ταγοῖς ἂν εἴην τοῖς Φιλιστίνοις ἑκὼν
ὑπήκοος, βροτούς τε τοῦ Θεοῦ προθεὶς,
βροτῶν φόβῳ, Θεῷ τε μισητός γεγώς
ἓν κάρτ ̓ ἂν ἐκπράξαντα μὴ λυθὲν χρέος
ἐγᾦδα, καίπερ εὖ πεπεισμένος τινὶ
ἱεροῖς πάροντι τοῖς βεβήλοισιν Θεὸν
ξυγγνώμον ̓ εἶναι, καιρίου τινὸς χάριν.
πῶς δὴ φυγὴν εὕροις ἂν, οὐκ ἔχω φράσαι.
θάρσει· νέον γὰρ ἐννοῶν ξύνοιδά τι
καὶ δεινὸν, ἔργων φροίμι ̓ οὐκ εἰωθότων.
ὀπαδὸς εἶμι τῷδε τῷ κακαγγέλῳ,
οὐδὲν ποιήσων τοῖς νόμοις ἐναντίον,
σαφὲς τόδ', οὐδ ̓ ἄρ ̓ οἶσιν ὤμοσ ̓ ἀπρεπές·
εἰ δ ̓ ὀρθόμαντιν ἐν φρεσὶν γνώμην τρέφω,
κλέος περισσὸν σήμερον κιχήσομαι
λαμπρόν τι δράσας, εἰ δὲ μὴ, μόρου τέλος.
καιρὸν δέδοκται· τόνδ ̓ ὁρῶ παλίσσυτον.
Σάμψων, ἄνακτες δεύτερ ̓ ἀγγέλλουσί σοι
To thee I am bid say. Art thou our slave,
Our captive, at the public mill our drudge,
And darest thou at our sending and command
Dispute thy coming? Come without delay;
Or we shall find such engines to assail
And hamper thee, as thou shalt come of force,
Though thou wert firmlier fastened than a rock.
I could be well content to try their art,
Which to no few of them would prove pernicious.
Yet, knowing their advantages too many,
Because they shall not trail me through their streets
Like a wild-beast, I am content to go.
Masters' commands come with a power resistless
To such as owe them absolute subjection;
And for a life who will not change his purpose?
So mutable are all the ways of men.-
Yet this be sure, in nothing to comply
Scandalous or forbidden in our law.
I praise thy resolution. Doff these links.
ἆρ ̓ οὐχὶ δοῦλος, οὐχὶ δοριάλωτος εἶ,
μυλῶνα καὶ δημόσιον ἐκτρίβων κόπον;
πῶς οὐ προσῆλθες, τὸν πρὶν αἰδεσθεὶς λόγον; ἀλλ ̓ ἴσθι, μή γ ̓ ἐλθόντος ἐν τάχει σέθεν,
ἡμᾶς τοιῶνδε μηχανῶν τεχνάσματα
καὶ δέσμ ̓ ἂν ἐξευρόντας, ὥστε καὶ βίᾳ
ἄγειν σε, καίπερ ὡς πέτραν πεπηγότα.
ΣΑΜΨΩΝ.
ἐμοὶ μὲν ἁγὼν ἀσμένῳ, σάφ ̓ εἰδότι
πολλοῖς ὀδύρματ ̓ ἐσόμεν ̓, οἳ ̓ ἐκβήσεται.
ἀλλ ̓, οὐ γὰρ ἑλκηθμοῖσιν ἀγρίου τρόπον
θηρός σφε δεῖ με περιάγειν πόλιν κάτα,
τύχης ῥοπῇ κρατοῦντας, οὐκ ἀρνήσομαι
ἡμᾶς ἀμήχανον γάρ ἐστιν ἀντέχειν
τοῖς δεσπόταισι τοὺς τὸ πᾶν ὑπηκόους.
πολλαὶ μέν εἰσιν ἐν βροτοῖς περιστροφαί
χαίρων δὲ πᾶς τις, χῶν βεβούλευται ποιεῖν
τὸ ζῆν ἂν ἀντηλλάξατ ̓· ἐν δὲ τῷ κλύειν
τῶν σῶν, ἐπίστω μηδὲν ἐνδώσοντά με,
μήτ' αἰσχρὰ, μήτ' ἐναντί ̓ Ἑβραίων νόμοις.
τω δέσμ ̓, ἅτ ̓ ὀρθόβουλος, ἐκδύου τάδε·
By this compliance thou wilt win the lords
To favour, and perhaps to set thee free.
Brethren, farewell. Your company along
I will not wish, lest it perhaps offend them
To see me girt with friends; and how the sight
Of me, as of a common enemy,
So dreaded once, may now exasperate them,
I know not. Lords are lordliest in their wine;
And the well-feasted priest then soonest fired
With zeal, if aught religion seem concerned:
No less the people, on their holy-days,
Impetuous, insolent, unquenchable.
Happen what may, of me expect to hear
Nothing dishonourable, impure, unworthy
Our God, our law, my nation, or myself;
The last of me or no I cannot warrant.
σὺ ταῦτα ταῖς ἀρχαῖσιν, εὐνοίας τυχεῖν, ῥέξαις ἂν, ἢ καὶ τῶνδε τῶν πεδῶν λύσιν.
ὑμεῖς μὲν ἤδη χαίρετ ̓ οὔ τι τῆς ὁδοῦ
ἐμοῦ γ ̓ ἑκόντος ξυμμετάσχοιτ ̓ ἂν, φίλοι·
ἐχθροῖς ἀηδὴς ἥδε μοι παρουσία·
ἴσως δ ̓ ἂν, εἰσορῶντες ὃν κοινὸν πάλαι
ἐχθρόν σφιν ἡγήσαντ ̓, ἀκραχόλῳ μένει
ζέσειαν· εὖ γὰρ οἰνοπλῆγας ἔστι τῳ
γνῶναι τυράννους ὡς τυραννικώτατοι·
ὡς καὶ θυτῆρες οἱ κορεσθέντες βορᾶς
μάλιστα δὴ σπεύδουσιν ὧν θεοῖς μέλει
χω δῆμος, ἔργων τῶν καθ ̓ ἡμέραν λυθεὶς,
ἀχάλινος ἄσβεστός τε κἀσελγὴς ἄγαν.
ὁποῖ ἂν οὖν τύχῃ ποτ', οὐκ ἀκούσομαι
οὐδέν τι δράσας οὔτ ̓ ἀεικὲς οὐδαμῶς,
οὔτ ̓ αὖ Θεοῦ τε τοῦ τε πατρῴου νόμου,
ἀλλ ̓ οὐδ ̓ ἐμαυτοῦ τοῦ γένους τ', ἀνάξιον·
ἄδηλος, εἴτε τἄσχατ ̓, εἴτε μὴ, λαχών.
τήνδε κέλευθον σοὶ ̓ξερχομένῳ,
Δαίμων Πάτριος ἡγεμονεύοι,
|