§29Νόμος
οὐκ ἠμφεσβήτει, ὦ ἄνδρες, ἀλλʼ ὡμολόγει ἀδικεῖν, καὶ ὅπως μὲν μὴ ἀποθάνῃ ἠντεβόλει καὶ ἱκέτευεν, ἀποτίνειν δʼ ἕτοιμος ἦν χρήματα.
Νόμος He did not dispute it, gentlemen, but admitted his guilt, and so that he might not die, he entreated and begged, and was ready to pay money.
ἐγὼ δὲ τῷ μὲν ἐκείνου τιμήματι οὐ συνεχώρουν, τὸν δὲ τῆς πόλεως νόμον ἠξίουν εἶναι κυριώτερον, καὶ ταύτην ἔλαβον τὴν δίκην, ἣν ὑμεῖς δικαιοτάτην εἶναι ἡγησάμενοι τοῖς τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐπιτηδεύουσιν ἐτάξατε.
But I did not agree to his offer, and demanded that the law of the city should be of greater authority, and I took this punishment, which you, considering it to be most just, ordained for those who practice such things.
καί μοι ἀνάβητε τούτων μάρτυρες.
And step up for me, witnesses of these things.
§30Μάρτυρες
ἀνάγνωθι δέ μοι καὶ τοῦτον τὸν νόμον τὸν ἐκ τῆς στήλης τῆς ἐξ Ἀρείου πάγου. Νόμος
ἀκούετε, ὦ ἄνδρες, ὅτι αὐτῷ τῷ δικαστηρίῳ τῷ ἐξ Ἀρείου πάγου, ᾧ καὶ πάτριόν ἐστι καὶ ἐφʼ ἡμῶν ἀποδέδοται τοῦ φόνου τὰς δίκας δικάζειν, διαρρήδην εἴρηται τούτου μὴ καταγιγνώσκειν φόνον, ὃς ἂν ἐπὶ δάμαρτι τῇ ἑαυτοῦ μοιχὸν λαβὼν ταύτην τὴν τιμωρίαν ποιήσηται.
Μάρτυρες Read also for me this law from the pillar from the Areopagus. Νόμος You hear, gentlemen, that to the court of the Areopagus itself, to which it is both ancestral and in our time has been assigned to try cases of murder, it is expressly stated not to find guilty of murder anyone who, having caught an adulterer in the act with his own wife, inflicts this punishment.
§31καὶ οὕτω σφόδρα ὁ νομοθέτης ἐπὶ ταῖς γαμεταῖς γυναιξὶ δίκαια ταῦτα ἡγήσατο εἶναι, ὥστε καὶ ἐπὶ ταῖς παλλακαῖς ταῖς ἐλάττονος ἀξίαις τὴν αὐτὴν δίκην ἐπέθηκε.
And so strongly did the lawgiver consider these things to be just in the case of wedded wives, that he imposed the same punishment also in the case of concubines who are of lesser value.
καίτοι δῆλον ὅτι, εἴ τινα εἶχε ταύτης μείζω τιμωρίαν ἐπὶ ταῖς γαμεταῖς, ἐποίησεν ἄν.
And yet it is clear that, if he had any greater punishment than this for wedded wives, he would have made it.
νῦν δὲ οὐχ οἷός τε ὢν ταύτης ἰσχυροτέραν ἐπʼ ἐκείναις ἐξευρεῖν, τὴν αὐτὴν καὶ ἐπὶ ταῖς παλλακαῖς ἠξίωσε γίγνεσθαι.
But now, not being able to find a stronger one for them, he deemed it right that the same should apply also to concubines.
ἀνάγνωθι δέ μοι καὶ τοῦτον τὸν νόμον.
Read also for me this law.
§32Νόμος
ἀκούετε, ἄνδρες, ὅτι κελεύει, ἐάν τις ἄνθρωπον ἐλεύθερον ἢ παῖδα αἰσχύνῃ βίᾳ, διπλῆν τὴν βλάβην ὀφείλειν· ἐὰν δὲ γυναῖκα, ἐφʼ αἷσπερ ἀποκτείνειν ἔξεστιν, ἐν τοῖς αὐτοῖς ἐνέχεσθαι·
Νόμος You hear, gentlemen, that it orders, if anyone dishonors a free person or a child by force, that he must owe double the damages; but if a woman, with respect to whom it is permitted to kill, he is subject to the same penalties.
οὕτως, ὦ ἄνδρες, τοὺς βιαζομένους ἐλάττονος ζημίας ἀξίους ἡγήσατο εἶναι ἢ τοὺς πείθοντας· τῶν μὲν γὰρ θάνατον κατέγνω, τοῖς δὲ διπλῆν ἐποίησε τὴν βλάβην, ἡγούμενος τοὺς μὲν διαπραττομένους βίᾳ ὑπὸ τῶν βιασθέντων μισεῖσθαι, §33τοὺς δὲ πείσαντας οὕτως αὐτῶν τὰς ψυχὰς διαφθείρειν, ὥστʼ οἰκειοτέρας αὑτοῖς ποιεῖν τὰς ἀλλοτρίας γυναῖκας ἢ τοῖς ἀνδράσι, καὶ πᾶσαν ἐπʼ ἐκείνοις τὴν οἰκίαν γεγονέναι, καὶ τοὺς παῖδας ἀδήλους εἶναι ὁποτέρων τυγχάνουσιν ὄντες, τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἢ τῶν μοιχῶν.
