- Source
- Diodorus Siculus. Diodori Bibliotheca Historica. Vols. 4-5 (partial). Bekker, Immanuel; Dindorf, Ludwig; Fischer, Curt Theodor; editors. Leipzig: Teubner, 1903-1906.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
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- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc6:19.55.1-19.55.9
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-09
Antigonus arrives in Babylon and clashes with the satrap Seleucus, who refuses to submit to a financial audit. Fearing for his life, Seleucus flees to Egypt, prompting Antigonus to send pursuers after hearing a grim prophecy from the Chaldeans, though Seleucus manages to escape.
τοῦ δʼ ἔτους τούτου διεληλυθότος Ἀθήνησι μὲν ἦρχε Πραξίβουλος, ἐν Ῥώμῃ δὲ κατέστησαν ὕπατοι Ναύτιος Σπόριος καὶ Μάρκος Πόπλιος. ἐπὶ δὲ τούτων Ἀντίγονος τῆς μὲν Σουσιανῆς ἀπέλιπε σατράπην Ἀσπίσαν, ἕνα τῶν ἐγχωρίων, αὐτὸς δὲ τὰ χρήματα πάντα διαγνοὺς κατακομίζειν ἐπὶ θάλασσαν, ἁμάξας καὶ καμήλους παρεσκευάσατο καὶ μετὰ τῆς δυνάμεως ἔχων ταῦτα προῆγεν ἐπὶ τῆς Βαβυλωνίας.
When this year had passed, Praxibulus was archon in Athens, and in Rome, Nautius Spurius and Marcus Poplius were established as consuls. Under their term of office, Antigonus left Aspisas, one of the natives, as satrap of Susiana. He himself, having decided to convey all the money to the sea, prepared wagons and camels, and advanced toward Babylonia, having these with his army.
ἐν ἡμέραις δʼ εἴκοσι καὶ δυσὶν αὐτοῦ καταντήσαντος εἰς Βαβυλῶνα Σέλευκος ὁ τῆς χώρας σατράπης δωρεαῖς τε βασιλικαῖς ἐτίμησε τὸν Ἀντίγονον καὶ τὴν δύναμιν ἅπασαν εἱστίασεν.
When he arrived in Babylon within twenty-two days, Seleucus, the satrap of the region, honored Antigonus with royal gifts and feasted his entire army.
τοῦ δʼ Ἀντιγόνου λόγους ἀπαιτοῦντος τῶν προσόδων οὐκ ἔφησεν ὀφείλειν ὑπὲρ ταύτης τῆς χώρας ὑπέχειν εὐθύνας, ἣν Μακεδόνες αὐτῷ δεδώκασι διὰ τὰς γεγενημένας ἐξ αὐτοῦ χρείας Ἀλεξάνδρου ζῶντος.1
But when Antigonus demanded an account of the revenues, he said that he was not obliged to render accounts for this territory, which the Macedonians had given him because of the services rendered by him while Alexander was alive.
τῆς δὲ διαφορᾶς καθʼ ἡμέραν αὐξομένης ὁ Σέλευκος ἀναλογιζόμενος τὰ Πίθωνι συμβάντα περιδεὴς ἦν μήποτε προφάσεως λαβόμενος ὁ Ἀντίγονος ἀνελεῖν αὐτὸν ἐπιχειρήσῃ· ἐῴκει2 γὰρ τοὺς ἐν ἀξιώμασι τῶν ἀνδρῶν ὄντας καὶ δυναμένους πραγμάτων ἀντιλαμβάνεσθαι πάντας σπεύδειν ἐκ ποδῶν ἀπαλλάσσειν.
As the disagreement grew daily, Seleucus, reflecting on what had happened to Peithon, was extremely afraid lest Antigonus, finding some pretext, should attempt to destroy him; for he seemed to be eager to put out of the way all those who were of high standing and capable of taking charge of affairs.
ταῦτʼ οὖν εὐλαβηθεὶς ἐξεπήδησεν μετὰ πεντήκονθʼ ἱππέων, διανοούμενος εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἀποχωρεῖν πρὸς Πτολεμαῖον· διεβεβόητο γὰρ ἡ τούτου χρηστότης καὶ τὸ πρὸς τοὺς καταφυγόντας ἐπʼ αὐτὸν ἐκτενὲς καὶ φιλάνθρωπον.
Therefore, being on his guard against these things, he slipped away with fifty horsemen, intending to withdraw to Egypt to Ptolemy; for the latter’s generosity and his earnest and humane disposition toward those who fled to him for refuge were widely renowned.
