at me, she started smiling. She just got one crutch and put it
there, and handed it over to me, and went walking on off the platform.
Yeah. See, simple faith, just to believe.
141 I—I was going to try to pray for all, but, oh, my, it was along
about…I had to stop the discernment then. So along about three or
four o’clock in the morning, they was coming through wet, plumb up
around like this, just as wet as they could be. And I said, “What’s the
matter with them?”
142 Said, “Well, they thought, first, you were false.” He said, “Now,”
said, “they’re going out into the desert and getting their loved ones.
They’re not going down to the ford; they’re just wading right across
the river with them, like that.”
143 So here come an old man, gray headed. And he had…was on a
board and had two sticks across it. And he had his legs laying across
24 THE SPOKEN WORD
two sticks and his arms across the two sticks, and he was shaking like
this with the palsy. And so there was a great big fellow standing there,
handsome-looking, great big Indian, his lips just as blue as they could
be, and wet. And I said, “Aren’t you afraid you’ll take pneumonia?”
He said, “Nope.”
I said, “You talk English?”
Said, “Little.”
And I said, “Aren’t you afraid you’d take pneumonia.”
“No.” Said, “Jesus Christ has take care of me. I brought my dad.”
“Hum, um-hum, um-hum.” I said, “That your brother?”
“Yep.”
I said, “If I pray for him, you think he’d get well?”
“Yep.”
“He speak any English?”
“Nope.”
I said, “Pass him by.”
144 They put him by. I laid my hands upon him, his old head shaking
like that. I said, “Father, he worked a many hard day for these boys.
They’ve honored him now, bringing him across the river at this time of
the morning to be prayed for. I pray that You’ll heal him.” I said, “Take
him on. Bring your next one.”
145 First thing you know, I heard everybody hollering, screaming.
Looked, the old man had the board on his own shoulder, going around
waving at everybody, like that, walking away. That’s what it is. It’s just
simple faith to believe God. It’s not some hocus-pocus. It’s just childlike
faith. See, we—we’ve sprang plumb away from it trying to explain it.
Just believe it.
146 That’s right. That’s the way with this great, mighty Captain of the
host of the Lord, He was there that night, the same as He was there.
And you know, there’s something another about it, where Jesus is, you
always hear a lot of noise. I don’t know why, but it—it’s that way.
Wherever you find Jesus you find a lot of noise.
[Blank spot on tape—Ed.]…shoving and screaming, and some
of them hollering one thing, “Hosanna, Hosanna, to the Prophet of
Galilee.”
147 Others saying, “Away with the impostor. Get him out of this city.
We don’t want him here.” And some throwing overripe fruit at Him,
and probably eggs the same way, you know, then going on.
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 25
148 And he said, “Who passes by?” said Bartimaeus. “Who is it passing
by?” And they crowded over him, and shoving him back and maybe
after while he…they shoved him down. He set down, felt back for his
rock again. People…he’d hear somebody saying, one was for Him,
one was against Him. Same way it is today: some for Him, some against
Him.
149 Directly he heard that priest that he’d heard go in, saying, “Hey,
you, the prophet, you, the one that said you raised a dead man named
Lazarus; we’ve got a whole graveyard full of them up here. Let’s see
you go up and raise one. We’ll believe you. Until you do that, you’re a
false prophet.”
He said, “That’s that same man told me he was going down to
stop…Well, what’s this all about?” See?
150 And he’d say, “Somebody tell me. Somebody help me. Somebody
help me, because…Why…? Who’s passing by? What’s all this noise
about?” Nobody would listen to him, and after a while, it must have
been a young woman. She seen the poor old fellow laying there, and
she picked him up. She said, “Sir, are you hurt?”
“No, ma’am.” Said, “I—I wish you would tell me, what’s all the
noise about?”
“Oh,” she said, “Jesus of Nazareth passes by.”
“Why, Who’s Jesus of Nazareth?”
“Are you not a Israelite?”
“Yes.”
151 “Well, you see, I am a servant of Jesus of Nazareth.” You know
there’s something about Jesus of Nazareth’s servant; they’re always
willing to help somebody that’s in need. They’re always willing to stop
and help somebody that’s in need. God’s servants does that. She said,
“I’m a believer of Jesus of Nazareth. Now, you know, this Jesus of
Nazareth is the Son of David, that…”
“The Son of David? Why, I remember…I was just setting here
thinking, and my mother told me that the Son of David would come
someday.”
“Yes, that’s He, the Prophet of Galilee.”
“A Prophet?”
“Yes.”
