O Perses, do you lay these things up in your heart, and now listen to justice, and forget violence entirely.
§276τόνδε γὰρ ἀνθρώποισι νόμον διέταξε Κρονίων §277ἰχθύσι μὲν καὶ θηρσὶ καὶ οἰωνοῖς πετεηνοῖς §278ἐσθέμεν ἀλλήλους, ἐπεὶ οὐ δίκη ἐστὶ μετʼ αὐτοῖς· §279ἀνθρώποισι δʼ ἔδωκε δίκην, ἣ πολλὸν ἀρίστη §280γίγνεται·
For the son of Kronos ordained this law for men, for fishes and beasts and winged birds to eat one another, since there is no justice among them; but to men he gave justice, which proves to be far the best.
εἰ γάρ τίς κʼ ἐθέλῃ τὰ δίκαιʼ ἀγορεῦσαι §281γιγνώσκων, τῷ μέν τʼ ὄλβον διδοῖ εὐρύοπα Ζεύς· §282ὃς δέ κε μαρτυρίῃσι ἑκὼν ἐπίορκον ὀμόσσας §283ψεύσεται, ἐν δὲ δίκην βλάψας νήκεστον ἀασθῇ, §284τοῦ δέ τʼ ἀμαυροτέρη γενεὴ μετόπισθε λέλειπται· §285ἀνδρὸς δʼ εὐόρκου γενεὴ μετόπισθεν ἀμείνων.
For if anyone wishes to speak what is just, knowing it, to him wide-seeing Zeus gives prosperity; but whoever, in his testimony, willfully swearing a false oath, shall lie, and harming justice, be incurably blinded in mind, his generation is left more obscure hereafter; but the generation of a man who keeps his oath is better hereafter.
§286σοὶ δʼ ἐγὼ ἐσθλὰ νοέων ἐρέω, μέγα νήπιε Πέρση.
To you, very foolish Perses, I will speak with good intent.
Wickedness indeed, even in heaps, it is possible to choose easily; the road is smooth, and she dwells very near.
§289τῆς δʼ ἀρετῆς ἱδρῶτα θεοὶ προπάροιθεν ἔθηκαν §290ἀθάνατοι· μακρὸς δὲ καὶ ὄρθιος οἶμος ἐς αὐτὴν §291καὶ τρηχὺς τὸ πρῶτον· ἐπὴν δʼ εἰς ἄκρον ἵκηται, §292ῥηιδίη δὴ ἔπειτα πέλει, χαλεπή περ ἐοῦσα.
But before Virtue the immortal gods have placed sweat; and long and steep is the path to her, and rough at first; but when one reaches the summit, then indeed it becomes easy, though being hard before.
§293οὗτος μὲν πανάριστος, ὃς αὐτὸς πάντα νοήσῃ §294φρασσάμενος, τά κʼ ἔπειτα καὶ ἐς τέλος ᾖσιν ἀμείνω· §295ἐσθλὸς δʼ αὖ κἀκεῖνος, ὃς εὖ εἰπόντι πίθηται· §296ὃς δέ κε μήτʼ αὐτὸς νοέῃ μήτʼ ἄλλου ἀκούων §297ἐν θυμῷ βάλληται, ὃ δʼ αὖτʼ ἀχρήιος ἀνήρ.
He is altogether best who himself understands all things, having considered what will be better hereafter and to the end; and he too is noble who obeys one who speaks well; but he who neither himself understands nor, listening to another, lays it to heart, he again is a useless man.
§298ἀλλὰ σύ γʼ ἡμετέρης μεμνημένος αἰὲν ἐφετμῆς §299ἐργάζευ, Πέρση, δῖον γένος, ὄφρα σε λιμὸς §300ἐχθαίρῃ, φιλέῃ δέ σʼ ἐυστέφανος Δημήτηρ §301αἰδοίη, βιότου δὲ τεὴν πιμπλῇσι καλιήν·
But do you, always mindful of our command, work, O noble-born Perses, so that hunger may hate you, and beautiful-crowned, revered Demeter may love you and fill your barn with livelihood; for hunger is altogether a companion to a lazy man.
§302λιμὸς γάρ τοι πάμπαν ἀεργῷ σύμφορος ἀνδρί. §303τῷ δὲ θεοὶ νεμεσῶσι καὶ ἀνέρες, ὅς κεν ἀεργὸς §304ζώῃ, κηφήνεσσι κοθούροις εἴκελος ὀργήν, §305οἵ τε μελισσάων κάματον τρύχουσιν ἀεργοὶ §306ἔσθοντες·
And with him both gods and men are angry, whoever lazy may live, like in temper to stingless drones, who, being idle, waste the toil of the bees by eating.
