4 Maccabees 6

Old Testament · Brenton Septuagint with Greek parallel

4 Maccabees 6

1When Eleazar had in this manner answered the exhortations of the tyrant, the spearbearers came up, and rudely haled Eleazar to the instruments of torture.Τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον ἀντιρητορεύσαντα ταῖς τοῦ τυράννου παρηγορίαις, παραστάντες οἱ δορυφόροι πικρῶς ἔσυραν ἐπὶ τὰ βασανιστήρια τὸν Ἐλεάζαρον.

2And first, they stripped the old man, adorned as he was with the comeliness of piety.Καὶ πρῶτον μὲν περιέδυσαν τὸν γηραιὸν ἐκκεκοσμημένον περὶ τὴν εὐσέβειαν εὐσχημοσύνην.

3Then tying back his arms and hands, they disdainfully used him with stripes;Ἔπειτα περιαγκωνίσαντες ἑκατέρωθεν, μάστιξιν κατῇκιζον·

4a herald opposite crying out, Obey the commands of the king.πείσθητι ταῖς τοῦ βασιλέως ἐντολαῖς, ἑτέρωθεν κήρυκος ἐπιβοῶντος.

5But Eleazar, the high-minded and truly noble, as one tortured in a dream, regarded it not all.Ὁ δὲ μεγαλόφρων καὶ εὐγενὴς ὡς ἀληθῶς Ἐλεάζαρος, ὥσπερ ἐν ὀνείρω βασανιζόμενος κατʼ οὐδένα τρόπον μετετρέπετο.

6But raising his eyes on high to heaven, the old man's flesh was stripped off by the scourges, and his blood streamed down, and his sides were pierced through.Ἀλλὰ ὑψηλοὺς ἀνατείνας εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς, ἀπεξαίνετο ταῖς μάστιξιν τὰς σάρκας ὁ γέρων, καὶ κατεῤῥεῖτο τῷ αἵματι,

7And falling upon the ground, from his body having no power to support the pains, he yet kept his reasoning upright and unbending.καὶ τὰ πλευρὰ κατετιτρώσκετο, καὶ πίπτων εἰς τὸ ἔδαφος, ἀπὸ τοῦ μὴ φέρειν τὸ σῶμα τὰς ἀλγηδόνας, ὀρθὸν εἶχεν καὶ ἀκλινῆ τὸν λογισμόν.

8then one of the harsh spearbearers leaped upon his belly as he was falling, to force him upright.Λὰξ γέ τοι τῶν πικρῶν τις δορυφόρων, εἰς τοὺς κενεῶνας ἐναλλόμενος ἔτυπτεν, ὅπως ἐξανίσταιτο πίπτων.

9But he endured the pains, and despised the cruelty, and persevered through the indignities;Ὁ δὲ ὑπέμενεν τοὺς πόνους, καὶ περιεφρόνει τῆς ἀνάγκης, καὶ διεκαρτέρει τοὺς αἰκισμοὺς,

10and like a noble athlete, the old man, when struck, vanquished his torturers.καὶ καθάπερ γενναῖος ἀθλητὴς τυπτόμενος ἐνίκα τοὺς βασανίζοντας ὁ γέρων.

11His countenance sweating, and he panting for breath, he was admired by the very torturers for his courage.Ἱδρῶν γέ τοι τὸ πρόσωπον, καὶ ἐπασθμαίνων σφοδρῶς, καὶ ὑπʼ αὐτῶν τῶν βασανιζόντων ἐθαυμάζετο ἐπὶ τῇ εὐτυχίᾳ.

12Therefore, partly in pity for his old age,Ὅθεν τὰ μὲν ἐλεοῦντες τὰ τοῦ γήρως αὐτοῦ, τὰ δὲ ἐν συμπαθείᾳ τῆς συνηθείας ὄντες,

13partly from the sympathy of acquaintance, and partly in admiration of his endurance, some of the attendants of the king said,τὰ δὲ ἐν θαυμαστῷ τῆς καρτερίας προσιόντες αὐτῷ τινὲς τῶν τοῦ βασιλέως ἔλεγον,

14Why do you unreasonably destroy yourself, O Eleazar, with these miseries?τί τοῖς κακοῖς τούτοις σεαντὸν ἀλογίστως ἀπολλεῖς,

15We will bring you some meat cooked by yourself, and do you save yourself by pretending that you have eaten swine's flesh.Ἐλεάζαρ; ἡμεῖς μὲν τῶν ἡψημένων βρωμάτων παραθήσομεν· σὺ δὲ ὑποκρινόμενος τῶν ὑείων ἀπογεύσασθαι, σώθητι.

16And Eleazar, as though the advice more painfully tortured him, cried out,Καὶ ὁ Ἐλεάζαρος, ὥσπερ πικρότερον διὰ τῆς συμβουλίας αἰκισθεὶς, ἀνεβόησεν,

17Let not us who are children of Abraham be so evil advised as by giving way to make use of an unbecoming pretense;μὴ οὕτως κακῶς φρονήσαιμεν οἱ Ἁβραὰμ παῖδες, ὥστε μαλακοψυχήσαντας ἀπρεπὲς ἡμῖν δρᾶμα ὑποκρίνασθαι.