Said, “You remember that man down here in town they call
Zacchaeus, the businessman?”
“Yes, I remember him very well. Uh-huh, he’s give me coins
before.”
26 THE SPOKEN WORD
“Well, this morning…You know Rebekah, his wife?”
“Yes, I remember Rebekah.”
152 “Well, Rebekah has been praying. Knowing that Jesus was coming
to the city, why, she was praying that—that her husband would re-…
would receive Him as his Saviour.”
“Yes, go ahead, speak on.”
153 “Well, this morning, Zacchaeus was going out to see Him, and he
didn’t want Jesus to see him. So he run down to the corner of Hallelujah
Avenue where it turns on Glory Road down here, and he—he got the
garbage can and set it down, and climbed up a sycomore tree, and set
down where two limbs crosses.”
“Uh-huh.”
154 “And Rebekah told him that—that, ‘Now, you are a Jew, and you
know that when the Messiah cometh, He’s going to be a Prophet. He’s
going to be a God-Prophet, ’cause Moses said, “The Lord your God
shall raise up a Prophet liken unto me.”’ But you know, you—you know
Zacchaeus, how well…he’s—he’s one of the businessmen here of the
city. And he leans pretty heavy with the…Him and the rabbi plays
cards together, and they have their, you know, their—their at…things
are pretty well. So they, the rabbi and all of them has said not to believe
on that fellow, ’cause he wasn’t a prophet.
155 “So Zacchaeus wanted to see if He was. So he climbs up in this
tree, and he got all the limbs, and he drug them all around him like
this, camouflaged himself. And he had one great big palm leaf that he
raised up so he could see Him when He turned down there at Glory
Avenue, you know, to see Him come around. So there he set up here in
the tree, all perched up, and nobody knowed he was up there. And he
said, ‘Now, I’ll see if He’s a Prophet. And I’ll look in His face, I’ll know
whether He’s a Prophet or not. I know what a prophet ought to look
like.’
156 “And around the corner come all the disciples. And here come
the great big fishermen, saying, ‘Would you stand back, please? Our
Master is very tired. We’re—we’re sorry we have to do this, but would
you stand back just a moment and let Him through? He’s going up to
Levinski’s for dinner, so you’ll have to…at the restaurant up here,
see, so you’ll—you’ll have to stand back. I’m sorry we have to do this,
but…’” Honest, I hope there’s not a Levinski here. So then, anyhow,
I just meant…I told you it’s just a drama. “So going by and telling,
you know, ‘Step back just a little bit.’ And here come the others.
157 “And he—he raised up his leaf and he looked out. He said, ‘Um-
hum. What’s them? Oh, oh, that’s supposed to be His disciples Rebekah
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 27
told me about. Um-hum, I’ll wait just a minute.’ Then after while he
raised up the leaf again, said, ‘Now, let’s see if I’m covered up good.
Yeah, I’m setting on two limbs.’” That’s where two ways meet, and
that’s where a lot of people set, where yours and God’s ways meets.
That’s right, got to make a decision from right there.
158 “So he—he was setting on this limb, you know. And he looked, and
after while he seen kind of a vacant space, and after while he looked,
coming around the corner. He raised up his leaf real easy and looked
out, peeked out from under the corner of it. And you know what? He
looked Him in the face. And as soon as he seen Him in the face, he said,
‘There’s something a little different about that Man. I can hear Him the
way He talked, and how compassioned He was, He—He was a different.
But you know I’d have to know that He was a Prophet, because if He
ain’t a Prophet then He’s not the Messiah, because Moses told us that
Messiah would be a Prophet.
159 “‘So I’ve got Him fooled now. I got a good look at Him. I’m going
back and tell Rebekah. You know what I got a good notion doing?
Jumping out of this tree and really giving Him a piece of my mind.’”
You know—you know how people, you know. “‘I believe I will tell Him
that all the days of miracles is past, ’cause Levinski said so, and all the
rest of them. The rabbi Jones and all of them said so.’” You see? “‘So
I know; I believe I’ll do it. But I just better set still, ’cause I’m covered
up right good.’
“So He walked…” said, “and—and what is your name, sir?”
“I’m Bartimaeus.”
160 “Well, Bartimaeus, He walked till He got right under the tree. And
when He got under the tree He stopped, looked up, said, ‘Zacchaeus,
come down right away. I’m going home with you for dinner.’ Zacc-…
Bartimaeus, could you believe that was the Son of David?”
“Oh, yes. That will be what He will do. Where’s He at?”
