Diotimos Library · Greek Antiquity Collection · Bilingual Edition
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Ancient Greek Page · Branch 72 of 879
Book I Chapter 3 · I.3.55b.1–I.3.55b.2
Ancient Greek
p. 14055b Τοῦ αὐτοῦ Νόμων ιʹ (αʹ)
Ὅτι μὲν γὰρ θεοί τ’ εἰσὶ καὶ ἀνθρώπων ἐπιμελοῦνται, ἔγωγ’ οὐ παντάπασι φαύλως ἂν ἡμῖν φαίην ἀποδεδεῖχθαι· τὸ δὲ παραιτητοὺς αὐτοὺς εἶναι τοῖς ἀδικοῦσι, δεχομένους δῶρα, οὔτε τινὶ συγχωρητέον παντί τ’ αὖ κατὰ δύναμιν τρόπῳ ἐλεγκτέον. — Κάλλιστ’ εἶπες· ποιῶμέν τε ὡς λέγεις.
— Φέρε καὶ πρὸς θεῶν αὐτῶν, τίνα τρόπον παραιτητοὶ γίγνοιντ’ ἂν ἡμῖν, εἰ γίγνοιντο αὖ; καὶ τίνες ἢ ποῖοί τινες ὄντες; ἄρχοντας μὲν ἀναγκαῖόν που γίγνεσθαι τοὺς γε διοικήσαντας τὸν ἅπαντα ἐνδελεχῶς οὐρανόν. — Οὕτως.
55b Τοῦ αὐτοῦ (βʹ)
— Ἀλλ’ ἄρα τίσι προσφερεῖς τῶν ἀρχόντων; ἢ τίνες ⟨τούτοις⟩, ὧν δυνατὸν ἡμῖν ἀπεικάζουσι τυγχάνειν μείζοσιν ἐλάττονας; πότερον ἡνίοχοί τινες ἂν εἶεν τοιοῦτοι ζευγῶν ἁμιλλωμένων, ἢ πλοίων κυβερνῆται; τάχα δὲ κἂν ἀπεικασθεῖεν στρατοπέδων ἄρχουσί τισιν. Εἴη δ’ ἂν καὶ νόσων πόλεμον εὐλαβουμένοις ἰατροῖς ἐοικέναι περὶ σώματα, ἢ γεωργοῖς περὶ φυτῶν γένεσιν, εἰωθυίας ὥρας χαλεπὰς διὰ φόβων προσδεχομένοις, ἢ καὶ ποιμνίων ἐπιστάταις.
Stobaeus, Volume I: Book I Chapter 3
p. 14155b The same author, Laws X (1)
“That gods exist and care for human beings has, I would say, been demonstrated by us quite adequately. But we must concede to no one that they can be won over by wrongdoers through accepting gifts; we must refute that claim in every way we can.” “Very well said; let us do as you say.”
“Come then, by the gods themselves: how could they be won over by us, if they could be? What sort of beings would they be? Surely those who continually govern the entire heaven must be rulers.” “Yes.”149
55b The same author (2)
“But which rulers do they resemble? Or who resembles ⟨them⟩, among those lesser beings we can successfully compare with greater? Might they be like charioteers of racing teams, or helmsmen of ships? Perhaps they might also be compared to commanders of armies. They could resemble physicians guarding bodies against the assault of diseases, or farmers tending the growth of plants and fearfully awaiting the customary harsh seasons, or overseers of flocks.”
Socrates
Reading Stobaeus, Volume I · Book I Chapter 3 · I.3.55b.1–I.3.55b.2
Ask about a concept, passage, contradiction, or connection.
Socrates will begin with this book and its sources.About This Reading Edition
Stobaeus gathered Greek philosophy and poetry for his son Septimius. Volume I presents the dedication testimony, On Arithmetic, Book I through chapter 60, and the ancient contents of all four books. This complete bilingual edition includes an introduction and 2,117 explanatory notes.
Historical Text and Translation
The Greek follows Curt Wachsmuth’s 1884 Volume I, checked against the supplied scan. Gaps, lost-chapter headings, and uncertain attributions remain visible. Chapter 2 includes a labeled proposed reconstruction. The appendix outlines Books I–IV; the full texts of Books II–IV are outside this volume. Reader pages preserve the companion PDF’s numbering.
About Diotimos Editions
Diotimos Editions prepared this independent English translation directly from the Greek. Prose and verse retain their distinct forms, with mixed passages preserving their quoted verse. Every passage is paired with its Greek and identified by the edition’s reference number. All 2,117 notes remain linked to their passages, with continuous numbering across the introduction and text.
Rights
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