18for it were irrational, if having lived up to old age in all truth, and having scrupulously guarded our character for it, we should now turn back,Καὶ γὰρ ἀλόγιστον, εἰ πρὸς ἀλήθειαν ζήσαντες τὸν μέχρι γήρως βίον, καὶ τὴν ἐπʼ αὐτῶν δόξαν νομίμως φυλάσσοντες, νῦν μεταβαλοίμεθα,

19and ourselves should become a pattern of impiety to the young, as being an example of pollution eating.καὶ αὐτοὶ μὲν ἡμεῖς γενοίμεθα τοῖς νέοις ἀσεβείας τύπος, ἵνα παράδειγμα γενώμεθα τῆς μιεροφαγίας.

20It would be disgraceful if we should live on some short time, and that scorned by all men for cowardice,Αἰσχρὸν γὰρ εἰ ἐπιβιώσωμεν ἀλίγον χρόνον,

21and be condemned by the tyrant for unmanliness, by not contending to the death for our divine law.καὶ τοῦτον καταγελώμενοι πρὸς ἁπάντων ἐπὶ δειλίᾳ· καὶ ὑπὸ μὲν τοῦ τυράννου καταφρονηθῶμεν ὡς ἄνανδροι, τὸν δὲ θεῖον ἡμῶν νόμον μέχρι θανάτου μὴ προασπίσαιμεν.

22Therefore do you, O children of Abraham, die nobly for your religion.Πρὸς ταῦτα ὑμεῖς μὲν, ὦ Ἁβραὰμ παῖδες, εὐγενῶς ὑπὲρ τῆς εὐσεβείας τελευτᾶτε.

23You spearbearers of the tyrant, why do you linger?Οἱ δὲ τοῦ τυράννου δορυφόροι, τί μέλλετε;

24Beholding him so high-minded against misery, and not changing at their pity, they led him to the fire:Πρὸς τὰς ἀνάγκας οὕτως μεγαλοφρονοῦντα αὐτὸν ἰδόντες καὶ μηδὲ πρὸς τὸν οἰκτιρμὸν αὐτῶν μεταβαλλόμενον, ἐπὶ πῦρ αὐτὸν ἤγαγον.

25then with their wickedly contrived instruments they burnt him on the fire, and poured stinking fluids down into his nostrils.Ἔνθα διὰ κακοτέχνων ὀργάνων καταφλέγοντες αὐτὸν ὑπερέπτοσαν, καὶ δυσώδεις χυλοὺς εἰς τοὺς μυκτῆρας αὐτοῦ κατέχεον.

26And he being at length burnt down to the bones, and about to expire, raised his eyes Godward, and said,Ὁ δὲ μέχρι τῶν ὀστέων ἤδη κατακεκαυμένος καὶ μέλλων λιποθυμεῖν, ἀνέτεινεν τὰ ὄμματα πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ εἶπεν, σὺ οἶσθα, Θεὲ, παρόν μοι σώζεσθαι,

27You know, O God, that when I might have been saved, I am slain for the sake of the law by tortures of fire.βασάνοις καυστικαῖς ἀποθνήσκω διὰ τὸν νόμον.

28Be merciful to your people, and be satisfied with the punishment of me on their account.Ἵλεως γενοῦ τῷ ἔθνει σου, ἀρκεσθεὶς τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ περὶ αὐτῶν δίκῃ.

29Let my blood be a purification for them, and take my life in recompense for theirs.Καθάρσιον αὐτῶν ποίησον τὸ ἐμὸν αἷμα, καὶ ἀντίψυχον αὐτῶν λαβὲ τὴν ἐμὴν ψυχήν.

30Thus speaking, the holy man departed, noble in his torments, and even to the agonies of death resisted in his reasoning for the sake of the law.Καὶ ταῦτα εἰπὼν ὁ ἱερὸς ἀνὴρ εὐγενῶς ταῖς βασάνοις ἐναπέθανεν, καὶ μέχρι τῶν τοῦ θανάτου βασάνων ἀντέστη τῷ λσγισμῷ διὰ τὸν νόμον.

31Confessedly, therefore, religious reasoning is master of the passions.Ὁμολογουμένως οἶν δεσπότης ἐστὶν τῶν παθῶν ὁ εὐσεβὴς λογισμός.

32For had the passions been superior to reasoning, I would have given them the witness of this mastery.Εἰ γὰρ τὰ πάθη τοῦ λογισμοῦ κεκρατήκει, τούτοις ἂν ἀπεδόμην τὴν τῆς ἐπικρατείας μαρτυρίαν.

33But now, since reasoning conquered the passions, we befittingly awared it the authority of first place.Νυνὶ δὲ τοῦ λογισμοῦ τὰ πάθη νικήσαντος, αὐτῷ προσηκόντως τὴν τῆς ἡγεμονίας προσνέμομεν ἐξουσίαν.

34And it is but fair that we should allow, that the power belongs to reasoning, since it masters external miseries.Καὶ δίκαιόν ἐστιν ὁμολογεῖν ἡμᾶς, τὸ κράτος εἶναι τοῦ λογισμοῦ, ὅπου γε καὶ τῶν ἔξωθεν ἀλγηδόνων ἐπικρατεῖ.

35Ridiculous would it be were it not so; and I prove that reasoning has not only mastered pains, but that it is also superior to the pleasures, and withstands them.Ἐπεὶ καὶ γελοῖον· καὶ οὐ μόνον τῶν ἀλγηδόνων ἐπιδείκνυμι κεκρατηκέναι τὸν λογισμὸν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἡδονῶν κρατεῖν, μηδὲ αὐταῖς ὑπείκειν.