“He’s done gone way down the street there now.”
161 He jumped up and threw down his coat. “O Jesus, Thou Son of
David, have mercy on me. Have mercy on me. O Jesus, Thou Son of
David, have mercy on me. Yes, have mercy on me.” His last chance,
there He was passing by, He done gone by, and how would He ever
hear that poor old blind man, insignificant?
And the people said, “Set down, set down. Don’t—don’t be
hollering like that. Set down. He’s gone down the road.”
162 Then it must have been that Bartimaeus said, “He’s the Messiah,
I know He is. The only way that I’ll ever be able to catch Him now, if
He’s down there, I know that Messiah, when He comes, He will tell us
28 THE SPOKEN WORD
all things, we know that He will be a Prophet.” So he must have fell on
his knees and said, “Jehovah God, if that is the Messiah, that’s Your
Son. I pray that You’ll stop Him. Oh, let Him have mercy on me.”
And Jesus stopped. What was it? Not his voice stopped Him, but
his faith stopped Him. Watch, “Thy faith has saved thee.” See?
163 Watch. With all the burdens of the world, He was going right up to
Jerusalem to be crucified; He knew it. All the burdens and sins of the
world: every sin that was ever committed, or ever would be committed,
rested upon Him. Think, on His heart; even the eggs and fruits and
things was thrown at Him, all the screams of “Come up here and raise
some dead. Show us a miracle. Let us see you do so-and-so if you’re
the Messiah. Let’s see you…” That bunch of the—the ministerial
association of Jerusalem, you see, or, of Jericho. “Let us see you do
something. See, I told you; there’s nothing to it.”
He don’t mind devils. He don’t yet, you see, so, He—He just does
as the Father shows Him, He said.
164 But that old blind beggar over there, saying, “Oh, Thou Son of
David,” and He stopped. Brother, I’d like to preach to you sometime,
And He Stopped. Yes, sir. He stopped, and when He did, He turned
around. Now, his voice, He didn’t hear it; of course not. But his faith
stopped Him. His faith stopped Him and they brought him over.
He said, “What would, that I would do for you?”
He said, “Lord, that I might receive my sight.”
165 He said, “Thy faith has saved thee.” See, if he had faith enough
to stop Him, faith to touch Him…Don’t you see how that compares
with the rest of the Scripture? See? If he had faith enough to stop Him,
well, then he had faith enough to accept his healing. “Thy faith has
saved thee. Thy faith did it.” And He went walking on with His head
towards Jerusalem, oh, my, going on toward Jerusalem.
166 I can see blind Bartimaeus standing there, saying, “He told me,
He told me my faith. What faith? The faith that I believe that He was
Messiah. How could He have heard me, and me setting way back there
two or three hundred yards against that wall? And all them screaming
and carrying on, and people acting the way they were, how…? Why,
I had enough faith to believe, and I stopped Him, and He told me…
Say, I—I—I can see my hands!” And the Bible said he followed Him
then, rejoicing and praising God.
167 The faith of one blind beggar stopped Him on such a mission as
that. The faith of one person here tonight can bring Him from Glory
right to this building, sure it will. He can heal you. He can—He can give
you deliverance.
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 29
168 I read a little story on blind Bartimaeus. Before I close, my time is
gone; but I’d just like to say this before I close, and we’ll make the altar
call. Now, notice just a moment.
169 I read a story. It perhaps was fiction. Maybe it was, I don’t know.
But I was reading on blind Bartimaeus, said he’d been blind since he
was a—a young boy, that he went blind. But he was married, and he
had a wife and a little curly-headed girl that he’d never seen in his life.
And said one night he got sick. And they told, the story did, that he
had some turtledoves that would get out there. They’d do little tumbles
over one another, and that would attract the attention of the—of the
passerby. And they’d watch them little doves go do little tumbles over
one another, and the people would stop and laugh a little bit, and then
give him a coin. That’s the way they still do it.
170 And so his little girl got sick. They had the physician out, and the
doctor said, “Well,” said, “there’s too high a fever on the child. I—I
don’t think the child’s going to live, Bartimaeus. We have nothing to
break that fever, so I—I don’t believe the child is going to live.”
171 And Bartimaeus just said…Maybe he stepped out along the side
of his little adobe hut, and stood out there, and he said, “Jehovah, if
You will just heal my little girl and don’t let her die, I promise You,
tomorrow, I’ll make You a sacrifice of my two little turtledoves.”
