§485μὲν σώζειν ὑμᾶς ἐγνωκέναι, λόγῳ δʼ ὀκνῆσαι διδάξαι τὰ δέοντα, ἄλλως τε καὶ προσδοκίας οὔσης ἐγχειριεῖν ἐκεῖνον διαστρέφειν τἀληθὲς, ὅπερ εὑρήκαμεν.
...it would have been most shameful in deed to have resolved to save you, but in word to hesitate to teach what is necessary, especially since there is an expectation that he will attempt to distort the truth, which we have found to be the case.
πρὸς μὲν οὖν τὴν πρεσβείαν, οἶμαι, τὴν παρʼ ἐκείνου πρέσβεων ἡμετέρων ἔδει, τῷ δὲ στρατεύματι στράτευμα ἀντιπροσέρχεται.
Therefore, for the embassy from him, I think, we needed our own envoys, but against his army, an army marches in opposition.
εἰ δέ τις ἡγεῖται παράδοξον ἡμᾶς ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν πεφοβημένους ἥκειν, ἐνθυμείσθω κἀκεῖνο, ὡς παράδοξον Φίλιππον ἐφʼ ἡμᾶς ὑπὲρ τῶν ὑμετέρων ἐγκλημάτων ἔρχεσθαι.
But if anyone thinks it paradoxical that we have come fearing for you, let him also reflect on this: how paradoxical it is that Philip is marching against us on account of your complaints.
μὴ τοίνυν δυοῖν παραδόξοιν ὃ μέν ἐστι καθʼ ὑμῶν ἰσχυρὸν ποιήσητε, ὃ δʼ εἰς σωτηρίαν ὑπάρχει διαφθείρητε.
Do not, therefore, make that which is against you strong among these two paradoxes, and destroy that which exists for your safety.
ἡμεῖς δὲ πῶς οὐκ ἐμέλλομεν αἰσχυνεῖσθαι, εἰ Βυζαντίους μὲν πρώην ἀφειλόμεθα κινδύνου καὶ Περινθίους καὶ Χερρονησίτας, ἔτι δʼ Εὐβοέας καὶ Χαλκιδέας, τό γʼ ἐφʼ ἡμῖν, ἔχοντες εἰπεῖν περὶ πάντων τούτων ὡς οὐ κάλλισθʼ ἡμᾶς ἐδεδράκεσαν, ὑμᾶς δὲ ψυχρῶν ἂν ἕνεκʼ ἐγκλημάτων περιίδοιμεν πᾶσι τοῖς οὖσι κινδυνεύοντας· ὧν τίς συνηθέστερος ἡμῖν ἐν ἅπασι τοῖς Ἕλλησι;
But how were we not going to be ashamed, if on the one hand we recently delivered the Byzantines from danger, and the Perinthians and the inhabitants of the Chersonese, and furthermore the Euboeans and Chalcidians—at least as far as we were concerned—though we could say of all of them that they had not behaved most nobly towards us, but on the other hand we should overlook you risking all your possessions for the sake of cold grudges; than whom who is more intimate to us among all the Greeks?
θαυμάζω δὲ Πύθωνος, εἰ τῶν μὲν δυσχερῶν ὑμᾶς ἀξιοίη μνημονεύειν ἃ παρʼ ἀμφοτέρων ἀκουσίως γεγένηται, τῶν δʼ εἰς οἰκειότητα καὶ πίστιν φερόντων ἐκ τοῦ παντὸς χρόνου τοσούτων τὸ πλῆθος οὐχὶ νομίζει ποιήσεσθαι λόγον, καὶ ταῦτα πάντων ἀνθρώπων συνειδότων ὡς ἐν καλῷ γεγόνασιν ἀλλήλαις ἐπὶ τῶν χρειῶν αἱ πόλεις.
But I wonder at Python, if he should think it right that you remember the difficulties which occurred involuntarily on both sides, but does not think that he should make any account of those many things tending towards intimacy and trust throughout all time, especially when all men are aware that the cities have been of great service to each other in times of need.
