- 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-grc2:21.32c.1-21.32c.4
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
Discusses how Philopoemen reconciled "the honorable" and "the advantageous," which rarely coincide, by both restoring Spartan exiles and weakening Lacedaemonian power.
ὅτι1 τὸ καλὸν καὶ τὸ συμφέρον σπανίως εἴωθε συντρέχειν, καὶ σπάνιοι τῶν ἀνδρῶν εἰσιν οἱ δυνάμενοι ταῦτα συνάγειν καὶ συναρμόζειν πρὸς ἄλληλα.
That the honorable and the advantageous rarely coincide, and rare are the men who are able to bring these together and harmonize them with each other.
κατὰ μὲν γὰρ τὸ πολὺ πάντες ἴσμεν διότι τό τε καλὸν φεύγει τὴν τοῦ παραυτίκα λυσιτελοῦς φύσιν καὶ τὸ λυσιτελὲς τὴν τοῦ καλοῦ.
For we all know that, for the most part, the honorable shuns the nature of immediate advantage, and the advantageous shuns that of the honorable.
πλὴν ὁ Φιλοποίμην προέθετο ταῦτα καὶ καθίκετο τῆς ἐπιβολῆς· καλὸν μὲν γὰρ τὸ κατάγειν τοὺς αἰχμαλώτους φυγάδας εἰς τὴν Σπάρτην, συμφέρον δὲ τὸ ταπεινῶσαι τὴν τῶν Λακεδαιμονίων πόλιν, καταφονεύσαντα2 τοὺς δεδορυφορηκότας τῇ τῶν τυράννων δυναστείᾳ.
However, Philopoemen proposed these ends to himself and achieved his undertaking; for it was honorable to restore the captive exiles to Sparta, and advantageous to humble the city of the Lacedaemonians by putting to death those who had served as bodyguards to the dynasty of the tyrants.
θεωρῶν δʼ ὅτι πάσης βασιλείας ἐπανορθώσεως αἴτια τὰ χρήματα γέγονεν, ἅτε φύσει νουνεχὴς ὢν καὶ στρατηγικός, περιεβα γένοιτο3 κομιδὴ τῶν ἔξω ποριζομένων χρημάτων.
And seeing that money is the cause of every restoration of royal power, since he was by nature intelligent and possessing strategic skill, he strove to obtain complete control of the funds procured from abroad.
- 21.32c.1ὅτι
A typical opening for texts derived from Byzantine Epitomes (Excerpts), meaning "that...", indicating the start of a summary or excerpt.
- 21.32c.3καταφονεύσαντα
An accusative masculine singular participle agreeing with the implied subject of the infinitive τὸ ταπεινῶσαι (contextually Philopoemen). Since the subject of the infinitive is treated as accusative, the accompanying participle also takes the accusative form.
- 21.32c.4περιεβα γένοιτο
A corruption in the manuscript. It is considered a scribal error for either περιεβάλλετο (to encompass, secure) or περιεγένετο (to overcome, master), governing the genitive τῶν ... χρημάτων. It indicates his attempt to block or secure the external funds.