Charles F. Smith, Commentary on Thucydides Book 7

1. πρὸς οὖν ἀταξίαν...προσμίξωμεν : the acc. with πρός for the simple dat. is unusual, but after the analogy of μάχεσθαι πρός τινα.

τύχην ἀνδρῶν ἑαυτὴν παραδεδωκυῖαν : the idea of a fate overruling the individual human being, as well as whole states, is not found elsewhere in Thuc., but often in Dem.; e.g. 11. 22, τὴν τῆς ἡμετέρας πόλεως τύχην ἂν ἑλοίμην ἢ τὴν ἐκείνου.

ὀργῇ : with fury, as in v.70.2.

νομιμώτατον...οἳ ἄν : against enemies it is quite lawful (i.e. they act quite lawfully) who, etc. On the free connexion of the pl. of the pers. rel. pron. with the neut. adj., see Kr. Spr. 51, 13, 11; Kühn. 563, 3 d. Cf. ii.44.4; vi.14.7.

ὡς ἐπὶ τιμωρίᾳ τοῦ προσπεσόντος: on the ground of punishing the aggressor. Cf. i.126.14.

ἀποπλῆσαι τῆς γνώμης τὸ θυμούμενον: to satiate their heart's animosity. So in iii. 82. 64, ἐκπιμπλάναι. τὸ θυμούμενον (also Eur. Hec. 299) as τὸ δεδιός, i.36.3; τὸ ὀργιζόμενον, ii.59.12; τὸ ἐπιθυμοῦν, vi.24.4.

ἐκγενησόμενον: (Vat.) will fall to our lot, become ours; more appropriate than ἐγγενησόμενον (cf. Ar. Eq. 851), will be possible. Cf. Hdt. i.78.7; vii.4.5. The partic. ἐκγενησόμενον depends on νομίσωμεν (with force of εἰδῶμεν). Kühn. 484, 8; Kr. Dial. 56, 4, 4.—τὸ λεγόμενόν που ἥδιστον εἶναι: evidently appos. to ἐχθροὺς ἀμύνασθαι, “that which is proverbially the sweetest thing”; and hence καί, which is omitted by one Ms. and Valla, is incorrect. Kr. Spr. 57, 10, 12.

7. ἐχθροὶ καὶ ἔχθιστοι: enemies, and indeed the worst of all enemies. See on c. 48. 24.

ἐν ᾧ: whereby, referring in a general sense to the idea of the preceding clause, as in iv.18.7. Schol. ἐν τῷ δουλώσασθαι ἡμᾶς.

τἄλγιστα προσέθεσαν : as in iii.42.25, τιμήν; iv.20.12, χάριν.

τὴν αἰσχίστην ἐπίκλησιν : Schol. τὴν δουλείαν (in the sense of political dependence).

12. ἀκινδύνως: i.e. for the Syracusans and all Sicily.

ἡμῶν: adopted by Cl. from Vat., on the ground that it is almost indispensable after the foregoing, which treated of the Athenians. But, as St. says, ἡμῶν is easily understood from βουλόμεθα. Kr. is certainly wrong in proposing αὐτῶν. For the const. πράττειν τι, see Kr. Spr. 46, 5, 11.—ἐκ τοῦ εἰκότος: as is probable.

κολασθῆναι, παραδοῦναι: the sent. is constructed as if καλὸς ἀγών were to follow. With the latter inf. supply ἡμᾶς. The subj. is changed as in vi.68.12.

ἐλευθερίαν: belongs to καρπουμένῃ as well as to παραδοῦναι. Kühn. 597, 2 f.

ἐκ τοῦ σφαλῆναι: in consequence of failure. For gen. of inf. with prep. thus used adv., see Kühn. 478, 4 c.—πλεῖστα: cognate acc. See on c. 24. 12.