σοὶ δʼ ἔργα φίλʼ ἔστω μέτρια κοσμεῖν, §307ὥς κέ τοι ὡραίου βιότου πλήθωσι καλιαί.
But let it be pleasing to you to order moderate works, so that your barns may be full of seasonal livelihood.
And from works men become rich in flocks and wealthy; and by working they are much dearer to the immortals.
§311ἔργον δʼ οὐδὲν ὄνειδος, ἀεργίη δέ τʼ ὄνειδος.
Work is no disgrace, but idleness is a disgrace.
And if you work, soon the idle man will envy you becoming rich; for virtue and glory attend upon wealth.
§314δαίμονι δʼ οἷος ἔησθα, τὸ ἐργάζεσθαι ἄμεινον, §315εἴ κεν ἀπʼ ἀλλοτρίων κτεάνων ἀεσίφρονα θυμὸν §316εἰς ἔργον τρέψας μελετᾷς βίου, ὥς σε κελεύω.
And whatever your fortune, to work is better, if you turn your foolish mind away from other men's possessions towards work and care for livelihood, as I bid you.
An ill shame attends a needy man, shame, which greatly hurts men and benefits them.
§319αἰδώς τοι πρὸς ἀνολβίῃ, θάρσος δὲ πρὸς ὄλβῳ.
Shame is next to poverty, but boldness to wealth.
§320χρήματα δʼ οὐχ ἁρπακτά, θεόσδοτα πολλὸν ἀμείνω.
Possessions are not to be snatched, but those given by god are far better.
§321εἰ γάρ τις καὶ χερσὶ βίῃ μέγαν ὄλβον ἕληται, §322ἢ ὅ γʼ ἀπὸ γλώσσης ληίσσεται, οἷά τε πολλὰ §323γίγνεται, εὖτʼ ἂν δὴ κέρδος νόον ἐξαπατήσῃ §324ἀνθρώπων, αἰδῶ δέ τʼ ἀναιδείη κατοπάζῃ· §325ῥεῖα δέ μιν μαυροῦσι θεοί, μινύθουσι δὲ οἶκον §326ἀνέρι τῷ, παῦρον δέ τʼ ἐπὶ χρόνον ὄλβος ὀπηδεῖ.
For even if someone should seize great wealth by force of hands, or should plunder it by his tongue, such as often happens, when indeed gain deceives the mind of men, and shamelessness drives down shame; easily the gods dim him, and diminish the house of that man, and wealth attends him for but a short time.
§327ἶσον δʼ ὅς θʼ ἱκέτην ὅς τε ξεῖνον κακὸν ἔρξῃ, §328ὅς τε κασιγνήτοιο ἑοῦ ἀνὰ δέμνια βαίνῃ §329κρυπταδίης εὐνῆς ἀλόχου, παρακαίρια ῥέζων, §330ὅς τέ τευ ἀφραδίῃς ἀλιταίνεται ὀρφανὰ τέκνα, §331ὅς τε γονῆα γέροντα κακῷ ἐπὶ γήραος οὐδῷ §332νεικείῃ χαλεποῖσι καθαπτόμενος ἐπέεσσιν·
And equal is he who does evil to a suppliant or a stranger, and he who goes up to the bed of his brother for secret union with his wife, doing unseemly things, and he who in his foolishness sins against anyone's orphan children, and he who reviles his aged parent on the threshold of painful old age, attacking him with harsh words.
With him indeed Zeus himself is wroth, and in the end for his unjust deeds he lays upon him a harsh return.
§335ἀλλὰ σὺ τῶν μὲν πάμπαν ἔεργʼ ἀεσίφρονα θυμόν.
But do you keep your foolish mind altogether away from these things.
§336κὰδ δύναμιν δʼ ἔρδειν ἱέρʼ ἀθανάτοισι θεοῖσιν §337ἁγνῶς καὶ καθαρῶς, ἐπὶ δʼ ἀγλαὰ μηρία καίειν· §338ἄλλοτε δὲ σπονδῇσι θύεσσί τε ἱλάσκεσθαι, §339ἠμὲν ὅτʼ εὐνάζῃ καὶ ὅτʼ ἂν φάος ἱερὸν ἔλθῃ,
And according to your power do sacrifice to the immortal gods holy and purely, and burn glorious thigh-pieces; and at other times propitiate them with libations and incense, both when you go to rest and when the holy light comes,