WH 167

Siglum: WH 167
Transliteration: l s¹ʿd bn ʾs¹ḫr bn s²ḥtr bn mrʾ bn ʿḏr bn ʾḏnt bn ʾs¹lm bn rqlt bn rfʾt bn w{s²}yt bn ḍf w rḍw ʿlm m qdm nʾbn f h lt s¹lm
Translation: By S¹ʿd son of ʾs¹ḫr son of S²ḥtr son of Mrʾ son of ʿḏr son of ʾḏnt son of ʾs¹lm son of Rqlt son of Rfʾt son of {Ws²yt} son of Ḍf and Rḍw is all-knowing of that which repenters offer up so O Lt [grant] security

Interpretation

Apparatus Criticus: WH: offer no translation of "...ʿlm mqdm nʾbn"
Commentary: We translate /ʿlmmqdmnʾbn/ as an epithet of Rḍw similar to the ʿālim-epithets of Allāh, Q35:38 ʿālimu ġaybi l-samawāti wal-ʾarḍi 'all-knowing of the unseen of the heavens and the earth'; Q59:22 ʿālimu l-ġaybi wal-šahādati 'all-knowing of the unseen and seen'. We connect nʾb to the Classical Arabic verb ʾanāba, 'to repent, to draw close' (ʾanāba ʾilā ʾallāh). In this case, nʾbn is likely a participial form, perhaps *nāʾib, with a sound masculine plural suffix. The first /m/ of WH's mqdm is better read as a relative pronoun, *mā, followed by the verb qdm, which, in the D-stem, means 'to offer up, present'. This epithet invites comparison with Qurʾānic verses in which Allāh affirms that he knows who indeed is a hypocrite and who is sincere, e.g.: Q4:63 ʾulāʾika l-laḏīna yaʿlamu llāhu mā fī qulūbihim...'and those are the ones of whom Allah knows what is in their hearts'.

Winnett, F.V. & Harding, G.L. Inscriptions from Fifty Safaitic Cairns. (Near and Middle East Series, 9). Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1978.