§1147γυμνῆτες ἱππῆς ἁρμάτων τʼ ἐπιστάται; §1148ἠχῆς δʼ ὅπως ἤκουσαν, οὔτις ἀργὸς ἦν· §1149πολλοὶ δʼ ἔπιπτον κρᾶτας αἱματούμενοι, §1150ἡμῶν τʼ ἐς οὖδας εἶδες ἂν πρὸ τειχέων §1151πυκνοὺς κυβιστητῆρας ἐκπεπνευκότας· §1152ξηρὰν δʼ ἔδευον γαῖαν αἵματος ῥοαῖς.
"light-armed troops, horsemen, and drivers of chariots!" And as soon as they heard the shout, no one was idle; and many fell, their heads covered in blood, and from our side, before the walls, you would have seen thick-falling divers breathing out their last onto the ground; and they moistened the dry earth with streams of blood.
§1153ὁ δʼ Ἀρκάς, οὐκ Ἀργεῖος, Ἀταλάντης γόνος §1154τυφὼς πύλαισιν ὥς τις ἐμπεσὼν βοᾷ §1155πῦρ καὶ δικέλλας, ὡς κατασκάψων πόλιν·
But the Arcadian, not an Argive, the son of Atalanta, falling upon the gates like some whirlwind, cried out for fire and mattocks, as if to raze the city to the ground.
§1156ἀλλʼ ἔσχε μαργῶντʼ αὐτὸν ἐναλίου θεοῦ §1157Περικλύμενος παῖς λᾶαν ἐμβαλὼν κάρᾳ §1158ἁμαξοπληθῆ, γεῖσʼ ἐπάλξεων ἄπο· §1159ξανθὸν δὲ κρᾶτα διεπάλυνε καὶ ῥαφὰς §1160ἔρρηξεν ὀστέων, ἄρτι δʼ οἰνωπὸν γένυν §1161καθῃμάτωσεν· οὐδʼ ἀποίσεται βίον §1162τῇ καλλιτόξῳ μητρὶ Μαινάλου κόρῃ.
But Periclymenus, the son of the sea-god, stopped him in his fury, throwing from the edge of the battlements a wagon-filling stone upon his head; and it crushed his golden head to powder and broke the sutures of his bones, and bloodied his cheek just turning dark; nor shall he carry back his life to his beautiful-bowed mother, the maiden of Maenalus.
And when your son saw these gates were fortunate, he went on to another, and I followed.
§1165ὁρῶ δὲ Τυδέα καὶ παρασπιστὰς πυκνοὺς §1166Αἰτωλίσιν λόγχαισιν εἰς ἄκρον στόμα §1167πύργων ἀκοντίζοντας, ὥστʼ ἐπάλξεων §1168λιπεῖν ἐρίπνας φυγάδας· ἀλλά νιν πάλιν §1169κυναγὸς ὡσεὶ παῖς σὸς ἐξαθροίζεται, §1170πύργοις δʼ ἐπέστησʼ αὖθις.
And I saw Tydeus and his dense shield-bearers hurling Etolian spears at the very top edge of the towers, so that the fugitives left the heights of the battlements; but back again your son, like a huntsman, rallied them, and stationed them again on the towers.
ἐς δʼ ἄλλας πύλας §1171ἠπειγόμεσθα, τοῦτο παύσαντες νοσοῦν.
And we hastened to another gate, having stopped this weak point.
§1172Καπανεὺς δὲ πῶς εἴποιμʼ ἂν ὡς ἐμαίνετο;
And how can I describe how Capaneus was raging?
§1173μακραύχενος γὰρ κλίμακος προσαμβάσεις §1174ἔχων ἐχώρει, καὶ τοσόνδʼ ἐκόμπασε, §1175μηδʼ ἂν τὸ σεμνὸν πῦρ νιν εἰργαθεῖν Διὸς §1176τὸ μὴ οὐ κατʼ ἄκρων περγάμων ἑλεῖν πόλιν.
For he advanced, carrying the rungs of a long ladder, and boasted so much, that not even the sacred fire of Zeus would prevent him from taking the city from the highest citadels.
§1177καὶ ταῦθʼ ἅμʼ ἠγόρευε καὶ πετρούμενος §1178ἀνεῖρφʼ ὑπʼ αὐτὴν ἀσπίδʼ εἱλίξας δέμας, §1179κλίμακος ἀμείβων ξέστʼ ἐνηλάτων βάθρα.
And while he spoke these words, though pelted with stones, he crept up, wrapping his body under his very shield, climbing the smooth rungs of the ladder.
§1180ἤδη δʼ ὑπερβαίνοντα γεῖσα τειχέων §1181βάλλει κεραυνῷ Ζεύς νιν· ἐκτύπησε δὲ §1182χθών, ὥστε δεῖσαι πάντας· ἐκ δὲ κλιμάκων §1186εἱλίσσετʼ· ἐς γῆν δʼ ἔμπυρος πίπτει νεκρός.
And just as he was scaling the coping of the walls, Zeus struck him with a thunderbolt; and the earth resounded so that all were afraid; and from the ladder, his limbs were whirled... and his charred corpse fell to the earth.
But when Adrastus saw Zeus was hostile to his army, he drew back the Argive host outside the trench.
