πολλοὺς μὲν ἤδη τῶν ἀγακλειτῶν μάχαις
οἴνου πόθος δέδμηκε καὶ τερπνῶν ποτῶν.
σοὶ δ ̓ ἦν κρατῆσαι τῶνδε· καὶ γὰρ οὔποτε
σκιρτῶντ ̓, ἐρυθρά θ', ἡδύοσμα πώματα,
βροτῶν θεῶν τε χάρμα γεύσασθαι γλυκὶ,
ψυχρᾶς παρεξέτρεψέ σ ̓ ὑαλίνης ῥοῆς.
ΣΑΜΨΩΝ.
εἰ γάρ ποτ' ὀρθρίαισιν ἀντία βολαῖς
πηγῶν λιβάς τις διαφανῶν ἀπόῤῥεοι,
αἰθρηγενεῖ ξύνοικος οὐρανοῦ φλογί,
δίψης ἀρωγὸν καθαρὸν ἐμμίξας γάλα
ἔπινον· οὐ γὰρ ἐφθόνουν ὃν ἀμπέλου
σφοδρὸν ταράσσοι καὶ φρενοπληγὲς μέθυ.
ΧΟΡΟΣ.
φεῦ τῆς ἀνοίας, ὅς γε τὴν ῥώμην τρέφων
αἰνῶν ποτῶν ἐγεύσατ', οὐδ ̓ ἐφρόντισε
Θεὸν τὸν ἄκρον τόνδε, τὸν μεγασθενῆ
θρέψαι μαχήτην, εὔροον πίνονθ ̓ ὕδωρ.
ἀλλ ̓, ὡς κρατούντων οἷς ἐτερπόμην πλέον,
μοι τὸ κέρδος τοῦδε σώφρονος τρόπου;
What boots it at one gate to make defence,
And at another to let in the foe,
Effeminately vanquished? by which means,
Now blind, disheartened, shamed, dishonoured, quelled,
To what can I be useful? wherein serve
My nation, and the work from Heaven imposed,
But to sit idle on the household hearth,
A burdenous drone, to visitants a gaze,
Or pitied object, these redundant locks
Robustious, to no purpose clustering down,
Vain monument of strength, till length of years
And sedentary numbness craze my limbs,
To a contemptible old age obscure?
Here rather let me drudge, and earn my bread;
Till vermin, or the draff of servile food,
Consume me, and oft-invocated death
Hasten the welcome end of all my pains.
Wilt thou then serve the Philistines with that gift
Which was expressly given thee to annoy them?
Better at home lie bed-rid, not only idle,
Inglorious, unemployed, with age outworn.
μιᾶς τί χρὴ τὸν ἐχθρὸν εἰργαθεῖν πύλης,
ἑτέραν ἄφρουρον ὑπερορῶντ ̓ ἀνάλκιδα ;
ἐξ ὧν τυφλός τε, λήματός τ ̓ ἀθυμίᾳ
ἄτιμος ἄλλως, οὐδὲν ἂν πόλεως ύπερ
δράσαιμ', ἀνωφελοῦς δὲ κηφῆνος δίκην,
οἴκοι τε θάσσων, τῶν Θεοῦ τεταγμένων
ἔργων λέλησμαι, τοῖσι παρατυχοῦσί μοι
ἰδεῖν ἐλεινός· οἷσι δ ̓ εὔκομός ποτε
ἴσχυον, ὡς μνημεῖα τοῦ πάλαι σθένους
μάτην κέχονται βόστρυχοι· τέλος δέ με,
μελῶν ἀμαυρῷ λελυμένων ἀπραξία,
μάρψει μάλ' αἰσχρὸν τέρμ' ἀλύοντος βίου.
τοιγὰρ πικρὰν πρέπει με κερδαίνειν τροφὴν
ἀνελευθέροις πόνοισιν, ἔστ ̓ ἂν ἀσμένῳ,
εὐλαῖς φθαρέντι καὶ κακοῤῥύπῳ βορᾷ,
πάντων ὅσων πέπονθα λωφῆσαι διδῷ
πολλαῖσί μοι 'πίκλητος εὐχαῖσιν μόρος.
ΜΑΝΩΣ.
ἆρ ̓ οὖν ἐπ ̓ ἄτῃ τῶν Φιλιστίνων γέρας
λαβὼν, ὀφέλλων σφᾶς διαστρέψεις τόδε;
ἢ μὴν λεχήρη μᾶλλον ἐῤῥίφθαι σ ̓ ἔδει
ἀργὸν παρηβήσαντ', ἀτίμητον Βροτοῖς.
But God, who caused a fountain at thy prayer
From the dry ground to spring, thy thirst to allay
After the brunt of battle, can as easy
Cause light again within thy eyes to spring,
Wherewith to serve him better than thou hast.
And I persuade me so; why else this strength
Miraculous yet remaining in those locks?
His might continues in thee not for nought,
Nor shall his wondrous gifts be frustrate thus.
All otherwise to me my thoughts portend;
That these dark orbs no more shall treat with light,
Nor the other light of life continue long,
But yield to double darkness nigh at hand:
So much I feel my genial spirits droop,
My hopes all flat, Nature within me seems
In all her functions weary of herself;
My race of glory run, and race of shame,
And I shall shortly be with them that rest.
MANOAH.
Believe not these suggestions, which proceed
Θεὸς δ', ὁ κρήνην ἐκ χθονός ξηρᾶς τὸ πρὶν
φλῦσαι κελεύσας, ἐκ μάχης κεκμηκότος
σοῦ προσκαλοῦντος, τήν τε σὴν δίψαν σβέσας,
ἄψοῤῥον αὖθις σοῖσιν ὀφθαλμοῖς τὸ φῶς
τάχ ̓ ἂν πορίζοι, τήν γε σὴν λειτουργίαν
ἔχειν ἀμείνω τοῦ παρελθόντος χρόνου·
οὐδ ̓ ἔστ ̓ ἔμοιγε τοῖσδε μὴ πεποιθέναι.
τί γὰρ τόδ ̓ ἐν κόμαισι τερατώδες σθένος
ἔτ ̓ ἔστιν, εἰ μὴ τῆς Θεοῦ βουλῆς χάριν;
αὐτοῦ τὸ δῶρον, οὐ μάτην εἰργασμένου.
ΣΑΜΨΩΝ.
ἢ κάρτα τούτοις ἅπερ ἐγὼ μαντεύομαι
ἐναντιοῦται· νυκτὶ δὴ τῶνδ ̓ ὀμμάτων
ἄσπονδον εἶναι φῶς, τό τε ψυχῆς σέλας
διπλῷ τάχος βραχύβιον ἐκλείψειν σκότῳ·
τόσην ἀνίαν ὧδ ̓ ἄθυμος ᾐσθόμην
δύσελπις, ἡ φύσις τε, τῶν φρενῶν τροφὸς,
ἔδοξ ̓ ἀπειπεῖν ἐς τὸ πᾶν· ἃ δ ̓ ἤνυσα
κύδει προκόπτων, εἴτ ̓ ἐπ ̓ αἰσχύνην πεσών,
πρὸς τέρμ ̓ ἀφιγμέν ̓, ἐν βραχεῖ κιχήσομαι
τοὺς ἐκ παλαιῶν ἡσυχάζοντας πόνων,
σὺ δ ̓ οὐκ ἂν ὀρθῶς τῶνδέ γ ̓ ἔννοιαν τρέφοις,
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