Like many other self-appointed “prophets”, Jeremiah Johnson proclaimed that God had decreed that Trump would win the 2020 election. Later, when the win failed to materialise, he was one of the few who issued a public apology, most of the others doubled down and insisted that he really had won but that the election had been stolen.
So is he one of the better “prophets” for coming clean like that?
Nah, there are no prophets, not one, the entire game is a total scam and it is really all about profit$. His “apology” was simply a way of wiping the slate clean and putting a very blatant fail behind him so that he could then rebrand and move forward with more fake prophecy. His “apology” was not in any way the truth – an admission that he was a total fraud and that “prophecy” is simply a scam.
He started up a new “ministry” that consists of YouTube clips of him spouting religious gibberish about demons and prophecy. It was all stuff designed to be catnip for other religious people to click into, and yields want he really desired – lots of followers and $$$ …
As for that clip on the right within the above – “Signs of a FALSE prophet” – permit me to save you a lot of bother. Anybody claiming to be a “prophet” is either delusional or deliberately deceptive … period.
To those tempted to retort with, “Yes, but there actually are some real prophets“, I can but suggest you ask your “prophet” of choice to advise how many fingers I am currently holding up.
Since his big failed “prophecy” four years ago he has not warranted much attention from commenters such as myself except perhaps the occasional eye roll whenever I stumble across some of his stuff.
That just changed, he is now being taken to court by his brother.
As a quick bit of background, earlier last year the Washington Post dropped a truly jaw-dropping story about the infighting between “prophet” Jeremiah Johnson, and his brother Josiah, who is also a preacher.
- Washington Post (Aug 10, 2024) – A pastor said his pro-Trump prophecies came from God. His brother called him a fake.
Siblings having an argument in public is not exactly news, but the observation that both have ministries and each is calling the other a fraud does indeed pep a bit of interest, hence that story.
Josiah knew that what his brother Jeremiah was doing was a total scam and that he uses his “prophecy” to prey on gullible people, hence he has been calling him out, initially privately, and then in public. Meanwhile Jeremiah was not happy about being called out like that so he was pushing back vigorously.
The article from last year is long and detailed so I’ll not bore you with the cut and thrust of it, because we now need to rapidly fast forward to this week’s fascinating development.
The sibling fight goes legally nuclear
Josiah is now suing his “prophet” brother Jeremiah for Defamation.
As reported by the Roys Report on Jan 9, 2025 …
Josiah, who publicly accused Jeremiah last year of manipulating people with false prophecies, told The Roys Report (TRR) he hopes a jury trial will also expose other charismatic Christian leaders for covering for Jeremiah.
“We’re going to subpoena all of them,” Josiah said. “They’re going to have to come out and either lie for Jeremiah or tell the truth.”
Is this all bluster, or is it real?
It’s real, case number 4:25-cv-00003 Johnson et al v. Johnson et al was filed on Jan 2, 2025….
The filing on Jan 2, 2025 runs to 88 pages and contains the precise details of why this is now a legal matter.
Yes really … 88 pages … you can literally hear the ker-ching as the $$$ signs rolls around in the lawyers eyes.
From this filing we can glean some fascinating insights, so let’s get into that now.
Page 1 makes it clear that this is a demand for a Jury trial. From that we also learn that Josiah and his wife Jennifer are suing both his brothers Jeremiah and Paul and also both their ministries Alter Global and Paul Johnson Ministries.
Page 3 (Section IV) lists the evidence.
Section V on page 4 is the juicy bit. This is where we get into the facts.
Briefly:
- Paragraph 11 – In 2019 Josiah privately accused his brother Jeremiah of plagiarism and making up fake prophecies. The example of his failed 2020 Trump “prophecy” is cited as an example.
- Paragraph 13. Josiah goes public with his accusations.
- Paragraph 14. The Washington Post article from last year reports the details from 13 above.
- Paragraphs 15-20. Jeremiah, in conjunction with his brother Paul push back with the publication of an article titled “Josiah Johnson: A Dangerous & Divisive Man A Warning to the Body of Christ.” – this is flagged as defamatory and provided as Exhibit A-1, so you can read it all there (if curious). They also draw Josiah’s wife Jennifer into the mix by accusing both Josiah and her of being … “joint deceivers full of envy and malice“.
- Paragraph 21. points out that Paul and Jeremiah provide no credible evidence for their claims except a strongly worded exchange of text messages between the brothers.
- Paragraph 22-24. Paul and Jeremiah promote their claim on social media and add to it the claim that they have the backing of six other pastors. This becomes Exhibit A-2. Apparently this “information” was gathered under false pretences. When one of the pastors saw it all, he was horrified and immediately retracted what he had said in private, hence the public social media statement was modified to reflect that (Exhibit A-3)
- Paragraph 25. Points out that Paul claimed none of the six knew each other, but this is blatantly false. This is used to demonstrate within this paragraph the willingness of Paul and Jeremiah to lie.
At about this point the filing then proceeds to pull the various claims against Josiah apart and offers up some details that Paul and Jeremiah failed to mention within the statement they published on Social Media.
