Branhamism affirms a strong doctrine of predestination, interpreting Romans 9:18-21 as teaching God's absolute and sovereign election of all events. William Branham taught a form of strict predestinarianism in which God's will is absolutely determinative of all that comes to pass. This includes not only spiritual election to salvation but also the predestination of all historical events, individuals' roles and destinies, and the movements of world history according to God's eternal counsel.

Branham's reading of Romans 9 emphasizes the potter metaphor as expressing God's absolute prerogative to do as he wills with his creation. For Branham, this connects to his broader theology in which God's sovereign Word determines reality; faith in and alignment with God's revealed Word is the means of participating in God's predetermined purposes. The doctrine serves to reinforce the authority of Branham's own prophetic message as part of God's unfolding predestined plan for the last days.