172 See, something you have to give up; people think today just
because they do a little something. No, it’s something that really hurts,
something you have to dig way down to get. That’s the kind that God
sees. “I’ll give You my two little turtledoves and just go ahead without
them.” And said next morning his…the fever was gone. He went and
offered the two turtledoves.
173 Said some time later his wife got real ill. And so the physician came
and said, “Why, I believe she’s going to die. I don’t believe she’ll ever be
well, Bartimaeus,” after waiting on her for a while. And said, “No, I…
My medicine won’t help her. She’s going to die.” So he went outside of
the house again.
174 And you know these dogs that lead people today? I forget what you
call them: seeing-eye dog, they lead them. But the dog them days, they
said, they had lambs that led them. And so Bartimaeus had a seeing-
eye lamb. So he said, “If, Lord, if You will heal my wife, and don’t let
my precious companion die, well, I promise You, tomorrow, I’ll give
You my lamb.” And the next day his wife was better.
So he was going up to offer up the lamb. And said, the priest said,
“Where goest thou, blind Bartimaeus?”
30 THE SPOKEN WORD
175 He said, “I’m going up to the—the—the sacrifice to offer my lamb
to Jehovah. I promised Him that I would give Him my lamb because
He healed my wife.”
176 He said, “Oh, Bartimaeus, thou cannot offer that lamb.” Said, “I’ll
give you some money, and you go buy you a lamb, and then offer that
lamb. Buy that at the exchangers at the…out in the courts.”
He said, “Oh, priest that is good of you. But I never promised God
a lamb; I promised Him this lamb.” That’s it.
“I’ll bring somebody else. I’ll do a good deed,” but what about
yourself. See?
“I promised God this lamb.”
177 “I promised God if He’d only show me His Presence, I would
believe Him with all my heart. Not Miss Jones would believe Him, but
I’d believe Him with all my heart.” That’s it. See?
“I promised Him, not a lamb, but this lamb.”
He said, “Bartimaeus, thou cannot give that lamb. That lamb is
your eyes.”
He said, “If I keep my promise to Jehovah, God will provide a lamb
for blind Bartimaeus’ eyes.”
On this cool spring morning God had provided a Lamb for blind
Bartimaeus’ eyes. “Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.”
178 That same Lamb is provided for every sinner, for every sick. God
has provided a Lamb for our spiritual eyes, and for our physical eyes,
for our physical condition, for our spiritual condition. He’s Jehovah-
jireh that has already provided a Lamb for our blindness, that we
might…seeing the world, we might see it no more and look to Him;
being sick, that we—we might know that He is the same yesterday,
today, and forever. Let’s bow our heads just a moment for prayer.
179 Is there a sinner here would like to say, “Brother Branham,
remember me. I—I—I—I cry out, ‘O Jesus, Thou Son of David, have
mercy on me. Have mercy on me. I—I—I want to receive my spiritual
sight. I want to see You as You are, the true Son of God. Have mercy
on me, Son of David’”? Would you raise your hands to Him? God bless
you. God bless you. God bless you. Up in the balcony? Raise your
hand, say, “I want to see Him, I—I…O Lamb of God, O Thou Son of
David.” God bless you, my brother, way back up there in the balcony.
180 Someone else, some of the young folks hear my little story
about little Bartimaeus when he was young? You know, your mother,
perhaps, dedicated you to God, too, when you were born. See,
Bartimaeus finally fulfilled the commission that God had laid out for
him when his mama dedicated him. May be tonight that your little eyes
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 31
will come open, young folks, and you’ll see the Lamb of God. “Thou
Son of David, have mercy on me.”
181 Would you raise your hand, someone else? “Have mercy on me,
Thou Son of David.” God bless this young girl. God bless this young
woman. God bless this lady setting here. God bless this little boy over
here. “Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.” The man over here, yes,
God bless you. Someone else over to my right? “Thou Son of David,
have mercy.”
182 Your faith can touch Him, bring Him right down here to you just
the same as Bartimaeus’ did. He’s not in any…He will stop and leave
Heaven to come to this Assembly of God church tonight to show you
mercy, if you’ll just have the same faith that Bartimaeus did. “Thou
Son of David, have mercy on me.” Would there be another somewhere
in the building that hasn’t raised their hand? There’s been about ten
or twelve raised up their hands that they wanted to have mercy upon
them; “Thou Son of David.”