For example:
- Paragraphs 27-32. These add context to a claim made within the Social Media posting. Paul had published within his posting the claim that Elizabeth Heller had accused Josiah and Jennifer of attempting to destroy her marriage. It points out that in context, her husband had been physically and spiritually abusive to her and their children for years and routinely accused her of “worshiping Satan.”. It also points out that she had also called police and sought a protective order against her husband, multiple times, and so it was on police advice, not on the advice of Jennifer or Josiah that she get a protective order. None of these details had been included in the defamatory statement.
Rinse and repeat for the other claims made against Josiah and his wife.
In each and every instance the rebuttal looks solid. The Defamation case is one that should quite frankly terrify Paul and Jeremiah because all the available evidence points towards their behaviour being utterly reckless.
Other Sections
Section VI covers damages and lays out the case for the actual loss of earnings caused to both Josiah and his wife by the Defamation. For example, Jennifer lost all her real estate business in Orange Beach, Alabama, because her supervisor ceased all his previous support, which cratered her income.
They also became isolated. Neighbours were told of the allegations and so Josiah and Jennifer were told to move away by multiple people. They have added the cost of the move to section VI
Section VII explains that they have … “complied with all conditions precedent to successfully prosecute their claims against Defendant including sending a written letter demanding retraction“. That written demand was ignored.
It all basically boils down to this in paragraph 66…
WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs respectfully pray that Defendant be cited to appear and answer, and that Plaintiff be granted the following relief:
a) Judgment against Defendants for economic damages exceeding $1,000,000 pursuant to claims of defamation, business disparagement, and associated economic harms, including lost income, and exemplary damages;
b) Prejudgment and post judgment interest as provided by law;
c) Attorney’s fees;
f) All other relief to which Plaintiff may be justly entitled in both law and equity.
d) An injunction compelling Defendant to remove all defamatory statements from websites and request third-party re-publishers to do the same;
e) Court costs;
Page 19 onwards is where we get into the exhibits. Again, if curious, go take a look.
Further Thoughts
Clearly both Paul and Jeremiah, along with their ministries, face a credible defamation case.
Obviously they can either try to settle out of court or it goes to trial.
However, here comes an interesting twist.
It is also worth noting that the Roys Report (a Christian Run website that highlights religious corruption), and which reported the lawsuit, also spent time digging into both Josiah and Jennifer and did find credible criticism directed against them by others …
Josiah told TRR he sees himself as a whistleblower—not just regarding his brothers but also charismatic Christianity. Josiah wrote in a public statement yesterday that his lawsuit will expose other Christian leaders.
“Undoubtedly this will not only bring much more exposure to my brothers and my family but to many other ministries and families who either intentionally or unintentionally intertwined themselves into this story,” Josiah wrote on Facebook yesterday.
Meanwhile, Josiah is facing accusations about his own character from sources other than his brothers.
Stuart and KayCee Graham, who served closely with Josiah and Jennifer in a recent church plant, Family of Fire, in Alabama, told TRR Josiah shows a concerning pattern.
They allege Josiah has started churches all over the country, confronting local leaders in dishonest ways for alleged wrongdoing. They say Josiah then quickly, and often prophetically, moved on to another state to do it all over again.
The Grahams said they initially supported Josiah in his efforts to publicly call out Jeremiah. However, they said they confronted Josiah last summer over Josiah’s decision to move the new church plant to Texas. The Grahams documented how Josiah then excommunicated them.
The Grahams called Josiah and Jennifer Johnson “real Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing” in a statement online.
Wow!
Here is an extract from the Grahams statement …
After being in such close proximity to Josiah and Jennifer for the last 9 months, I have come to the following conclusions about them and have provided solid evidence throughout this letter:
- Both are real Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing, as mentioned in Matthew 7:15.
- Both have Athaliah Spirits (Full Jezebels but worse!).
- Both are highly likely to have Narcissistic Personality Disorder.
- They Operate as Cult Leaders.
- Both are Spiritual Manipulators and Abusers.
- Neither has REAL fruits of the Spirit, as mentioned in Galatians 5.
- Neither has the qualities of an Overseer, as listed in 1 Timothy 3.
Double Wow!
Bottom Line
This is clearly not a story about a good guy defending himself against a bad guy. While the filed paperwork does appear to present a solid defamation case, often things are never that one sided.
Instead, it is really a saga about how three whacky religious siblings, each with their own ministry, have been defrauding gullible people with fake “prophecy” claims, and then when they started stepping on each others toes, they have ramped up the rhetoric against each other.
So where should our sympathy rest?
Not with any of the Johnson’s but rather with those they have successfully conned.
As for Stuart Graham’s criticism of Josiah, when asked to comment on that, guess what Josiah suggested?
Yep you guessed it, “Josiah called the Grahams’ statement “slander” and “retaliation” for Josiah asking them to leave the church last year. Josiah said he plans to sue the Grahams for defamation soon.“
To quote one outsider looking in … “It’s a dumpster fire all around”.
As a non-religious individual, my own personal guidance is to perhaps suggest that staying well-away from all religious lunacy is your very best strategy for leading a good life. In this instance, simply step back, let them fight, break out the popcorn, and enjoy the show as this theatre of religious ridiculousness proceeds to unfold.