Thus, gentlemen, he considered those who use force to be worthy of less penalty than those who persuade; for of the latter he decreed death, while for the former he made the damages double, thinking that those who accomplish it by force are hated by those who were forced, but those who persuade corrupt their souls in such a way as to make other men's wives more close to themselves than to their husbands, and that the whole house comes into their power, and the children are uncertain as to whose they happen to be, the husbands' or the adulterers'.
ἀνθʼ ὧν ὁ τὸν νόμον τιθεὶς θάνατον αὐτοῖς ἐποίησε τὴν ζημίαν.
In return for these things, the one who established the law made death their penalty.
§34ἐμοῦ τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες, οἱ μὲν νόμοι οὐ μόνον ἀπεγνωκότες εἰσὶ μὴ ἀδικεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ κεκελευκότες ταύτην τὴν δίκην λαμβάνειν· ἐν ὑμῖν δʼ ἐστὶ πότερον χρὴ τούτους ἰσχυροὺς ἢ μηδενὸς ἀξίους εἶναι.
For me, then, gentlemen, the laws have not only acquitted me of wrongdoing, but have also commanded me to take this punishment; and it is in your hands whether these should be strong or worth nothing.
§35ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ οἶμαι πάσας τὰς πόλεις διὰ τοῦτο τοὺς νόμους τίθεσθαι, ἵνα περὶ ὧν ἂν πραγμάτων ἀπορῶμεν, παρὰ τούτους ἐλθόντες σκεψώμεθα ὅ τι ἡμῖν ποιητέον ἐστίν.
For I think that all cities establish laws for this reason, so that concerning whatever matters we are in doubt, we may go to them and consider what we must do.
οὗτοι τοίνυν περὶ τῶν τοιούτων τοῖς ἀδικουμένοις τοιαύτην δίκην λαμβάνειν παρακελεύονται.
These, therefore, in such matters, command the wronged to take such punishment.
§36οἷς ὑμᾶς ἀξιῶ τὴν αὐτὴν γνώμην ἔχειν· εἰ δὲ μή, τοιαύτην ἄδειαν τοῖς μοιχοῖς ποιήσετε, ὥστε καὶ τοὺς κλέπτας ἐπαρεῖτε φάσκειν μοιχοὺς εἶναι, εὖ εἰδότας ὅτι, ἐὰν ταύτην τὴν αἰτίαν περὶ ἑαυτῶν λέγωσι καὶ ἐπὶ τούτῳ φάσκωσιν εἰς τὰς ἀλλοτρίας οἰκίας εἰσιέναι, οὐδεὶς αὐτῶν ἅψεται.
I demand that you have the same mind as these; otherwise, you will make such impunity for adulterers that you will encourage even thieves to say they are adulterers, knowing well that, if they say this excuse about themselves and claim that for this reason they enter other men's houses, no one will touch them.
πάντες γὰρ εἴσονται ὅτι τοὺς μὲν νόμους τῆς μοιχείας χαίρειν ἐᾶν δεῖ, τὴν δὲ ψῆφον τὴν ὑμετέραν δεδιέναι· αὕτη γάρ ἐστι πάντων τῶν ἐν τῇ πόλει κυριωτάτη.
For everyone will know that they must let the laws of adultery go hang, and fear only your vote; for this is the most authoritative of all things in the city.
§37σκέψασθε δέ, ὦ ἄνδρες· κατηγοροῦσι γάρ μου ὡς ἐγὼ τὴν θεράπαιναν ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ μετελθεῖν ἐκέλευσα τὸν νεανίσκον.
And consider, gentlemen; for they accuse me that on that day I ordered the maidservant to go and fetch the young man.
ἐγὼ δέ, ὦ ἄνδρες, δίκαιον μὲν ἂν ποιεῖν ἡγούμην ᾡτινιοῦν τρόπῳ τὸν τὴν γυναῖκα τὴν ἐμὴν διαφθείραντα §38λαμβάνων·
But I, gentlemen, would have thought that I was doing what was just in catching him who corrupted my wife in any manner whatsoever, in catching him.
εἰ μὲν γὰρ λόγων εἰρημένων ἔργου δὲ μηδενὸς γεγενημένου μετελθεῖν ἐκέλευον ἐκεῖνον, ἠδίκουν ἄν· εἰ δὲ ἤδη πάντων διαπεπραγμένων καὶ πολλάκις εἰσεληλυθότος εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν τὴν ἐμὴν ᾡτινιοῦν τρόπῳ ἐλάμβανον αὐτόν, σωφρονεῖν ἂν ἐμαυτὸν ἡγούμην·
For if, when words had been spoken but no deed had occurred, I had ordered him to be fetched, I would be doing wrong; but if, when everything had already been accomplished and he had entered my house many times, I caught him in any manner whatsoever, I would have thought myself to be acting prudently.