§1ὁρῶ μέν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τὰ παρόντα πράγματα πολλὴν δυσκολίαν ἔχοντα καὶ ταραχὴν οὐ μόνον τῷ πολλὰ προεῖσθαι καὶ μηδὲν εἶναι προὔργου περὶ αὐτῶν εὖ λέγειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ τῶν ὑπολοίπων κατὰ ταὐτὰ μηδὲ καθʼ ἓν τὸ συμφέρον πάντας ἡγεῖσθαι, ἀλλὰ τοῖς μὲν ὡδί, τοῖς δʼ ἑτέρως δοκεῖν.
I see, men of Athens, that the present state of affairs involves great difficulty and confusion, not only because we have surrendered many opportunities and it is of no use to speak well about them, but also because, regarding what remains, we do not all agree on a single beneficial course of action, but some hold one opinion and others another.
§2δυσκόλου δʼ ὄντος φύσει καὶ χαλεποῦ τοῦ βουλεύεσθαι, ἔτι πολλῷ χαλεπώτερον ὑμεῖς αὐτὸ πεποιήκατʼ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι·
Though deliberation is by nature difficult and arduous, you, men of Athens, have made it much more difficult.
οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἄλλοι πάντες ἄνθρωποι πρὸ τῶν πραγμάτων εἰώθασι χρῆσθαι τῷ βουλεύεσθαι, ὑμεῖς δὲ μετὰ τὰ πράγματα.
For while all other men are accustomed to deliberate before events, you do so after the events.
ἐκ δὲ τούτου συμβαίνει παρὰ πάντα τὸν χρόνον ὃν οἶδʼ ἐγώ, τὸν μὲν οἷς ἂν ἁμάρτητʼ ἐπιτιμῶντα εὐδοκιμεῖν καὶ δοκεῖν εὖ λέγειν, τὰ δὲ πράγματα καὶ περὶ ὧν βουλεύεσθʼ ἐκφεύγειν ὑμᾶς.
The consequence of this, during all the time I can remember, is that those who criticize you for your errors win approval and seem to speak well, while the opportunities and the matters on which you deliberate slip from your grasp.
§3οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καίπερ τούτων οὕτως ἐχόντων οἴομαι καὶ πεπεικὼς ἐμαυτὸν ἀνέστηκα, ἂν ἐθελήσητε τοῦ θορυβεῖν καὶ φιλονικεῖν ἀποστάντες ἀκούειν, ὡς ὑπὲρ πόλεως βουλευομένοις καὶ τηλικούτων πραγμάτων προσήκει, ἕξειν καὶ λέγειν καὶ συμβουλεύειν διʼ ὧν καὶ τὰ παρόντʼ ἔσται βελτίω καὶ τὰ προειμένα σωθήσεται.
Nevertheless, although this is the case, I have stood up believing and convincing myself that, if you are willing to stop clamoring and quarreling and listen as becomes those deliberating for their city and on such great matters, I shall be able to speak and advise you on how the present situation can be improved and what has been lost can be recovered.
§4ἀκριβῶς δʼ εἰδώς, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τὸ λέγειν περὶ ὧν αὐτὸς εἶπέ τις καὶ περὶ αὑτοῦ παρʼ ὑμῖν ἀεὶ τῶν πάνυ λυσιτελούντων τοῖς τολμῶσιν ὄν, οὕτως ἡγοῦμαι φορτικὸν καὶ ἐπαχθὲς ὥστε ἀνάγκην οὖσαν ὁρῶν ὅμως ἀποκνῶ.
Knowing well, men of Athens, that speaking before you about what one has himself said and about oneself is always highly profitable to those who venture it, I yet consider it so vulgar and offensive that, even though I see the necessity, I still hesitate.
νομίζω δʼ ἄμεινον ἂν ὑμᾶς περὶ ὧν νῦν ἐρῶ κρῖναι, μικρὰ τῶν πρότερόν ποτε ῥηθέντων ὑπʼ ἐμοῦ μνημονεύσαντες.
But I believe you would judge better of what I am now about to say if you would remember a few things I said on a former occasion.
§5ἐγὼ γάρ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, πρῶτον μέν, ἡνίκʼ ἔπειθόν τινες ὑμᾶς, τῶν ἐν Εὐβοίᾳ πραγμάτων ταραττομένων, βοηθεῖν Πλουτάρχῳ καὶ πόλεμον ἄδοξον καὶ δαπανηρὸν ἄρασθαι, πρῶτος καὶ μόνος παρελθὼν ἀντεῖπον, καὶ μόνον οὐ διεσπάσθην ὑπὸ τῶν ἐπὶ μικροῖς λήμμασιν πολλὰ καὶ μεγάλʼ ὑμᾶς ἁμαρτάνειν πεισάντων·
For first, men of Athens, when, at the time of the troubles in Euboea, certain persons were urging you to assist Plutarchus and to undertake an inglorious and costly war, I was the first and only one to come forward and oppose it, and I was almost torn to pieces by those who, for the sake of small gains, persuaded you to commit many great errors.
