The House of David was a religious cult in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Founded by Benjamin and Mary Purnell, the group moved to Benton Harbor in 1903 and started a cult commune. The Purnells were heavily influenced by British "prophet" Joanna Southcott, who they believed to be the "Sixth Messenger" from the book of Revelation. Benjamin Purnell proclaimed himself to be the "Seventh Messenger", and with the help of Mary, became the central figure of the House of David. William Branham frequently mentioned the sect and visited on multiple occasions.

In 1926 Purnell was accused of improper sexual conduct by several women in the group. After a series of lawsuits and before he could be convicted, however, Purnell died. This resulted in divisions within the group as factions were created with new leaders. The primary splinter group chose Mary Purnell as the central figure, and that sect became known as "Mary's House of David".

Branham claimed to have healed the eyes of a member of the sect named John Ryan, a rabbi in the sect. Ryan began visiting William Branham's "Billie Branham Pentecostal Tabernacle" and appears to have strongly influenced William Branham's ministry. Ryan introduced Branham to William Sowders' "School of the Prophets" in Shepherdsville, Kentucky. Sowders was the central figure of the Gospel Assembly cult, and many fictional elements of William Branham's various stage personas share similarities to Sowders.

You can learn this and more on william-branham.org.

House of David Cult:
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William Sowders:
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