§1ὅταν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, λόγοι γίγνωνται περὶ ὧν Φίλιππος πράττει καὶ βιάζεται παρὰ τὴν εἰρήνην, ἀεὶ τοὺς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν λόγους καὶ δικαίους καὶ φιλανθρώπους ὁρῶ φαινομένους, καὶ λέγειν μὲν ἅπαντας ἀεὶ τὰ δέοντα δοκοῦντας τοὺς κατηγοροῦντας Φιλίππου, γιγνόμενον δʼ οὐδὲν ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν τῶν δεόντων, οὐδʼ ὧν εἵνεκα ταῦτʼ ἀκούειν ἄξιον·
Whenever, men of Athens, speeches are made about what Philip is doing and forcing contrary to the peace, I always see that the speeches on our behalf appear both just and humane, and that those who accuse Philip always seem to say what is necessary, but practically nothing of what is necessary is being done, nor any of those things for the sake of which it is worthwhile to listen to these speeches.
§2ἀλλʼ εἰς τοῦτʼ ἤδη προηγμένα τυγχάνει πάντα τὰ πράγματα τῇ πόλει, ὥσθʼ ὅσῳ τις ἂν μᾶλλον καὶ φανερώτερον ἐξελέγχῃ Φίλιππον καὶ τὴν πρὸς ὑμᾶς εἰρήνην παραβαίνοντα καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς Ἕλλησιν ἐπιβουλεύοντα, τοσούτῳ τὸ τί χρὴ ποιεῖν συμβουλεῦσαι χαλεπώτερον.
But all the affairs of the city have already reached such a point that, the more clearly and patently anyone exposes Philip as violating the peace with you and plotting against all the Greeks, the more difficult it is to advise what ought to be done.
§3αἴτιον δὲ τούτων, ὅτι πάντες, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τοὺς πλεονεκτεῖν ζητοῦντας ἔργῳ κωλύειν καὶ πράξεσιν, οὐχὶ λόγοις δέον, πρῶτον μὲν ἡμεῖς οἱ παριόντες τούτων μὲν ἀφέσταμεν καὶ γράφειν καὶ συμβουλεύειν, τὴν πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἀπέχθειαν ὀκνοῦντες, οἷα ποιεῖ δʼ, ὡς δεινά, καὶ τοιαῦτα διεξερχόμεθα· ἔπειθʼ ὑμεῖς οἱ καθήμενοι, ὡς μὲν ἂν εἴποιτε δικαίους λόγους καὶ λέγοντος ἄλλου συνείητε, ἄμεινον Φιλίππου παρεσκεύασθε, ὡς δὲ κωλύσαιτʼ ἂν ἐκεῖνον πράττειν ταῦτʼ ἐφʼ ὧν ἐστι νῦν, παντελῶς ἀργῶς ἔχετε.
And the cause of this is that, although it is necessary, men of Athens, to hinder those who seek to take advantage by deed and action, and not by words, in the first place, we who come forward shrink from proposing and advising these things, fearing your ill-will, and we only detail his deeds, how terrible they are, and suchlike things; in the second place, you who sit here are better prepared than Philip to speak just words and to understand another when he speaks, but as to how you might prevent him from doing those things which he is now engaged in, you are utterly inactive.
§4συμβαίνει δὴ πρᾶγμʼ ἀναγκαῖον, οἶμαι, καὶ ἴσως εἰκός· ἐν οἷς ἑκάτεροι διατρίβετε καὶ περὶ ἃ σπουδάζετε, ταῦτʼ ἄμεινον ἑκατέροις ἔχει, ἐκείνῳ μὲν αἱ πράξεις, ὑμῖν δʼ οἱ λόγοι.
Consequently, a necessary and perhaps natural result occurs, I think: in those matters in which each of you spend your time and about which you are zealous, in these each of you fare better—he in actions, and you in words.
εἰ μὲν οὖν καὶ νῦν λέγειν δικαιότερʼ ὑμῖν ἐξαρκεῖ, ῥᾴδιον, καὶ πόνος οὐδεὶς πρόσεστι τῷ πράγματι· §5εἰ δʼ ὅπως τὰ παρόντʼ ἐπανορθωθήσεται δεῖ σκοπεῖν καὶ μὴ προελθόντʼ ἔτι πορρωτέρω λήσει πάνθʼ ἡμᾶς, μηδʼ ἐπιστήσεται μέγεθος δυνάμεως πρὸς ἣν οὐδʼ ἀντᾶραι δυνησόμεθα, οὐχ ὁ αὐτὸς τρόπος ὅσπερ πρότερον τοῦ βουλεύεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς λέγουσιν ἅπασι καὶ τοῖς ἀκούουσιν ὑμῖν τὰ βέλτιστα καὶ τὰ σώσοντα τῶν ῥᾴστων καὶ τῶν ἡδίστων προαιρετέον.
If, therefore, even now it is sufficient for you to speak more justly, it is easy, and no labor is attached to the matter; but if we must consider how the present state of affairs is to be corrected, and how it will not advance still further without our noticing until all is lost, nor a greatness of power come upon us against which we shall not even be able to raise a hand, then the manner of our deliberation must not be the same as before, but both all who speak and you who listen must choose the best things and those which will save us, rather than the easiest and most pleasant.
