Xenophon of Ephesus, An Ephesian Tale 1.14.3 · 1.14.3
Farewells from ship to ship
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Καὶ οἱ μὲν ἔλεγον ποῖ ποτε ἀχθήσεσθε, δεσπόται; τίς ὑμᾶς ὑποδέξεται γῆ, καὶ τίνα πόλιν οἰκήσετε; οἱ δὲ ὦ μακάριοι, μέλλοντες ἀποθνήσκειν εὐτυχῶς πρὸ τοῦ πειραθῆναι δεσμῶν, πρὸ τοῦ δουλείαν λῃστρικὴν ἰδεῖν. Ταῦτα λέγοντες οἱ μὲν ἀνήγοντο, οἱ δὲ κατεφλέγοντο.
Those on the ship said, "Where on earth will you be taken, masters? What land will receive you, and what city will you live in?" And those on the warship said, "O blessed ones, about to die happily, before you know chains, before you see slavery to pirates!" Saying this, some sailed away, and the others burned.
Word by word
The setting
Book 1, chapter 14. The two groups call out to each other as the ships part.
A note on this passage
Each group speaks to the other. Those left on the burning ship call Habrocomes and Anthia δεσπόται, "masters," and ask where they will live; the captives call the dying μακάριοι, "blessed," the word that opens each of the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3–11), because death will reach them before chains and slavery. The oracle had promised the chains: the two would suffer δεσμά among men of the sea (1.6.2).
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