§1056γᾶς ὑπὲρ πατρῴας, §1057Κρέοντι μὲν λιπὼν γόους, §1058τὰ δʼ ἑπτάπυργα κλῇθρα γᾶς §1059καλλίνικα θήσων.
for the sake of the fatherland, leaving indeed lamentations to Creon, but destined to make the seven-gated locks of the land gloriously victorious.
§1060γενοίμεθʼ ὧδε ματέρες §1061γενοίμεθʼ εὔτεκνοι, φίλα §1062Παλλάς, ἃ δράκοντος αἷμα §1063λιθόβολον κατειργάσω, §1064Καδμείαν μέριμναν §1064aὁρμήσασʼ ἐπʼ ἔργον, §1065ὅθεν ἐπέσυτο τάνδε γαῖαν §1066ἁρπαγαῖσι δαιμόνων τις ἄτα.
May we likewise become mothers, may we be happy in our children, dear Pallas, you who accomplished the stone-thrown blood of the dragon, having urged the Cadmean concern to the task, whence there rushed upon this land some ruin from the gods by plunder.
§1067ὠή, τίς ἐν πύλαισι δωμάτων κυρεῖ;
Messenger: Ho, who is present at the gates of the palace?
§1068ἀνοίγετʼ·
Open!
ἐκπορεύετʼ Ἰοκάστην δόμων.
Bring out Jocasta from the house.
§1069ὠὴ μάλʼ αὖθις· διὰ μακροῦ μέν, ἀλλʼ ὅμως §1070ἔξελθʼ, ἄκουσον, Οἰδίπου κλεινὴ δάμαρ, §1071λήξασʼ ὀδυρμῶν πενθίμων τε δακρύων.
Ho, once again indeed; after a long time, but nevertheless come out, hear, famous wife of Oedipus, ceasing from your wailing and mournful tears.
§1072ὦ φίλτατʼ, οὔ που ξυμφορὰν ἥκεις φέρων §1073Ἐτεοκλέους θανόντος, οὗ παρʼ ἀσπίδα §1074βέβηκας αἰεὶ πολεμίων εἴργων βέλη;
Jocasta: O dearest friend, surely you have not come bringing disaster of Eteocles dead, by whose shield you always marched, warding off the enemy's missiles?
§1076τέθνηκεν ἢ ζῇ παῖς ἐμός;
Is my child dead, or does he live?
σήμαινέ μοι.
Signal to me.
§1077ζῇ, μὴ τρέσῃς τόδʼ, ὥς σʼ ἀπαλλάξω φόβου.
Messenger: He lives, do not fear this, so that I may rid you of apprehension.
§1078τί δʼ;
Jocasta: What then?
ἑπτάπυργοι πῶς ἔχουσι περιβολαί;
How are the seven-gated walls holding up?
§1079ἑστᾶσʼ ἄθραυστοι, κοὐκ ἀνήρπασται πόλις.
Messenger: They stand unbroken, and the city has not been plundered.
§1080ἦλθον δὲ πρὸς κίνδυνον Ἀργείου δορός;
Jocasta: And did they come into danger from the Argive spear?
Messenger: To the very brink indeed; but the Ares of the Cadmeans proved superior to the Mycenaean spear.
Jocasta: Tell me one thing, by the gods, if you know anything about Polynices; for this too is a concern to me, if he beholds the light.
§1085ζῇ σοι ξυνωρὶς ἐς τόδʼ ἡμέρας τέκνων.
Messenger: Your pair of children lives for you up to this point of the day.
§1086εὐδαιμονοίης.
Jocasta: May you be happy.
πῶς γὰρ Ἀργείων δόρυ §1087πυλῶν ἀπεστήσασθε πυργηρούμενοι;
For how did you, being besieged, ward off the Argive spear from the gates?
Tell me, so that going inside the house I may delight the blind old man, this land being saved.
§1090ἐπεὶ Κρέοντος παῖς ὁ γῆς ὑπερθανὼν §1091πύργων ἐπʼ ἄκρων στὰς μελάνδετον ξίφος §1092λαιμῶν διῆκε τῇδε γῇ σωτήριον, §1093λόχους ἔνειμεν ἑπτὰ καὶ λοχαγέτας §1094πύλας ἐφʼ ἑπτά, φύλακας Ἀργείου δορός, §1095σὸς παῖς, ἐφέδρους δʼ ἱππότας μὲν ἱππόταις §1096ἔταξʼ, ὁπλίτας δʼ ἀσπιδηφόροις ἔπι, §1097ὡς τῷ νοσοῦντι τειχέων εἴη δορὸς §1098ἀλκὴ διʼ ὀλίγου.
Messenger: When Creon's son, having died for the land, standing upon the topmost towers, sent the black-handled sword through his throat as a saving grace for this land, your son distributed seven companies and captains at the seven gates, as guards against the Argive spear, and he stationing reserve horsemen against horsemen, and heavy infantry against the shield-bearers, so that for the suffering part of the wall there might be help of the spear at short notice.
περγάμων δʼ ἀπʼ ὀρθίων §1099λεύκασπιν εἰσορῶμεν Ἀργείων στρατὸν §1100Τευμησὸν ἐκλιπόντα, καὶ τάφρου πέλας §1101δρόμῳ ξυνῆψαν ἄστυ Καδμείας χθονός.
And from the steep battlements we beheld the white-shielded Argive army leaving Teumessus, and near the trench they joined at a run the city of the Cadmean land.
And the paean and trumpets resounded together, from there and from our walls.