καὶ χρόνου βραχέος διελθόντος, μετὰ τοῦ προσοφλεῖν αἰσχύνην καὶ παθεῖν οἷα τῶν ὄντων ἀνθρώπων οὐδένες πώποτε πεπόνθασʼ ὑπὸ τούτων οἷς ἐβοήθησαν, πάντες ὑμεῖς ἔγνωτε τήν τε τῶν τότε ταῦτα πεισάντων κακίαν καὶ τὰ βέλτιστʼ εἰρηκότʼ ἐμέ.
And after a short time had passed, along with incurring disgrace and suffering such treatment as no men ever suffered from those they assisted, you all recognized both the wickedness of those who persuaded you then and that I had spoken what was best.
§6πάλιν τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, κατιδὼν Νεοπτόλεμον τὸν ὑποκριτὴν τῷ μὲν τῆς τέχνης προσχήματι τυγχάνοντʼ ἀδείας, κακὰ δʼ ἐργαζόμενον τὰ μέγιστα τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὰ παρʼ ὑμῶν διοικοῦντα Φιλίππῳ καὶ πρυτανεύοντα, παρελθὼν εἶπον εἰς ὑμᾶς, οὐδεμιᾶς ἰδίας οὔτʼ ἔχθρας οὔτε συκοφαντίας ἕνεκα, ὡς ἐκ τῶν μετὰ ταῦτʼ ἔργων γέγονεν δῆλον.
Again, men of Athens, when I perceived that Neoptolemus the actor, under the pretext of his profession, was enjoying immunity, while doing the greatest injury to the city, managing your affairs for Philip and directing them, I came forward and spoke to you, not from any personal enmity or malicious accusation, as has become clear from subsequent events.
§7καὶ οὐκέτʼ ἐν τούτοις αἰτιάσομαι τοὺς ὑπὲρ Νεοπτολέμου λέγοντας (οὐδὲ εἷς γὰρ ἦν), ἀλλʼ αὐτοὺς ὑμᾶς·
And in this matter I will no longer blame those who spoke on behalf of Neoptolemus—for there was not even one—but you yourselves.
εἰ γὰρ ἐν Διονύσου τραγῳδοὺς ἐθεᾶσθε, ἀλλὰ μὴ περὶ σωτηρίας καὶ κοινῶν πραγμάτων ἦν ὁ λόγος, οὐκ ἂν οὕτως οὔτʼ ἐκείνου πρὸς χάριν οὔτʼ ἐμοῦ πρὸς ἀπέχθειαν ἠκούσατε.
For if you had been watching tragedies in the theater of Dionysus, and the debate had not been about your safety and public affairs, you would not have listened to him with such favor nor to me with such hostility.
§8καίτοι τοῦτό γʼ ὑμᾶς οἶμαι νῦν ἅπαντας ᾐσθῆσθαι, ὅτι τὴν τότʼ ἄφιξιν εἰς τοὺς πολεμίους ποιησάμενος ὑπὲρ τοῦ τἀκεῖ χρήματʼ ὀφειλόμενʼ, ὡς ἔφη, κομίσας δεῦρο λῃτουργεῖν, καὶ τούτῳ τῷ λόγῳ πλείστῳ χρησάμενος, ὡς δεινὸν εἴ τις ἐγκαλεῖ τοῖς ἐκεῖθεν ἐνθάδε τὰς εὐπορίας ἄγουσιν, ἐπειδὴ διὰ τὴν εἰρήνην ἀδείας ἔτυχεν, ἣν ἐνθάδʼ ἐκέκτητʼ οὐσίαν φανεράν, ταύτην ἐξαργυρίσας πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἀπάγων οἴχεται.
Yet this, I think, you have all now realized, that although he made his journey to the enemy at that time under the pretence of recovering money owed to him there in order, as he said, to perform public services here, and made the greatest use of this argument, saying it was a shame if anyone accused those who bring wealth from abroad to this place, yet as soon as he obtained immunity through the peace, he converted all the visible property he possessed here into money and has gone off with it to Philip.
§9δύο μὲν δὴ ταῦθʼ ὧν προεῖπον ἐγὼ μαρτυρεῖ τοῖς γεγενημένοις λόγοις ὀρθῶς καὶ δικαίως, οἷά περ ἦν, ἀποφανθένθʼ ὑπʼ ἐμοῦ·
Now these two things which I predicted bear witness to the truth and justice of the words I then spoke, showing them to have been just as I declared.
τὸ τρίτον δʼ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, (καὶ μόνον ἓν τοῦτʼ εἰπὼν ἔτι καὶ δὴ περὶ ὧν παρελήλυθʼ ἐρῶ,) ἡνίκα τοὺς ὅρκους τοὺς περὶ τῆς εἰρήνης ἀπειληφότες ἥκομεν οἱ πρέσβεις,
And the third thing, men of Athens—and after saying just this one thing I will proceed to the subject for which I have come forward—when we, the ambassadors, had returned after receiving the oaths concerning the peace,