- Source
- Herodotus. Godley, Alfred Denis, editor. Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann, Ltd., 1920-1925 (printing).
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.156.1-1.156.2
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-01
Croesus proposes his plan to protect the Lydians from destruction, which Cyrus accepts; Cyrus then orders Mazares the Mede to enforce these measures and capture Pactyes alive.
Κροῖσος μὲν δὴ ταῦτά οἱ ὑπετίθετο, αἱρετώτερα ταῦτα εὑρίσκων Λυδοῖσι ἢ ἀνδραποδισθέντας πρηθῆναι σφέας,1 ἐπιστάμενος ὅτι ἢν μὴ ἀξιόχρεον πρόφασιν προτείνῃ, οὐκ ἀναπείσει μιν μεταβουλεύσασθαι, ἀρρωδέων δὲ μὴ καὶ ὕστερον κοτὲ οἱ Λυδοί, ἢν τὸ παρεὸν ὑπεκδράμωσι, ἀποστάντες ἀπὸ τῶν Περσέων ἀπόλωνται.2
Croesus indeed suggested these things to him, finding these to be more desirable for the Lydians than that they should be enslaved and sold, knowing that if he did not offer a worthy pretext, he would not persuade him to change his mind, and fearing lest the Lydians, even if they should escape the present danger, might at some later time revolt from the Persians and be destroyed.
Κῦρος δὲ ἡσθεὶς τῇ ὑποθήκῃ καὶ ὑπεὶς τῆς ὀργῆς ἔφη οἱ πείθεσθαι. καλέσας δὲ Μαζάρεα ἄνδρα Μῆδον, ταῦτά τέ οἱ ἐνετείλατο προειπεῖν Λυδοῖσι τὰ ὁ Κροῖσος ὑπετίθετο, καὶ πρὸς ἐξανδραποδίσασθαι3 τοὺς ἄλλους πάντας οἳ μετὰ Λυδῶν ἐπὶ Σάρδις ἐστρατεύσαντο, αὐτὸν δὲ Πακτύην πάντως ζῶντα ἀγαγεῖν παρʼ ἑωυτόν.
Cyrus, pleased with the suggestion and yielding in his anger, said that he would obey him. Calling Mazares, a Median man, he commanded him to proclaim to the Lydians those very things that Croesus had suggested, and furthermore to enslave all the others who had marched with the Lydians against Sardis, but to bring Pactyes himself alive to him by all means.
- 1.156.1αἱρετώτερα ταῦτα εὑρίσκων Λυδοῖσι ἢ ἀνδραποδισθέντας πρηθῆναι σφέας
The comparative αἱρετώτερα followed by ἢ introduces the infinitive πρηθῆναι ('to be sold'), forming a comparison: 'finding these things more desirable than that they...'. σφέας is the accusative subject of the infinitive, and ἀνδραποδισθέντας is the passive participle agreeing with it.
- 1.156.1ἀρρωδέων δὲ μὴ καὶ ὕστερον κοτὲ οἱ Λυδοί ... ἀπόλωνται
The participle of fearing ἀρρωδέων introduces a clause of fearing with μὴ and the subjunctive ἀπόλωνται ('lest they should perish'). Inserted within this clause is the conditional protasis ἢν τὸ παρεὸν ὑπεκδράμωσι ('if they should escape the present danger').
- 1.156.2καὶ πρὸς ἐξανδραποδίσασθαι
Here, πρὸς functions not as a preposition but as an adverb meaning 'furthermore' or 'in addition', modifying the infinitive ἐξανδραποδίσασθαι ('to enslave') and introducing the second object clause of the main verb ἐνετείλατο ('commanded').