§2.49.1καὶ τὰς ὑποθέσεις.
And the instructions.
αὗται δʼ ἦσαν ὑποδεικνύναι τὴν Αἰτωλῶν καὶ Κλεομένους κοινοπραγίαν τί δύναται καὶ ποῖ τείνει, καὶ δηλοῦν ὅτι πρώτοις μὲν αὐτοῖς Ἀχαιοῖς εὐλαβητέον, ἑξῆς δὲ καὶ μᾶλλον Ἀντιγόνῳ.
These were to point out what the joint action of the Aetolians and Cleomenes was capable of and where it was tending, and to make it clear that, first of all, the Achaeans themselves must be on their guard, and next, and even more, Antigonus.
§2.49.2τοῦτο μὲν γάρ, ὡς Ἀχαιοὶ τὸν ἐξ ἀμφοῖν πόλεμον οὐκ ἂν ὑπενέγκαιεν, εὐθεώρητον εἶναι πᾶσι, τοῦτο δʼ, ὡς Αἰτωλοὶ καὶ Κλεομένης κρατήσαντες τούτων οὐκ εὐδοκήσουσιν οὐδὲ μὴ μείνωσιν ἐπὶ τῶν ὑποκειμένων, ἔτι τοῦ πρόσθεν ῥᾷον εἶναι τῷ νοῦν ἔχοντι συνιδεῖν.
For on the one hand, that the Achaeans could not withstand a war against both of them was easy for anyone to see; on the other hand, that the Aetolians and Cleomenes, if they conquered them, would not be satisfied nor remain within their present limits, was even easier for a man of sense to perceive than the former.
§2.49.3τήν τε γὰρ Αἰτωλῶν πλεονεξίαν οὐχ οἷον τοῖς Πελοποννησίων ὅροις εὐδοκῆσαί ποτʼ ἂν περιληφθεῖσαν, ἀλλʼ οὐδὲ τοῖς τῆς Ἑλλάδος, §2.49.4τήν τε Κλεομένους φιλοδοξίαν καὶ τὴν ὅλην ἐπιβολὴν κατὰ μὲν τὸ παρὸν αὐτῆς ἐφίεσθαι τῆς Πελοποννησίων ἀρχῆς, τυχόντα δὲ ταύτης τὸν προειρημένον κατὰ πόδας ἀνθέξεσθαι τῆς τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἡγεμονίας.
For the greed of the Aetolians would never be satisfied by being confined within the boundaries of the Peloponnese, nor indeed within those of Greece; while Cleomenes' ambition and his whole plan was at present to aim at the dominion of the Peloponnese itself, but having obtained this, he would immediately strive for the hegemony over the Greeks.
§2.49.5ἧς οὐχ οἷόν τε καθικέσθαι μὴ οὐ πρόσθεν καταλύσαντα τὴν Μακεδόνων ἀρχήν.
And this hegemony it was impossible to attain without first overthrowing the dominion of the Macedonians.
§2.49.6σκοπεῖν οὖν αὐτὸν ἠξίουν, προορώμενον τὸ μέλλον, πότερον συμφέρει τοῖς σφετέροις πράγμασι μετʼ Ἀχαιῶν καὶ Βοιωτῶν ἐν Πελοποννήσῳ πρὸς Κλεομένη πολεμεῖν ὑπὲρ τῆς τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἡγεμονίας ἢ προέμενον τὸ μέγιστον ἔθνος διακινδυνεύειν ἐν Θετταλίᾳ πρὸς Αἰτωλοὺς καὶ Βοιωτούς, ἔτι δʼ Ἀχαιοὺς καὶ Λακεδαιμονίους, ὑπὲρ τῆς Μακεδόνων ἀρχῆς.
Therefore, they asked him, looking forward to the future, to consider whether it was more advantageous to his own interests to fight in the Peloponnese against Cleomenes for the hegemony over the Greeks in alliance with the Achaeans and Boeotians, or, by abandoning the greatest nation, to risk everything in Thessaly against the Aetolians and Boeotians, and furthermore the Achaeans and Lacedaemonians, for the dominion of Macedonia.
§2.49.7ἐὰν μὲν οὖν Αἰτωλοὶ τὴν ἐκ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν εἰς αὐτοὺς γεγενημένην εὔνοιαν ἐν τοῖς κατὰ Δημήτριον καιροῖς ἐντρεπόμενοι τὴν ἡσυχίαν ἄγειν ὑποκρίνωνται, καθάπερ καὶ νῦν, πολεμήσειν αὐτοὺς ἔφασαν τοὺς Ἀχαιοὺς πρὸς τὸν Κλεομένη· κἂν μὲν ἡ τύχη συνεπιλαμβάνηται, μὴ δεῖσθαι χρείας τῶν βοηθησόντων· ἂν δʼ ἀντιπίπτῃ τὰ τῆς τύχης, §2.49.8Αἰτωλοὶ δὲ συνεπιτίθωνται, προσέχειν αὐτὸν παρεκάλουν τοῖς πράγμασιν, ἵνα μὴ πρόηται τοὺς καιρούς, ἔτι δὲ δυναμένοις σῴζεσθαι Πελοποννησίοις ἐπαρκέσῃ·
If, then, the Aetolians, out of respect for the goodwill shown to them by the Achaeans in the times of Demetrius, should pretend to keep quiet, as they were doing now, they said that the Achaeans would fight against Cleomenes by themselves; and if fortune should favor them, they would have no need of helpers; but if fortune should go against them, and the Aetolians should attack them at the same time, they urged him to pay attention to the situation, so that he might not let the opportunity slip, but succor the Peloponnesians while they were still capable of being saved.
§2.49.9περὶ δὲ πίστεως καὶ χάριτος ἀποδόσεως ῥᾳθυμεῖν αὐτὸν ᾤοντο δεῖν· τῆς γὰρ χρείας ἐπιτελουμένης αὐτὸν εὑρήσειν τὸν Ἄρατον εὐδοκουμένας ἀμφοτέροις ὑπισχνοῦντο πίστεις.
As for pledges and the return of gratitude, they thought he need not worry; for when the need arose, they promised that Aratus himself would find pledges acceptable to both parties.
§2.49.10ὁμοίως δʼ ἔφασαν καὶ τὸν καιρὸν τῆς βοηθείας αὐτὸν ὑποδείξειν.
In like manner, they said that Aratus himself would also point out to him the proper time for assistance.