183 I noticed last night…There’s a little girl setting here, looks to
be about ten years old. She raised her hand a few moments ago. She
wanted Jesus. About the age of my little Becky, I guess, at home my
little Rebekah. And I noticed a little girl come up last night, when
she stood at the altar. No more than she’d stood there, she started
speaking with tongues. Someone told me, some of the brethren, that
she was running all over the church, speaking in tongues and singing
in tongues and everything. How the Lord blessed that little child. Get
her when her heart’s young and tender, before she’s pulled it through
old True Story magazines and the filth of the world, got her little heart
all calloused. I like to see little ones come.
184 God: you dedicate your life to Him. He will do something for you
too, honey. He sure will. Someone else now before we pray? “Lord,
Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.”
185 Our Heavenly Father, I give them to Thee. They raised their hands.
They’re Your children by faith in Jesus Christ. They know that You’re
here, Father. They know that You are the Son of God. They believe
now that because that You spoke to their hearts that they’re ready to
receive You as their Saviour, because You had to speak first. “No man
can come to Me,” said the Lord Jesus, “‘unless My Father draws him
first. And all the Father has given Me, will come.” And now, Lord, they
come tonight upon the basis of the shed Blood of the Lord Jesus. And
as their priest, or their—or their pastor, or servant, I—I pray, Father, my
prayer of faith goes to You.
186 And to let them know that they are saved, I’m quoting to You
Your Word. You said, “He that heareth My Word…” I’ve constantly
32 THE SPOKEN WORD
quoted it for the last hour or more. “He that heareth My Words, and
believeth on Him that sent Me, hath, present tense, Everlasting Life
and shall never, never come into the judgment; but’s already passed
from death to Life.” Father, that’s what You said. They raised their
hands that they believed it. And they—they believed it; they’ve received
it. So now I know that You have given them Eternal Life, and You’ll
raise them up again at the last day. You said You would do it. You
promised You would do it, and You’re God and You keep all Your
promises. Your promises is yea and amen, so You cannot go back on
Your promise. You—You said You would do it and You promised to do
it.
187 Now, Father, I pray that You’ll give them courage to let them know
that that Spirit that was near them, saying, “Child, you’re wrong. You
should receive Me tonight. I’ll stop in My great busy schedule and turn
around and say, ‘Thy sins are forgiven thee. Go and sin no more.’” As
You have said so many times, You’ll said it to them tonight, because
they’ve made their decision.
188 Now, Father God, I pray that You won’t let one of them…I
don’t believe that they raised their hands just for the saying of raising
their hands. I believe they were sincere; they really meant it. And now
I commit them to You, and ask that You forgive all their sins. I’m
interceding for them with all my heart, that You will forgive them their
sins, every sinner in here, that You forgive all their sins.
189 Father, this little group, I want to meet them there on that great
day of the Rapture when we get together, see them come running from
nation to nation, getting together. “We which are alive and remain shall
not hinder them which are asleep.” The trumpet shall sound, and the
dead shall rise first, and then we’ll meet them, and then be caught up
together with them to meet the Lord in the air, and forever be with
Him. Lord, I know that You said that in—in the Book of Thessalonians,
the 5th chapter, and I know it’s true. And I’ll meet them before we meet
You. So we’re so happy for this.
190 And we believe now that…I believe with all my heart, that
because they raised their hands, and because that I’ve prayed and asked
and followed the leading of the Spirit the best that I knowed how, that
they are forgiven of their sins. Now, they’re happy for it, Lord. Now,
there’s one more thing You asked them to do. “He that will confess Me
before men, him will I confess before My Father and the holy Angels.”
191 This will be a night that they’ll never forget, these young folks, of
remembering that little Bartimaeus listened to his mother’s story, and
know that someday God used him. And this is the hour that You’re
using them, using them and taking them into Your Kingdom. The
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 33
older ones that raised their hands, they was the ones, perhaps like
Bartimaeus later on, that was blind but received his sight, his spiritual
sight. Now, Father, I pray that You’ll let them become Your children
tonight, and will join some good church, and—and be baptized by
Christian baptism, and receive the Holy Ghost. Grant it, Lord.
192 Now, with your heads bowed, I’m going to see and ask, you that
were deeply sincere, if you believe me to be God’s prophet, or, His
servant, rather, if you believe me to be His servant with all your heart,
and you believe that I’ve quoted you the truth, you heard the Word:
“He that heareth My Word…” Saint John 5:24. “…and believeth
on Him that sent Me…” I preached the Word; you believed on God,
and you raised up your hand that you was a sinner, and you did not
want to be a sinner anymore. Then God said, “No man can come to
Me except My Father draws him.” Then what drawed your hand up?
God. You made your decision. All right, now, what did He say? “He
that comes to Me I will in no wise cast out.”