§6πρῶτον μέν, εἴ τις, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, θαρρεῖ, ὁρῶν ἡλίκος ἤδη καὶ ὅσων κύριός ἐστι Φίλιππος, καὶ μηδένʼ οἴεται κίνδυνον φέρειν τοῦτο τῇ πόλει μηδʼ ἐφʼ ὑμᾶς πάντα παρασκευάζεσθαι, θαυμάζω, καὶ δεηθῆναι πάντων ὁμοίως ὑμῶν βούλομαι τοὺς λογισμοὺς ἀκοῦσαί μου διὰ βραχέων, διʼ οὓς τἀναντίʼ ἐμοὶ παρέστηκε προσδοκᾶν καὶ διʼ ὧν ἐχθρὸν ἡγοῦμαι Φίλιππον· ἵνʼ, ἐὰν μὲν ἐγὼ δοκῶ βέλτιον προορᾶν, ἐμοὶ πεισθῆτε, ἂν δʼ οἱ θαρροῦντες καὶ πεπιστευκότες αὐτῷ, τούτοις προσθῆσθε.
First of all, men of Athens, if anyone feels confident, seeing how great Philip has already become and how many things he controls, and thinks that this brings no danger to the city nor that he is preparing everything against you, I marvel, and I wish to beg of you all alike to hear briefly my calculations, because of which the opposite expectations have come upon me and through which I consider Philip an enemy; so that, if I seem to foresee better, you may be persuaded by me, but if those who feel confident and have trusted him do, you may side with them.
§7ἐγὼ τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, λογίζομαι· τίνων ὁ Φίλιππος κύριος πρῶτον μετὰ τὴν εἰρήνην κατέστη;
I, therefore, men of Athens, calculate as follows: of what things did Philip first become master after the peace?
πυλῶν καὶ τῶν ἐν Φωκεῦσι πραγμάτων.
Of Thermopylae and of the affairs in Phocis.
τί οὖν;
What then?
πῶς τούτοις ἐχρήσατο;
How did he use them?
ἃ Θηβαίοις συμφέρει καὶ οὐχ ἃ τῇ πόλει, πράττειν προείλετο.
He chose to act in the interest of the Thebans and not of our city.
τί δήποτε;
Why so?
ὅτι πρὸς πλεονεξίαν, οἶμαι, καὶ τὸ πάνθʼ ὑφʼ αὑτῷ ποιήσασθαι τοὺς λογισμοὺς ἐξετάζων, καὶ οὐχὶ πρὸς εἰρήνην οὐδʼ ἡσυχίαν οὐδὲ δίκαιον οὐδέν, §8εἶδε τοῦτʼ ὀρθῶς, ὅτι τῇ μὲν ἡμετέρᾳ πόλει καὶ τοῖς ἤθεσι τοῖς ἡμετέροις οὐδὲν ἂν ἐνδείξαιτο τοσοῦτον οὐδὲ ποιήσειεν, ὑφʼ οὗ πεισθέντες ὑμεῖς τῆς ἰδίας ἕνεκʼ ὠφελείας τῶν ἄλλων τινὰς Ἑλλήνων ἐκείνῳ προοῖσθε, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ δικαίου λόγον ποιούμενοι, καὶ τὴν προσοῦσαν ἀδοξίαν τῷ πράγματι φεύγοντες, καὶ πάνθʼ ἃ προσήκει προορώμενοι, ὁμοίως ἐναντιώσεσθε, ἄν τι τοιοῦτʼ ἐπιχειρῇ πράττειν, ὥσπερ ἂν εἰ πολεμοῦντες τύχοιτε.
Because, I think, examining his calculations with a view to self-aggrandizement and to bringing everything under his own power, and not with a view to peace or quiet or any justice, he saw this correctly, that to our city and to our character he could offer or do nothing so great that, persuaded by it, you would sacrifice any of the other Greeks to him for the sake of your own private advantage; but on the contrary, making account of justice, and fleeing the infamy attached to such a deed, and foreseeing all that is fitting, you would oppose him, if he should attempt to do any such thing, just as if you happened to be at war.
§9τοὺς δὲ Θηβαίους ἡγεῖτο, ὅπερ συνέβη, ἀντὶ τῶν ἑαυτοῖς γιγνομένων τὰ λοιπὰ ἐάσειν ὅπως βούλεται πράττειν ἑαυτόν, καὶ οὐχ ὅπως ἀντιπράξειν καὶ διακωλύσειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ συστρατεύσειν, ἂν αὐτοὺς κελεύῃ.
On the other hand, he believed that the Thebans—which is just what happened—in return for what they were getting for themselves, would allow him to do the rest as he pleased, and far from opposing and hindering him, would even join in his campaigns if he should bid them.
καὶ νῦν τοὺς Μεσσηνίους καὶ τοὺς Ἀργείους ταὔθʼ ὑπειληφὼς εὖ ποιεῖ.
And now, having assumed the same things about the Messenians and the Argives, he is doing them favors.
ὃ καὶ μέγιστόν ἐστι καθʼ ὑμῶν ἐγκώμιον, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι·
And this is also the greatest praise for you, men of Athens;