§1104καὶ πρῶτα μὲν προσῆγε Νηίταις πύλαις §1105λόχον πυκναῖσιν ἀσπίσιν πεφρικότα §1106ὁ τῆς κυναγοῦ Παρθενοπαῖος ἔκγονος, §1107ἐπίσημʼ ἔχων οἰκεῖον ἐν μέσῳ σάκει, §1108ἑκηβόλοις τόξοισιν Ἀταλάντην κάπρον §1109χειρουμένην Αἰτωλόν.
And first indeed, to the Neitan gates was leading his company bristling with dense shields the offspring of the huntress, Parthenopaeus, having his own emblem in the middle of his shield, Atalanta with far-shooting bows subduing the Etolian boar.
ἐς δὲ Προιτίδας §1110πύλας ἐχώρει σφάγιʼ ἔχων ἐφʼ ἅρματι §1111ὁ μάντις Ἀμφιάραος, οὐ σημεῖʼ ἔχων §1112ὑβρισμένʼ, ἀλλὰ σωφρόνως ἄσημʼ ὅπλα.
And to the Proetidan gates was marching, having sacrificial victims on his chariot, the seer Amphiaraus, not having insolent emblems, but prudently unadorned weapons.
§1113Ὠγύγια δʼ ἐς πυλώμαθʼ Ἱππομέδων ἄναξ §1114ἔστειχʼ ἔχων σημεῖον ἐν μέσῳ σάκει §1115στικτοῖς Πανόπτην ὄμμασιν δεδορκότα, §1116τὰ μὲν σὺν ἄστρων ἐπιτολαῖσιν ὄμματα §1117βλέποντα, τὰ δὲ κρύπτοντα δυνόντων μέτα, §1118ὡς ὕστερον θανόντος εἰσορᾶν παρῆν.
And to the Ogygian gates King Hippomedon was marching, having an emblem in the middle of his shield, the Panoptes watching with spotted eyes, some eyes looking with the rising of the stars, others closing with those that set, as later was possible to see when he had died.
§1119Ὁμολωίσιν δὲ τάξιν εἶχε πρὸς πύλαις §1120Τυδεύς, λέοντος δέρος ἔχων ἐπʼ ἀσπίδι §1121χαίτῃ πεφρικός· δεξιᾷ δὲ λαμπάδα §1122Τιτὰν Προμηθεὺς ἔφερεν ὡς πρήσων πόλιν.
And at the Homoloid gates Tydeus held his post, having a lion's skin on his shield, bristling with hair; and in his right hand a torch the Titan Prometheus was carrying as if to burn the city.
§1123ὁ σὸς δὲ Κρηναίαισι Πολυνείκης πύλαις §1124Ἄρη προσῆγε· Ποτνιάδες δʼ ἐπʼ ἀσπίδι §1125ἐπίσημα πῶλοι δρομάδες ἐσκίρτων φόβῳ, §1126εὖ πως στρόφιγξιν ἔνδοθεν κυκλούμεναι §1127πόρπαχʼ ὑπʼ αὐτόν, ὥστε μαίνεσθαι δοκεῖν.
And your Polynices at the Crenaian gates was leading Ares; and on his shield the Potnian mares, swift running emblems, were leaping in fear, revolving skillfully somehow within by pivots under the very handle, so as to seem to be mad.
§1128ὁ δʼ οὐκ ἔλασσον Ἄρεος ἐς μάχην φρονῶν §1129Καπανεὺς προσῆγε λόχον ἐπʼ Ἠλέκτραις πύλαις· §1130σιδηρονώτοις δʼ ἀσπίδος τύποις ἐπῆν §1131γίγας ἐπʼ ὤμοις γηγενὴς ὅλην πόλιν §1132φέρων μοχλοῖσιν ἐξανασπάσας βάθρων, §1133ὑπόνοιαν ἡμῖν οἷα πείσεται πόλις.
And Kapaneus, minding for battle no less than Ares, was leading his company to the Electran gates; and upon the iron-backed designs of his shield was an earth-born giant carrying upon his shoulders a whole city heaved up with levers from its foundations, a suggestion to us of what the city would suffer.
§1134ταῖς δʼ ἑβδόμαις Ἄδραστος ἐν πύλαισιν ἦν, §1135ἑκατὸν ἐχίδναις ἀσπίδʼ ἐκπληρῶν γραφῇ, §1137Ἀργεῖον αὔχημʼ· ἐκ δὲ τειχέων μέσων §1138δράκοντες ἔφερον τέκνα Καδμείων γνάθοις.
And at the seventh gates Adrastus was, filling his shield with the drawing of a hundred hydras, an Argive boast; and from the middle of the walls the serpents were carrying Cadmean children in their jaws.
And I had a view of each of these as I was passing along the watchword to the leaders of the companies.
§1141καὶ πρῶτα μὲν τόξοισι καὶ μεσαγκύλοις §1142ἐμαρνάμεσθα σφενδόναις θʼ ἑκηβόλοις §1143πετρῶν τʼ ἀραγμοῖς· ὡς δʼ ἐνικῶμεν μάχῃ, §1144ἔκλαγξε Τυδεὺς καὶ σὸς ἐξαίφνης γόνος· §1145ὦ τέκνα Δαναῶν, πρὶν κατεξάνθαι βολαῖς, §1146τί μέλλετʼ ἄρδην πάντες ἐμπίπτειν πύλαις,
And first indeed with bows and javelins we fought, and with far-hurling slings and clashes of stones; but when we were winning the fight, Tydeus and your son suddenly shouted out: 'O children of the Danaans, before being shredded by missiles, why do you delay to fall upon the gates in a body?'