193 Then you are a Christian, if you really meant that. You young boys
and girls, and you older, in your middle age, and your teen age, all of
you, you are Christians when you believe it.
194 Now, there’s one thing yet you have to do. If you really believe that
with all your heart, I’m going to ask you just to stand on your feet,
and say this by standing up, you don’t have to say one word, but just
stand up that you might witness to the people that, “I now confess all
my sins, and accept Jesus Christ as my Saviour.” Now, you that accept
Him that way, stand up to your feet.
195 What about it, little girl, that was setting here? You believe He’s
your Saviour? That’s right. Stand right there, honey. Little boy over
here, he’s…All right. You in the back, you up in the balcony, the little
boy and girl in the balcony, fine. Anywhere in the building now that
accepted Jesus as your Saviour, stand up. “He that will testify of Me
before men, him that witness Me before men, him will I witness before
My Father and the holy…”
196 Now, there’s some of you older people raised your hand. Here’s one,
two, three, four, I’m looking at four children standing up on my little
story tonight of Bartimaeus. Now, what about some of you older that
raised your hand? Have you…? See how their little hearts are tender?
They—they believe and so they just, they stand up, stand up to accept
Him. Do you believe they forgiven? Sure they are. Certainly they are.
197 Now, some of the rest of you that wants to accept Him and say, “I’ll
publicly make a witness.” The Bible said as many as believed was added
to the church. Do you believe that Jesus forgives your sins tonight?
Stand up to your feet with these children. How many will do it right
34 THE SPOKEN WORD
now? All right, God bless you. The boy in the wheelchair, this boy here,
this girl here, this lady, that’s good; fine. Someone else say, “I accept
Him right now upon…”
198 Now, don’t…No feeling. “I’m not looking for feeling. I’m looking
because He promised me, ‘He that heareth My Words, and believeth
on Him that sent Me, has Eternal Life, and shall not come to the
judgment; but is passed from death to Life.’” Upon those basis in your
confessed sin, and recognizing that you are a sinner, and will rise and
accept Him as your Saviour, rise up.
199 One, two, three, four, five, six, isn’t there one more? One more that
I could pray for you before you set down? Is there one more? Any of
you out there in the—in the hall that stand? God bless you, lady. That’s
wonderful. All right, is there another? God bless you, sister. All right,
is there another? There’s seven. That’s a perfect number. Now, let us
bow our head. Just remain standing.
200 Our Heavenly Father, it’s…Your Word cannot fail; It’s Eternal.
You said, “He that heareth My Words, and believeth on Him that
sent Me, has Everlasting Life,…” You said so, Lord. “…and will
not come into the judgment, or, condemnation at the judgment; but
has passed from death unto Life,” because they have believed on the
Lord Jesus Christ, that He died in their stead, taking their sins. And
through their unrighteousness they are made the righteousness of God
through Jesus Christ. There they are, Father. They’re the trophies of
the message. They’re here. They’re Your children.
201 Now, I may never be able to shake their hands in this earth. But,
Father God, upon the basis of Your Word I believe and accept Your
Word that You are God, and You cannot lie, and Your Word is Eternal.
I claim them for the Gospel. I claim them, for God’s sake, through Jesus
Christ, remitting all their sins.
202 And, Father, pray that You’ll guide these children unto Eternal
Life. Guide them to the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Baptize them,
Father, into the Spirit and power of the Body of Jesus Christ, that they
might, seeing with their own eyes, that You are the Son of God. They
have believed it by faith now and accepted it, and upon those basis You
said they were saved. I pray for them and commit them into Thy hands,
in the Name of Jesus Christ.
203 Now, as you see the people standing, raise your head, the ones that’s
standing, want you shake their hands as they set down. Up there in the
balcony, there, right here, you know, you Christians near them now,
you, as you’re seated, just shake their hand, say, “God bless you.” Shake
this little boy’s hand here. God bless his little heart there. Some of you
mothers setting there, right here. That’s right. God bless you.
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 35
204 God bless you, brother, with the broken foot there. Don’t worry,
you’ll be all right. I knowed that a couple nights ago, so just don’t worry
about that. You’re all right. So, up there in the balcony, all, I see, it’s—
it’s all, all right. Oh, isn’t He wonderful? “Jesus, Thou Son of David,
have mercy on me.”
205 Say, “Brother Branham, do you believe that to be the truth?” Why,
certainly I believe that to be the truth. I wouldn’t stand here and preach
something I did not believe. I get in trouble all the time by preaching
things I do believe. That’s what it ends. I…But I believe it because
God said so, and that settles it to me. I believe it’s just as…that those
people, that little girl, little boys, and these people here called Him from
Glory just the same as blind Bartimaeus stopped Him on the road. You
believe that?
