Branhamism teaches that the soul is conscious and immortal, but after death it enters into an unconscious sleep until the resurrection. The doctrine of the afterlife is closely tied to Branham's eschatological vision: the bride of Christ (the elect saints) will be raptured before the tribulation and resurrected to eternal life. Other believers and the righteous dead will be raised at appointed times, while the reprobate face the lake of fire.

This teaching combines elements of soul-sleep mortalism with a strong emphasis on the rapture and the bride's pre-tribulation exaltation. The precise timeline and nature of intermediate afterlife states varies among Message preachers, but the core doctrine maintains that consciousness resumes only at resurrection.