§16.10.1ὅτι μετὰ τὸ συντελεσθῆναι τὴν περὶ τὴν Λάδην ναυμαχίαν καὶ τοὺς μὲν Ῥοδίους ἐκποδὼν γενέσθαι, τὸν δʼ Ἄτταλον μηδέπω συμμεμιχέναι, δῆλον ὡς ἐξῆν γε τελεῖν τῷ Φιλίππῳ τὸν εἰς τὴν Ἀλεξάνδρειαν πλοῦν.
It is clear that after the conclusion of the naval battle of Lade, when the Rhodians had withdrawn and Attalus had not yet joined forces, it was open to Philip to make his voyage to Alexandria.
ἐξ οὗ δὴ καὶ μάλιστʼ ἄν τις καταμάθοι τὸ μανιώδη γενόμενον Φίλιππον τοῦτο πρᾶξαι.
It is from this indeed that one might best understand that Philip, having lost his senses, did this.
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τί οὖν ἦν τὸ τῆς ὁρμῆς ἐπιλαβόμενον;
What was it, then, that checked his impulse?
§16.10.2οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἀλλʼ ἡ φύσις τῶν πραγμάτων.
Nothing other than the very nature of things.
§16.10.3ἐκ πολλοῦ μὲν γὰρ ἐνίοτε πολλοὶ τῶν ἀδυνάτων ἐφίενται διὰ τὸ μέγεθος τῶν προφαινομένων ἐλπίδων, κρατούσης τῆς ἐπιθυμίας τῶν ἑκάστου λογισμῶν·
For sometimes, from a distance, many desire the impossible owing to the greatness of the hopes that present themselves, their desire ruling over the reason of each.
§16.10.4ὅταν δʼ ἐγγίσωσι τοῖς ἔργοις, οὐδενὶ λόγῳ πάλιν ἀφίστανται τῶν προθέσεων, ἐπισκοτούμενοι καὶ παραλογιζόμενοι τοῖς λογισμοῖς διὰ τὴν ἀμηχανίαν καὶ τὴν δυσχρηστίαν τῶν ἀπαντωμένων. —
But when they draw near to the actual deeds, they abandon their purposes again without any rational cause, being blinded and deceived in their calculations because of the difficulty and embarrassment of what confronts them.