- Source
- Polybius. Vols. 1-4. Büttner-Wobst, Theodor, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1893.
- 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:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:14.3.1-14.3.7
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-08
Upon hearing of the breakdown of peace negotiations, Syphax and Hasdrubal carelessly plan their next moves without anticipating danger, while Scipio makes meticulous preparations for a night attack by instructing his tribunes and analyzing scout reports with Masinissa.
ὁ δὲ Σόφαξ ταῦτα διακούσας ἔφερε μὲν δυσχερῶς διὰ τὸ προκατηλπικέναι περὶ τῶν διαλύσεων, συνῄει δὲ πρὸς τὸν Ἀσδρούβαν εἰς λόγους, καὶ διεσάφει τὰ παρὰ τῶν Ῥωμαίων αὐτῷ προσαγγελλόμενα.
But Syphax, having heard this out, took it heavily because he had previously entertained hopes of the peace; nevertheless, he met with Hasdrubal and explained to him what had been reported to him by the Romans.
περὶ ὧν πολλὰ διαπορήσαντες ἐβουλεύοντο πῶς σφίσι καθήκει χρῆσθαι τοῖς ἑξῆς πράγμασι, πλεῖστον ἀπέχοντες ταῖς ἐννοίαις καὶ ταῖς ἐπιβολαῖς τοῦ μέλλοντος·1
Having been much perplexed about these things, they deliberated on how they should deal with subsequent matters, being extremely far in their thoughts and expectations from what was actually going to happen.
περὶ φυλακῆς μὲν γὰρ ἢ τοῦ πείσεσθαί τι δεινὸν οὐδʼ ἡντινοῦν εἶχον πρόληψιν, περὶ δὲ τοῦ δρᾶσαί τι καὶ προκαλέσασθαι τοὺς πολεμίους εἰς ὁμαλὸν τόπον πολλή τις ἦν αὐτῶν ὁρμὴ καὶ προθυμία.
For they had not the slightest anticipation of guarding themselves or of suffering anything terrible, but on the other hand, they had a great impulse and eagerness to do something and to entice the enemy out into a level place.
Πόπλιος δὲ κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον τοῖς μὲν πολλοῖς ὑπεδείκνυε διά τε τῆς παρασκευῆς καὶ τῶν παραγγελμάτων ὡς κατὰ τῆς Ἰτύκης ἔχων πρᾶξιν, τῶν δὲ χιλιάρχων τοὺς ἐπιτηδειοτάτους καὶ πιστοτάτους καλέσας περὶ μέσον ἡμέρας ἐξέθηκε τὴν ἐπιβολήν, καὶ παρήγγειλε δειπνοποιησαμένους2 καθʼ ὥραν ἐξάγειν τὰ στρατόπεδα πρὸ τοῦ χάρακος, ἐπειδὰν κατὰ τὸν ἐθισμὸν οἱ σαλπιγκταὶ σημαίνωσιν ἅμα πάντες·
Meanwhile Publius, during this time, made a show to the majority of people, through his preparations and orders, as though he were planning an operation against Utica; but having called together the most capable and trustworthy of the military tribunes around midday, he revealed his plan, and ordered them to have the troops take their dinner in due time and lead them out in front of the palisade as soon as all the trumpeters, according to custom, should sound the signal together.
ἔστι γὰρ ἔθος Ῥωμαίοις κατὰ τὸν τοῦ δείπνου καιρὸν τοὺς βυκανητὰς καὶ σαλπιγκτὰς πάντας σημαίνειν παρὰ τὴν τοῦ στρατηγοῦ σκηνήν, χάριν τοῦ τὰς νυκτερινὰς φυλακὰς κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον ἵστασθαι κατὰ τοὺς ἰδίους τόπους.
For it is a custom of the Romans at the time of dinner for all the buglers and trumpeters to sound the signal by the general’s tent, so that at this time the night guards may take up their respective posts.
μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα τοὺς κατασκόπους ἀνακαλεσάμενος, οὓς ἐτύγχανε διαπεμπόμενος3 εἰς τὰ τῶν πολεμίων στρατόπεδα, συνέκρινε καὶ διηρεύνα τὰ λεγόμενα περί τε τῶν προσβάσεων καὶ τῶν εἰσόδων τῶν εἰς τὰς παρεμβολάς, χρώμενος ἐπικριτῇ τῶν λεγομένων καὶ συμβούλῳ Μασαννάσᾳ διὰ τὴν τῶν τόπων ἐμπειρίαν.
After this, having recalled the scouts whom he had dispatched into the enemy’s camps, he compared and examined their reports concerning the approaches and entrances into the camps, using Masinissa as an evaluator and adviser of their reports because of his familiarity with the places.
- 14.3.2πλεῖστον ἀπέχοντες ταῖς ἐννοίαις καὶ ταῖς ἐπιβολαῖς τοῦ μέλλοντος
The participle ἀπέχοντες ('being distant') governs the genitive of separation, which is represented here by τοῦ μέλλοντος ('the future / what is about to happen'). It expresses that their subjective thoughts and plans were utterly disconnected from the objective future reality.
- 14.3.5δειπνοποιησαμένους
Although the main verb παρήγγειλε ('ordered') typically governs the dative of the person ordered, the accusative participle δειπνοποιησαμένους is used here as the subject of the infinitive ἐξάγειν, forming an accusative with infinitive construction.
- 14.3.7οὓς ἐτύγχανε διαπεμπόμενος
The construction of τυγχάνω with a participle expresses a coincidental or ongoing action. Here, the imperfect ἐτύγχανε combined with the present participle διαπεμπόμενος describes an ongoing background action ('whom he had been sending / dispatching') leading up to the main narrative moment.