§3.59.1‘οὐ πρὸς τῆς ὑμετέρας δόξης, ὦ Λακεδαιμόνιοι, τάδε, οὔτε ἐς τὰ κοινὰ τῶν Ἑλλήνων νόμιμα καὶ ἐς τοὺς προγόνους ἁμαρτάνειν οὔτε ἡμᾶς τοὺς εὐεργέτας ἀλλοτρίας ἕνεκα ἔχθρας μὴ αὐτοὺς ἀδικηθέντας διαφθεῖραι, φείσασθαι δὲ καὶ ἐπικλασθῆναι τῇ γνώμῃ οἴκτῳ σώφρονι λαβόντας, μὴ ὧν πεισόμεθα μόνον δεινότητα κατανοοῦντας, ἀλλ’ οἷοί τε ἂν ὄντες πάθοιμεν καὶ ὡς ἀστάθμητον τὸ τῆς ξυμφορᾶς ᾧτινί ποτ’ ἂν καὶ ἀναξίῳ ξυμπέσοι.
‘These things, Lacedaemonians, are not to your glory: to sin against the common laws of the Greeks and against your ancestors, and to destroy us, your benefactors, for the sake of another’s hatred, when you yourselves have not been wronged; but rather to spare us and relent in your minds, receiving us with reasonable pity, not only considering the severity of what we shall suffer, but also what sort of people we are who would suffer it, and how unpredictable is the nature of misfortune, which might befall anyone, even one who is undeserving.
§3.59.2ἡμεῖς τε, ὡς πρέπον ἡμῖν καὶ ὡς ἡ χρεία προάγει, αἰτούμεθα ὑμᾶς, θεοὺς τοὺς ὁμοβωμίους καὶ κοινοὺς τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἐπιβοώμενοι, πεῖσαι τάδε· προφερόμενοι ὅρκους οὓς οἱ πατέρες ὑμῶν ὤμοσαν μὴ ἀμνημονεῖν ἱκέται γιγνόμεθα ὑμῶν τῶν πατρῴων τάφων καὶ ἐπικαλούμεθα τοὺς κεκμηκότας μὴ γενέσθαι ὑπὸ Θηβαίοις μηδὲ τοῖς ἐχθίστοις φίλτατοι ὄντες παραδοθῆναι.
And we, as is fitting for us and as our need drives us, entreat you, calling upon the gods of shared altars and common to the Greeks, to grant this; bringing forward the oaths which your fathers swore, that you should not forget them, we become suppliants of your ancestral tombs and call upon the departed not to let us fall under the power of the Thebans, nor to let those who were most dear to them be delivered up to their bitterest enemies.
ἡμέρας τε ἀναμιμνῄσκομεν ἐκείνης ᾗ τὰ λαμπρότατα μετ’ αὐτῶν πράξαντες νῦν ἐν τῇδε τὰ δεινότατα κινδυνεύομεν παθεῖν.
We also remind you of that day on which, having achieved the most glorious deeds with them, we now on this day run the risk of suffering the most terrible things.
§3.59.3ὅπερ δὲ ἀναγκαῖόν τε καὶ χαλεπώτατον τοῖς ὧδε ἔχουσι, λόγου τελευτᾶν, διότι καὶ τοῦ βίου ὁ κίνδυνος ἐγγὺς μετ’ αὐτοῦ, παυόμενοι λέγομεν ἤδη ὅτι οὐ Θηβαίοις παρέδομεν τὴν πόλιν (εἱλόμεθα γὰρ ἂν πρό γε τούτου τῷ αἰσχίστῳ ὀλέθρῳ λιμῷ τελευτῆσαι), ὑμῖν δὲ πιστεύσαντες προσήλθομεν (καὶ δίκαιον, εἰ μὴ πείθομεν, ἐς τὰ αὐτὰ καταστήσαντας τὸν ξυντυχόντα κίνδυνον ἐᾶσαι ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἑλέσθαι),
And what is necessary and most difficult for those in such a situation—to make an end of speech, since the danger to our life is near along with it—ceasing our speech, we now declare that we did not surrender our city to the Thebans (for we would have chosen, before that, to perish by the most shameful destruction of starvation), but we surrendered to you, trusting you; and it is just, if we do not persuade you, that you restore us to the same situation and allow us to choose for ourselves the danger that may meet us.
§3.59.4ἐπισκήπτομέν τε ἅμα μὴ Πλαταιῆς ὄντες οἱ προθυμότατοι περὶ τοὺς Ἕλληνας γενόμενοι Θηβαίοις τοῖς ἡμῖν ἐχθίστοις ἐκ τῶν ὑμετέρων χειρῶν καὶ τῆς ὑμετέρας πίστεως ἱκέται ὄντες,ὦ Λακεδαιμόνιοι, παραδοθῆναι, γενέσθαι δὲ σωτῆρας ἡμῶν καὶ μὴ τοὺς ἄλλους Ἕλληνας ἐλευθεροῦντας ἡμᾶς διολέσαι. ’
And at the same time we adjure you that we, being Plataeans, who were most zealous for the Greeks, and being suppliants in your hands and under your pledge, Lacedaemonians, should not be surrendered to the Thebans, our bitterest enemies, but that you should become our saviors, and not, while liberating the other Greeks, destroy us.’