206 How many of you is sick? Raise your hands, the sick and needy.
Amen. How many believes that that same God…I don’t know. All
right. I—I…Something struck me then. He’s here. The Angel of the
Lord that you see in that picture, God being my Judge, at the Day of the
Judgment you’ll find out He’s right here now. That’s right. The Angel
of the Lord is here.
207 Somebody somewhere, somewhere is suffering. They’re…they’ve
got faith. Something’s moved. Somebody has done something
somewhere, or done something. He wouldn’t have come like that, and
me trying to hold this to a Gospel service.
208 You have any prayer cards? You don’t? Well, you don’t need them.
You don’t need them. You have faith and believe. If I’ve told…You
young converts here, being He’s here…Oh, friends, you’ll never know
what a feeling that is when He—when He strikes you. You know what
you’re talking about then. That’s right. Yes, you know what you’re
speaking of. Oh, I’m just as positive as I can be. You have faith now.
Just believe.
209 Sarah set in the tent and she said within herself, she laughed, and
the Angel turned and said, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying within herself
that this couldn’t be so?” Is that right? How about the woman that
touched His garment and He looked? Don’t you believe He’s that same
High Priest tonight?
210 Now, you young converts, I want to prove to you that that One that
you touched, sister honey here, you and the young…the sister setting
here, and the brother, the little boy, and that little boy and girl setting
over there, I want to show you that it was the same Lord Jesus that
made the promise.
Oh, my. Oh, I wish I could feel this way all the time. Right. Have
faith in God. Pray, all of you. Just be in prayer.
36 THE SPOKEN WORD
211 I’m going to turn my back to you. What’d that Angel of the Lord
did? To show you we’re in the days of Sodom, to show you we’re at
the last day, that this country here is a modern Sodom, to show you
that the Angel of the Lord is still the Angel of the Lord. Now, you have
no prayer cards, so we won’t have no prayer line. But you don’t have
to have prayer cards. The only thing I ask you to do is believe that I’ve
told you the truth, the Gospel truth, and it’s God.
212 I’ll look at these ministers back here. You believe this, brethren?
with all your heart? You believe the Gospel I’ve been preaching is the
truth? God bless your hearts. There’s an awful good feeling behind me,
faith of you brethren. A lot of times this week I’ve chopped and cut
and everything else. I don’t want you to think I’ve hurt you. I love you.
You’re my brothers. But you yourselves know that the church is moving
away. We got to bring it back, bring it back. We’ve got to bring it back.
213 Now, here it is. There’s a woman before me. I’m looking right at her.
Somebody out there is touching the High Priest. I see what she looks
like here. Just a minute, somebody touched Him, just the same as the
woman touched our Lord Jesus. That’s what this woman done, and I’m
just acting in His place. You see? Have all…Are you understanding?
Now, it’ll be…I’ll catch it just a moment. See, as it comes from the…
Now, somebody touch Him. Each one of you is praying. Believe now
with all your heart. Set real quiet; believe.
214 Yes, sir. It’s a lady sitting right over there in the corner. Yes, that’s
right. You have a prayer card? No you…I know you don’t have a
prayer card. I don’t know you; God does know you. See, can’t all…?
I want all of you look this way. Can’t you see that Light hanging over
the woman there? See that—that little…just right above her. See that
mystic-looking Light hanging right above her there? Now, watch, It’s
opening up. The woman has been examined by a doctor of some sort,
and they told her she had a growth, some sort of a…She’s pending an
operation, but she won’t receive the operation. She’s trying to trust the
Lord for her healing. That’s right, raise up your hand, lady.
215 Now, you young converts, that lady setting right next to her there,
she seemed to be a…That Light moved right over to that lady setting
right by her. There It is again. I thought It went back to the lady, but It
went to that lady. She’s a believer, a Christian believer. She’s got some
kind of a, like an allergy, or, breaking-out on her hands. That’s right. I
don’t know you, do I, lady? You don’t have any prayer card, of course.
Do you believe that you’re going to get well? You believe that was God?
You—you believe that—that…that I can tell you what you was praying
about? You believe that? by God. (Keep quiet, keep quiet, set down, see,
please.) You believe? Mrs. Bossler, you believe now that you’re going to
be made well? God bless you. That’s who you are, isn’t it?