ὡς μὲν οὖν Οἰδίπουν ἐδεξάμεθʼ ἡμεῖς καὶ ὡς Διόνυσος παρʼ ὑμῶν ὁρμηθεὶς Ἰκαρίῳ συγγίγνεται, καὶ τὴν δωρεὰν ἣν ἔδωκε, καὶ ὡς Ἡρακλῆς ἐμυήθη ξένων πρῶτος, καὶ ὡς πρῶτοι νεὼν ἱδρυσάμεθʼ αὐτῷ, καὶ τῶν παίδων ὡς προὔστημεν, καὶ πάνθʼ ὅσα τοιαῦτα, ἐάσομεν· ἀλλʼ ὧν ἔτι ζῶσιν οἱ μάρτυρες, τοῦτο μὲν ἡμεῖς ὅτʼ ἠτύχησεν ὁ δῆμος, ὡς δεῦρʼ ἐλθόντες πατρίδα τὰς Θήβας εἴχομεν, καὶ Λακεδαιμονίων μετὰ τοῦτο κελευόντων ὑμᾶς συνεμβάλλειν εἰς τὴν Ἀττικὴν ἅπαντες ἀπεψηφίσασθε, τοῦτο δʼ ὑμεῖς, ἡνίκʼ αὖθις ἐφʼ ὑμᾶς ἐβάδιζον Λακεδαιμόνιοι, τοσοῦτον ἀπέσχομεν τοῦ στρατεῦσαι μετʼ ἐκείνων, ὥστʼ ἀτειχίστου τῆς πόλεως οὔσης ἐκστρατευσάμενοι καὶ μάχῃ νικήσαντες μεθʼ ὑμῶν ἠλευθερώσαμεν τὴν
Therefore, we shall pass over how we received Oedipus, and how Dionysus, setting out from you, met with Icarius, and the gift which he gave, and how Hercules was initiated as the first of strangers, and how we first established a temple for him, and how we stood at the head of his children, and all such things; but of those things of which the witnesses are still alive: on the one hand, when our people met with misfortune, we came here and had Thebes as our fatherland, and after this, when the Lacedaemonians ordered you to invade Attica, you all voted against it; on the other hand, concerning you: when the Lacedaemonians marched against you again, we refrained so much from campaigning with them that, although our city was unfortified, we marched out and, having conquered in battle, freed Boeotia with you, bound by no necessity of alliance, but choosing by our own judgment to do you good.
§486Βοιωτίαν, ἀνάγκῃ μὲν οὐδεμιᾶς συμμαχίας, γνώμῃ δʼ ὑμᾶς εὖ ποιεῖν ἑλόμενοι. καὶ πάλιν τῆς εἰρήνης γενομένης τῆς ἐπὶ Ἀνταλκίδου, καὶ Φοιβίδου τὴν Καδμείαν καταλαβόντος, τήν τε φυγὴν ἐδεχόμεθα καὶ ἐπειδὴ τῶν ὅπλων ἔδει, παρῆμεν πανδημεὶ, καὶ οὐκ ἔφθημεν ἐλθόντες, καὶ Λακεδαιμονίους ὑποσπόνδους ἀπηλλάξαμεν, καὶ μυρία ἄν τις ἔχοι λέγειν, ὡς ἀγαθὴ τύχη πεφύκασιν αἱ πόλεις ἀλλήλαις.
And again, when the peace of Antalcidas was made, and Phoebidas seized the Cadmea, we welcomed your exiles, and when there was need of arms, we were present with all our people, and no sooner had we arrived than we dismissed the Lacedaemonians under treaty, and one could say ten thousand things to show how the cities have been a good fortune to each other.
οὐ τοίνυν μόνον πόλει πρὸς πόλιν ἡμῖν πλεῖστα ὑπάρχει πρὸς ἀλλήλους, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἰδίων φιλιῶν τὰς παρʼ ὑμῶν τε καὶ ἡμῶν ἰσχυροτάτας εἶναι συμβέβηκε.
Therefore, not only do we have the most connections with each other as city to city, but also of private friendships it has turned out that those between you and us are the strongest.
τί γὰρ ἐνδοξότερον τῆς Ἡρακλέους καὶ Θησέως ἑταιρίας, ἢ τί μᾶλλον τοῖς Ἕλλησιν ἐν καιρῷ;
For what is more glorious than the fellowship of Hercules and Theseus, or what was more timely for the Greeks?
