- 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-grc2:7.237.1-7.237.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-07
Xerxes accepts the advice of Achaimenes, defends Demaratus, and forbids anyone from speaking ill of him in the future.
ἀμείβεται Ξέρξης τοῖσιδε. Ἀχαίμενες, εὖ τε μοι δοκέεις λέγειν καὶ ποιήσω ταῦτα. Δημάρητος δὲ λέγει μὲν τὰ ἄριστα ἔλπεται1 εἶναι ἐμοί, γνώμῃ μέντοι ἑσσοῦται ὑπὸ σεῦ.
Xerxes answered with these words: “Achaimenes, you seem to me to speak well, and I will do so. Demaratus indeed speaks what he himself believes to be best for me, yet in judgment he is surpassed by you.
οὐ γὰρ δὴ κεῖνό γε ἐνδέξομαι ὅκως οὐκ εὐνοέει2 τοῖσι ἐμοῖσι πρήγμασι, τοῖσί τε λεγομένοισι πρότερον ἐκ τούτου σταθμώμενος καὶ τῷ ἐόντι, ὅτι πολιήτης μὲν πολιήτῃ εὖ πρήσσοντι φθονέει καὶ ἔστι δυσμενὴς τῇ σιγῇ, οὐδʼ ἂν συμβουλευομένου τοῦ ἀστοῦ πολιήτης ἀνὴρ τὰ ἄριστά οἱ δοκέοντα εἶναι ὑποθέοιτο, εἰ μὴ πρόσω ἀρετῆς ἀνήκοι·3 σπάνιοι δὲ εἰσὶ οἱ τοιοῦτοι·
For I will certainly not accept that he is not well-disposed to my affairs, judging both from what was previously said by him, and from the actual truth, namely, that a citizen envies a fellow citizen who is faring well and is hostile to him in silence, and if a fellow citizen should ask for advice, a citizen would not suggest what seems to him to be best, unless he has reached a high degree of virtue; and such men are rare.
ξεῖνος δὲ ξείνῳ εὖ πρήσσοντι ἐστὶ εὐμενέστατον πάντων, συμβουλευομένου τε ἂν συμβουλεύσειε τὰ ἄριστα. οὕτω ὦν κακολογίης τῆς ἐς Δημάρητον, ἐόντος ἐμοὶ ξείνου πέρι, ἔχεσθαι4 τινὰ τοῦ λοιποῦ κελεύω.
On the other hand, a guest-friend is most well-disposed of all to a guest-friend who is faring well, and if advice is asked, he would advise what is best. Therefore, as for speaking ill of Demaratus, who is a guest-friend to me, I command everyone to refrain from it in the future.”
- 7.237.1ἔλπεται
In classical Attic prose, this verb usually means 'to hope' or 'to expect', but in Herodotus (as well as in Ionic dialect and poetry) it is used in the sense of 'to think', 'to believe', or 'to deem' subjectively.
- 7.237.2ὅκως οὐκ εὐνοέει
The particle ὅκως (Attic ὅπως) introduces a noun clause instead of ὅτι, serving as the object clause of the main verb ἐνδέξομαι. Literally, 'I will not accept the manner in which (or the fact that) he is not well-disposed'.
- 7.237.2εἰ μὴ πρόσω ἀρετῆς ἀνήκοι
The adverb πρόσω (far, deep) governs the genitive ἀρετῆς, meaning 'attaining far into virtue' (i.e., possessing outstanding virtue). The verb ἀνήκοι (present optative of ἀνήκω), in coordination with ἂν ... ὑποθέοιτο in the apodosis, expresses a general or potential condition.
- 7.237.3κακολογίης... ἔχεσθαι
The middle verb ἔχομαι takes a genitive and means 'to hold oneself off from', 'to refrain from' (synonymous with ἀπέχεσθαι). The indefinite pronoun τινά acts as the subject of the infinitive, meaning 'that anyone (should refrain)'.