§1189οἱ δʼ αὖ παρʼ ἡμῶν δεξιὸν Διὸς τέρας §1190ἰδόντες ἐξήλαυνον ἁρμάτων ὄχους §1191ἱππῆς ὁπλῖται, κἀς μέσʼ Ἀργείων ὅπλα §1192συνῆψαν ἔγχη· πάντα δʼ ἦν ὁμοῦ κακά· §1193ἔθνῃσκον ἐξέπιπτον ἀντύγων ἄπο, §1194τροχοί τʼ ἐπήδων ἄξονές τʼ ἐπʼ ἄξοσι, §1195νεκροὶ δὲ νεκροῖς ἐξεσωρεύονθʼ ὁμοῦ.
And our men, on their part, seeing the favorable sign from Zeus, drove out their chariots, horsemen and hoplites, and joined spears in the midst of the Argives' weapons; and everything was havoc at once; they were dying, they were falling from the chariot rims, wheels bounded, and axles crashed on axles, and corpses were piled up together with corpses.
§1196πύργων μὲν οὖν γῆς ἔσχομεν κατασκαφὰς §1197ἐς τὴν παροῦσαν ἡμέραν· εἰ δʼ εὐτυχὴς §1198ἔσται τὸ λοιπὸν ἥδε γῆ, θεοῖς μέλει· §1199καὶ νῦν γὰρ αὐτὴν δαιμόνων ἔσῳσέ τις.
Thus indeed, we have prevented the razing of the towers of this land for the present day; but whether this land will be fortunate in the future is the gods' concern; for even now some deity saved it.
Jocasta: To conquer is beautiful; but if the gods have a better purpose— may I be fortunate.
All is well with the gods and with fortune; for my children live, and the land has escaped ruin.
§1204Κρέων δʼ ἔοικε τῶν ἐμῶν νυμφευμάτων §1205τῶν τʼ Οἰδίπου δύστηνος ἀπολαῦσαι κακῶν, §1206παιδὸς στερηθείς, τῇ πόλει μὲν εὐτυχῶς, §1207ἰδίᾳ δὲ λυπρῶς.
But wretched Creon seems to reap the bitter fruits of my marriage and of Oedipus' evils, deprived of his child, fortunately indeed for the city, but grievously for himself.
ἀλλʼ ἄνελθέ μοι πάλιν, §1208τί τἀπὶ τούτοις παῖδʼ ἐμὼ δρασείετον.
But go back again for me, what my two children are desiring to do after this.
§1209ἔα τὰ λοιπά· δεῦρʼ ἀεὶ γὰρ εὐτυχεῖς.
Messenger: Leave the rest; for up to this point you are fortunate.
§1210τοῦτʼ εἰς ὕποπτον εἶπας· οὐκ ἐατέον.
Jocasta: You said this to raise suspicion; it must not be left alone.
§1211μεῖζον τί χρῄζεις παῖδας ἢ σεσῳσμένους;
Messenger: What greater thing do you desire than that your children are saved?
§1212καὶ τἀπίλοιπά γʼ εἰ καλῶς πράσσω κλύειν.
Jocasta: To hear also whether I fare well in what remains.
§1213μέθες μʼ· ἔρημος παῖς ὑπασπιστοῦ σέθεν.
Messenger: Let me go; your son is left destitute of his shield-bearer.
§1214κακόν τι κεύθεις καὶ στέγεις ὑπὸ σκότῳ.
Jocasta: You are hiding some evil and keeping it under cover of darkness.
§1215κοὐκ ἄν γε λέξαιμʼ ἐπʼ ἀγαθοῖσι σοῖς κακά.
Messenger: And I would not tell you evils after your good news.
§1216ἢν μή γε φεύγων ἐκφύγῃς πρὸς αἰθέρα.
Jocasta: Unless indeed you fly away and escape to the upper air.
§1217αἰαῖ·
Messenger: Alas!
τί μʼ οὐκ εἴασας ἐξ εὐαγγέλου §1218φήμης ἀπελθεῖν, ἀλλὰ μηνῦσαι κακά;
Why did you not let me depart after my good tidings, but force me to reveal evils?
§1219τὼ παῖδε τὼ σὼ μέλλετον, τολμήματα §1220αἴσχιστα, χωρὶς μονομαχεῖν παντὸς στρατοῦ, §1221λέξαντες Ἀργείοισι Καδμείοισί τε §1222ἐς κοινὸν οἷον μήποτʼ ὤφελον λόγον.
Your two children are planning a most shameful deed of daring: to fight in single combat apart from the whole army, having spoken to both Argives and Cadmeans a common proposal which would that they had never uttered.
§1223Ἐτεοκλέης δʼ ὑπῆρξʼ ἀπʼ ὀρθίου σταθεὶς §1224πύργου, κελεύσας σῖγα κηρῦξαι στρατῷ· §1226Δαναῶν ἀριστῆς, οἵπερ ἤλθετʼ ἐνθάδε, §1227Κάδμου τε λαός, μήτε Πολυνείκους χάριν §1228ψυχὰς ἀπεμπολᾶτε μήθʼ ἡμῶν ὕπερ.
And Eteocles made the beginning, standing upon a lofty tower, and ordering silence to be heralded to the host; "O generals of my land, chiefs of the Danaans, who have come here, and people of Cadmus, do not barter away your lives either for the sake of Polynices or on my behalf.
§1229ἐγὼ γὰρ αὐτὸς τόνδε κίνδυνον μεθεὶς
For I myself, releasing you from this danger..."