ὁ δʼ Ἀντίγονος ἀκούσας περιχαρὴς ἦν ἐπὶ τῷ δοκεῖν3 αὐτὸς μὲν μὴ συνηναγκάσθαι προσενεγκεῖν τὰς χεῖρας ἀνδρὶ φίλῳ καὶ συνηγωνισμένῳ προθύμως, τὸν Σέλευκον δʼ αὐτὸν αὑτοῦ καταγνόντα φυγὴν παραδεδωκέναι τὴν σατραπείαν χωρὶς ἀγώνων καὶ κινδύνων.
But Antigonus, on hearing this, was overjoyed at the thought that he himself had not been forced to lay hands on a friend and eager fellow combatant, and that Seleucus himself, by sentencing himself to exile, had surrendered the satrapy without any struggles or dangers.
μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα προσελθόντων αὐτῷ τῶν Χαλδαίων καὶ προλεγόντων ὡς, εἰ τὸν Σέλευκον ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ἀφήσει, συμβήσεται τήν τʼ Ἀσίαν πᾶσαν ὑποχείριον γενέσθαι καὶ αὐτὸν Ἀντίγονον ἐν τῇ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον παρατάξει καταστρέψειν τὸν βίον, μεταμεληθεὶς τοῖς πεπραγμένοις ἐξέπεμψε τοὺς διώξοντας· οἳ μέχρι τινὸς ἐπακολουθήσαντες ἐπανῆλθον ἄπρακτοι.
After this, when the Chaldeans came to him and foretold that, if he should let Seleucus slip through his hands, it would come to pass that all Asia would become subject to him, and Antigonus himself would end his life in a battle against him, he regretted his actions and sent out pursuers. These, having followed for some distance, returned without success.
ὁ δʼ Ἀντίγονος ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις καταφρονεῖν εἰωθὼς τῶν τοιούτων προρρήσεων οὐ μετρίως ἐκινήθη τότε, καταπλαγεὶς τὸ ἀξίωμα τῶν ἀνδρῶν· μεγάλη γάρ τις ἐμπειρία περὶ τούτους εἶναι δοκεῖ καὶ παρατήρησις τῶν ἄστρων ἀκριβεστάτη. ἀποφαίνονται γὰρ πολλὰς μυριάδας ἐτῶν ὑπάρχειν ἐξ οὗ4 παρʼ αὐτοῖς ἐστιν ἡ περὶ ταῦτα σπουδή· δοκοῦσι δὲ καὶ Ἀλεξάνδρῳ προειπεῖν ὅτι παρελθὼν εἰς Βαβυλῶνα τελευτήσει.
Antigonus, though usually accustomed in other cases to despise such predictions, was not moderately shaken then, being struck with awe at the prestige of these men; for they seem to possess great experience and a most precise observation of the stars. Indeed, they declare that many tens of thousands of years have passed since their study of these matters began; and they are also believed to have foretold to Alexander that he would die once he entered Babylon.
ὁμοίως δὲ τῇ περὶ Ἀλεξάνδρου προρρήσει συνέβη καὶ τὴν περὶ Σελεύκου τελεσθῆναι κατὰ τὰς τῶν ἀνδρῶν τούτων ἀποφάσεις· περὶ ἧς τὰ κατὰ μέρος ἐροῦμεν, ὅταν ἐπὶ τοὺς οἰκείους χρόνους ἐπιβαλώμεθα.
Just like the prediction concerning Alexander, it happened that the one concerning Seleucus was fulfilled according to the declarations of these men; of which we shall speak in detail when we reach the appropriate times.
- 19.55.3Ἀλεξάνδρου ζῶντος
Genitive absolute indicating the temporal background, meaning "while Alexander was alive." It modifies the noun χρείας ("services") which is further qualified by ἐξ αὐτοῦ ("rendered by him," i.e., Seleucus).
- 19.55.4ἐῴκει
Though it can be impersonal ("it seemed"), here it is used personally with Antigonus as the subject ("he seemed to..."). It takes the infinitive σπεύδειν ("to hasten"), which in turn governs the object-infinitive ἀπαλλάσσειν ("to remove") with the accusative object τοὺς ... ὄντας.
- 19.55.6ἐπὶ τῷ δοκεῖν
The preposition ἐπί with the articular infinitive τῷ δοκεῖν expresses cause ("on the ground that it seemed"). Among the two infinitive clauses dependent on δοκεῖν, the first (μὴ συνηναγκάσθαι) retains the nominative αὐτός because its subject is identical with that of the main verb, whereas the second (παραδεδωκέναι) has the accusative subject τὸν Σέλευκον as the subject changes.
- 19.55.8ἐξ οὗ
A combination of the preposition ἐκ and the genitive relative pronoun οὗ, functioning as a temporal adverbial phrase meaning "since [the time when]" (up to the present). The antecedent is not explicitly expressed.