"Voice of a Prophet" (Seer Van Rensburg) Adriaan Snyman Foreword by the English Translators It has been a privilege to translate this very important book; a book with a clear message from a prophet of the Almighty God to his people, not only present in the Southern point of Africa, but also to the Western World. If one reads these visions of the Seer Nicolaas van Rensburg, one finds the Hand of Almighty God always present, surely guiding His people towards their destiny, according to His Will, through all the errors made by this stiff-necked people out of own choice. The time of this destiny is on the horizon and like the sun at dawn, only a faint light is visible, but as the sun rises over and above the horizon, its light suddenly becomes bright and clear. So also will the time of this destiny suddenly appear. The brightness thereof will be such, that it will consume their enemies like that of fire, forever to be destroyed. Jeremiah chapter 51:20: “Is tusa mo thau agus mo ghai-sce cogaidh ina n-aonar ina bhfichidi augus ina mbeirt agus ina sivaite!” (Thou art my battle-axe and weapons of war, for with Thee will I break in pieces the Nations and with Thee will I destroy kingdoms). After the great struggle has ended, may we then voice the following to the Honour of our God “Wha hae wi God bled.” General information Purists will probably find much to criticize about while perusing this book, as the language therein is inclined to be rather archaic. However, rewriting it into modern English would change the whole character of the Seer Van Rensburg’s story. As the reader will learn, Seer was a simple, humble man who had no formal education, being able only to read his Bible with great difficulty. The manner in which he describes his visions may initially seem confusing, and sometimes may not even make sense to the average reader. However, as the story unfolds, the reader will become more familiar with his particular style. To facilitate understanding of the symbols which he used, a complete list will be found elsewhere in this book. The term ‘Kaffir/s’ has been retained wherever the Seer describes his visions in which blacks are featured. Should anyone feel offended by this, please understand that no offence is intended, but the term is in keeping with his style of expression and the period in which he lived. All Biblical quotations used in the text have been taken from the King James Version, except where specifically marked: ‘Good News Bible’. The Seer often refers to shoes or boots in his visions. Please note that the shoes or boots generally worn in his day were known as ‘velskoene’ (literally ‘skin’-shoes). Many farmers of his day made their own shoes or boots from tanned ox- or other hide, and although not as stylish as the factory product, were nonetheless sturdy, tough and hardwearing. The War of 1899 - 1902 is commonly referred to as the Anglo Boer War. It is also known as the Boer War, Second Boer War, Second War of Liberation or Freedom. For the sake of conformity the latter term is used throughout most of the text. Aloes, or aloe trees are often used throughout the text. However, the aloes referred to here are the Agave, American aloe or sisal plant, commonly called ‘garingbome’ (cotton-trees) in Afrikaans. Michael Viljoen and Julie van Rensburg 28th June, 1998 Let us go to the Seer... About five o’clock one autumn morning, I was sitting on my cane chair reading 1 Samuel 9. Saul and his servant were looking for his father’s asses that had been lost. They found nothing, and when Saul wanted to go back his servant advised him that they should consult a man of God. He said the following to Saul: “Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is an honourable man, all that he saith cometh surely to pass; now let us go thither (to the seer); peradventure he can show us our way that we should go.” Something happened to me at that moment; a shudder went through me, a light flashed through my head and as I stood up I spoke aloud to myself: “Have we not had our man of God and Seer?” Vague memories came to mind, and for a fleeting moment I saw myself in the countryside at Lichtenburg where my father was busy telling me, my brothers and sister about Seer van Rensburg who always went to a hill behind his house during the day, to read his Bible and pray. “And there God spoke to him.” I heard my father say. This was what I could remember. I then started searching, but just like Saul’s asses, Seer van Rensburg was lost to me. Then one morning at a place called Eloffsdal, Pretoria, he appeared before me in the form of old Mr. Paul Prinsloo, an eighty two year old “disciple”, and a person who knew all about Seer van Rensburg—a man even at that age, who had bright and clear eyes. And for the first time since my childhood I heard the following words: “Seer van Rensburg said... ‘ And from that time on I met various other people who knew about the Boer Prophet and what he had said. Then information started coming to me like a flood. Today I know without doubt—we had our own Seer! PREFACE Prophet, or bearer of an apocalypse? During the last quarter of the previous century and the first quarter of this century, no one was more well- known in the Western Transvaal than Nicolaas van Rens- nburg, the Seer. He was a legend during his lifetime and not only did well-known generals of the Boer war, like De La Rey and Kemp believe that he was a prophet, but statesmen like Generals Hertzog, Louis Botha and J.C. Smuts on more than one occasion witnessed, even in Parliament, that Nicolaas van Rensburg’s prophecies have come true during their lifetime. There is enough evidence which proves that Nicolaas van Rensburg was no charlatan. The only book he read was the Bible and he believed that his visions came directly from God and never did he practice occultism. He was a devoted Christian and never used his “gift of prophecy” for personal gain, or attempt to impress anyone. He believed that you must live your life in honour of God and many Bible verses are found in his prophecies, and to this day it has not yet been proven that his prophecies were false, (except those ignorant people who have attempted to interpret them in their own way). In a study called Bible History for Catechises published in 1971 and edited by Professor J.I. de Wet, it would seem that Nicolaas van Rensburg was a bearer of an Apocalypse more than being a prophet. Nicolaas (Seer) van Rensburg, the Boer Prophet, died in l926, but today he is still considered to be one of the most remarkable personages in our history. It is therefore surprising that there has been only one half-hearted attempt, 70 years after his death, to publish his life story. From 187l (when he was only seven years old) until his death in 1926, he had more than 700 visions about his people in South Africa, other nations, as well as world affairs. Although many of his visions were remembered by word of mouth, it was only during the last ten years of his life that he asked his daughter, Anna, to write down his daily visions. The Books are Lost! The two books which contained his visions as written down by Anna, his daughter, were nowhere to be found during the early years of l980, and even the remaining family did not know where they were. According to an article in a Sunday newspaper in 198l, these books disappeared after the death of his daughter, Anna Badenhorst, and could not be found. Now, after about 50 years the books have again emerged and when reading these visions (they have an astonishing parallel with the Revelation of John) one realises that the symbols and metaphors just may contain the key to those things we do not yet understand in our times. In about 700 visions the history of Nicolaas van Rensburg’s people, the Afrikaner, is sketched over a period of l00 years, fitting together like pieces of a puzzle. One must only find the right piece at the right time to complete the picture. Knowledge and interpretation of most of these visions were for years only known to certain people. But to date many of the Seer’s closest friends could not interpret all Nicolaas van Rensburg’s visions. An attempt was made in a recent publication, but not only were these interpretations contrary to those given by Nicolaas van Rensburg himself, (but even contrary to the interpretations given by the people themselves) thereby causing a lot of damage. Just as there are visions and revelations by Daniel and other pro- phets of the Bible which will only be understood when they are fulfilled, so it is with some of Nicolaas van Rens- burg’s visions. So that everyone can know With the publication of Voice of a Prophet, I am fulfilling the wish of Nicolaas van Rensburg, namely that his visions should be made known to all his people. In 19l6 he had a vision that towards the end of this century his people would become more and more interested to know about his visions.