THOU SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME 37
216 What about you, little fellow, setting right here? Here It is right
here to you. You believe? I see you’re kind of stooped in your shoulders,
like that. But there’s something else besides that’s wrong with you. If
God will tell me what’s wrong with you, will you believe me to be
His prophet, His servant? It’s a stomach trouble you’re suffering with.
That’s THUS SAITH THE LORD. That’s right. Um-hum. Not a ulcer,
you’re just nervous and upset in your stomach, is what’s doing it. That’s
exact. If you believe with all your heart…
217 You believe? Now, be real reverent. Don’t move. You see, any time
you move that—that—that does something. You see? Be reverent. What
about somebody in this direction here? It’s come over here, now let’s go
over here. You believe? (When we get three or four, say—say something.)
218 Have faith; don’t doubt. I just have to watch wherever I—I wish
I could just say this or that. I can’t. I just have to watch. Faith is so
unconscious to people.
219 Little lady setting right there looking at me. No, the…right
behind you, sister, right…Yeah. Got trouble with your eyes, that’s
right. You—you believe He will heal you of that? If you don’t, you’ll
lose your sight; just getting dimmer all the time. You just believe with
all your heart. You believe God can tell me who you are? You know I
don’t know you. Ms. Johnson, you can go home and be well, believe
on the Lord.
220 The lady setting right next to her, you had to get up and go away a
few minutes ago. Satan tried his best to rob you from this. You believe
God can tell me about your trouble? Would you accept me as His
prophet, or, His servant? You believe that with all your heart? I don’t
know you. I never seen you in my life, but you really got a contact
with God right now. Right. You’re very seriously ill. That’s right. It’s a
gallbladder condition. That is right. Another thing, you have a enlarged
heart. That’s exactly right. Ms. Miller, raise up your hand if that’s right.
Go, receive your healing. Jesus Christ makes you whole.
221 I challenge you to believe that. I—I just—I just ask you to believe
it. All right, have faith in God. Do you believe Him? “Jesus, Thou Son
of David, have mercy on me.” Do you believe Him with all your heart?
Then hear me, listen. How many believers is here? Raise your hand. All
right, if you’re a believer, now, put your hand down. Every one of you
is believers. How many is sick? Raise your hands. All right, believers
lay your hands on one another. I’ll quote the same Word. “These signs
shall follow them that believe.” This is it. Do you believe it? Now, you
pray for somebody. You lay your hands on somebody by you, around
you, up there in the balcony. Yes, believe.
38 THE SPOKEN WORD
222 That lady setting out there in the middle there, suffering with that
nervous condition, caused from a…All right, that’s it sister, I don’t
know you, never seen you in my life. Is that right? But you been nervous,
oh, for years. Christ heals you, makes you well.
Way up there in the balcony. Amen. He heals every one of you if
you’ll believe it. Now, pray for one another. Lay your hands on each
other.
223 Heavenly Father, the faith of this people brought the Lord Jesus
Christ in the form of the Holy Ghost back into their midst tonight,
saving the lost and healing the sick. O Lord, they are believers. They
got their hands on one another. They believe that You are the same
yesterday, today, and forever, and the same God. “O Jesus, Thou Son
of David,” they’re screaming out. May the power that raised up Jesus
from the grave raise them to their feet with a testimony, shouting and
praising the glory of God. May they stand like Bartimaeus, looking at
their hands until they see that the power of God has healed them. Grant
it, Lord.
Now, keep praying, keep praying, just keep praying.
224 O Lord, there’s only one thing could keep a spontaneous healing
service, and that would be unbelief. I notice around over the crowd as I
look out through here, Lord, see that little streak of dark trying to hold
back that glorious Light yonder that’s circling around, trying to find Its
way down through that darkness to touch somebody.
225 O Father God, give me strength, give me faith. May the people
understand that You have proved, Lord, that I’m telling them the truth.
You said when You was here on earth, “If I do not the works of My
Father, then believe Me not”; and if I do not the works of my Saviour,
then may they believe me not. But Lord, You are doing the same works
that You did when You were here on earth.
226 O Father, I pray now that they do believe in a portion. Give me
faith to break that blackness from over them, Lord, that that power
and Light of God might fall upon every soul in here, that it might heal
every one of them.
227 Satan, you’re exposed. Why, you’re a devil, and you’re trying to
hold this group of people. I challenge you in the Name of Jesus Christ,
come out of them people and leave them alone. 
 61-0215 Thou Son Of David, Have Mercy On Me
First Assembly Of God Of Long Beach
Long Beach, California U.S.A.
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