οἳ σκευήν τε τὴν αὐτὴν ἐφόρησαν καὶ ταὐτὰ γνόντες ἡμέρουν τὴν γῆν.
They wore the same armor and, being of the same mind, civilized the earth.
καὶ ὅτε τοίνυν Ἡρακλεῖ φίλου ἐδέησε, Θησεὺς αὐτὸν Ἀθήναζε ἀγαγὼν ἀνακτᾶται.
And when Hercules had need of a friend, Theseus, leading him to Athens, restored him.
ὡς ἔδει γε, ὦ Ζεῦ καὶ Πόσειδον καὶ πάντες θεοὶ, νῦν ὡς ἀληθῶς, νῦν τῆς ἐκείνων συστάσεως καὶ μελέτης καὶ φιλοτιμίας.
How much indeed, O Zeus and Poseidon and all you gods, do we need now in truth, now, their union, care, and ambition.
οἶμαι γὰρ οὔτε τὴν ἐπʼ Ἀμαζόνας στρατείαν οὔτʼ ἄλλον οὐδένα ἂν αὐτοὺς προελέσθαι πόλεμον, πρὶν μίαν ταυτηνὶ κεφαλὴν κοινῇ συνεξελεῖν, ἧς οὔτε Ἰσθμὸς ἀπείρατος οὔτε ἔθνος οὐδὲν, ἀλλὰ καὶ γῆ καὶ θάλαττα ἐπιλείπει λῃστευομένη.
For I think they would have chosen neither the expedition against the Amazons nor any other war before together taking off this one head, to whom neither the Isthmus is untried nor any nation, but both land and sea are failing him as they are plundered.
νῦν τοίνυν ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἀθλοθέται τοῦ πολέμου, ἀγωνισταὶ δʼ ἡμεῖς ἐξ ἁπάντων προὐκρίθημεν.
Now, therefore, they indeed are the stewards of the war, but we have been chosen as contestants out of all.
τί οὖν οὐ μιμούμεθα τοὺς ἀρχηγέτας;
Why then do we not imitate our founders?
καλὴν μὲν οὖν, ὦ ἄνδρες Θηβαῖοι, κἀκείνην κοινωνίαν συνέστημεν, ἧς μικρῷ πρόσθεν ἐμνήσθην, ἡνίκα Λακεδαιμονίους γῆς καὶ θαλάττης ἄρχοντας οὐ κατεδείσαμεν· οὐ μὴν ἐγένετο ἡμέρα τῆς ἐπιούσης ταύτης ἀναγκαιοτέρα οὐδὲ καιρὸς ἀμείνων οὐδʼ ἐν ᾧ μᾶλλον ἔδει συστῆναι καὶ πόλεις καὶ ἥρωας καὶ θεοὺς αὐτούς.
We indeed established, O Thebans, that beautiful alliance also which I mentioned a little while ago, when we did not fear the Lacedaemonians who ruled land and sea; yet there has never been a day more urgent than this coming one, nor a better opportunity, nor one in which it was more necessary for cities, heroes, and the gods themselves to unite.
ἀνὴρ ὑβριστὴς ἐκ τοῦ βαράθρου τῆς γῆς ὁρμώμενος κακῇ μοίρᾳ τῶν Ἑλλήνων, μᾶλλον δʼ αὑτοῦ τραφεὶς, κωμάζει συχνὸν ἤδη χρόνον οὐ φορητὰ, πόλεις ἀναιρῶν, πολιτείας μετατιθεὶς, φυγὰς ἐναλλάττων, ἐμβατεύων εἰς τὰ τῶν Ἑλλήνων πράγματα, ὥσπερ εἰληφὼς ὑπερήμερον τὴν Ἑλλάδα, κωλύει
An insolent man, setting out from the pit of the earth by a bad fortune of the Greeks, or rather nurtured by his own, has been reveling now for a long time in things intolerable, destroying cities, altering constitutions, exchanging exiles, invading the affairs of the Greeks, as if he had taken Greece as a debtor past the day of payment, and he hinders...