DB1 | A contest proposed. 1Esd.3.4-24 | RSV Contents | notes| 3 | Revised Standard Version | Passage | Old Testament in Greek (Septuagint) |
| 4 | Then the three young men of the bodyguard, who kept guard over the person of the king, said to one another, | A contest proposed. 1Esd.3.4-24 | τότε οἱ τρεῖς νεανίσκοι οἱ σωματοφύλακες οἱ φυλύσσοντες τὸ σῶμα τοῦ βασιλέως εἶπαν ἕτερος πρὸς τὸν ἕτερον |
| 5 | "Let each of us state what one thing is strongest; and to him whose statement seems wisest, Darius the king will give rich gifts and great honors of victory. | Εἴπωμεν ἕκαστος ἡμῶν ἕνα λόγον, ὃς ὑπερισχύσει· καὶ οὗ ἂν φανῇ τὸ ῥῆμα αὐτοῦ σοφώτερον τοῦ ἑτέρου, δώσει αὐτῷ Δαρεῖος ὁ βασιλεὺς δωρεὰς μεγάλας καὶ ἐπινίκια μεγάλα | |
| 6 | He shall be clothed in purple, and drink from gold cups, and sleep on a gold bed, and have a chariot with gold bridles, and a turban of fine linen, and a necklace about his neck; | καὶ πορφύραν περιβαλέσθαι καὶ ἐν χρυσώμασιν πίνειν καὶ ἐπὶ χρυσῷ καθεύδειν καὶ ἅρμα χρυσοχάλινον καὶ κίδαριν βυσσίνην καὶ μανιάκην περὶ τὸν τράχηλον, | |
| 7 | and because of his wisdom he shall sit next to Darius and shall be called kinsman of Darius." | καὶ δεύτερος καθιεῖται Δαρείου διὰ τὴν σοφίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ συγγενὴς Δαρείου κληθήσεται. | |
| 8 | Then each wrote his own statement, and they sealed them and put them under the pillow of Darius the king, | καὶ τότε γράψαντες ἕκαστος τὸν ἑαυτοῦ λόγον ἐσφραγίσαντο καὶ ἔθηκαν ὑπὸ τὸ προσκεφάλαιον Δαρείου τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ εἶπαν | |
| 9 | and said, "When the king wakes, they will give him the writing; and to the one whose statement the king and the three nobles of Persia judge to be wisest the victory shall be given according to what is written." | Ὅταν ἐγερθῇ ὁ βασιλεύς, δώσουσιν αὐτῷ τὸ γράμμα, καὶ ὃν ἂν κρίνῃ ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ οἱ τρεῖς μεγιστᾶνες τῆς Περσίδος ὅτι ὁ λόγος αὐτοῦ σοφώτερος, αὐτῷ δοθήσεται τὸ νῖκος καθὼς γέγραπται. | |
| 10 | The first wrote, "Wine is strongest." | ὁ εἷς ἔγραψεν Ὑπερισχύει ὁ οἶνος. | |
| 11 | The second wrote, "The king is strongest." | ὁ ἕτερος ἔγραψεν Ὑπερισχύει ὁ βασιλεύς. | |
| 12 | The third wrote, "Women are strongest, but truth is victor over all things." | ὁ τρίτος ἔγραψεν Ὑπερισχύουσιν αἱ γυναῖκες, ὑπὲρ δὲ πάντα νικᾷ ἡ ἀλήθεια. | |
| 13 | When the king awoke, they took the writing and gave it to him, and he read it. | καὶ ὅτε ἐξηγέρθη ὁ βασιλεύς, λαβόντες τὸ γράμμα ἔδωκαν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἀνέγνω. | |
| 14 | Then he sent and summoned all the nobles of Persia and Media and the satraps and generals and governors and prefects, | καὶ ἐξαποστείλας ἐκάλεσεν πάντας τοὺς μεγιστᾶνας τῆς Περσίδος καὶ τῆς Μηδίας καὶ σατράπας καὶ στρατηγοὺς καὶ τοπάρχας καὶ ὑπάτους, | |
| 15 | and he took his seat in the council chamber, and the writing was read in their presence. | καὶ ἐκάθισεν ἐν τῷ χρηματιστηρίῳ, καὶ ἀνεγνώσθη τὸ γράμμα ἐνώπιον αὐτῶν. | |
| 16 | And he said, "Call the young men, and they shall explain their statements." So they were summoned, and came in. | καὶ εἶπεν Καλέσατε τοὺς νεανίσκους, καὶ αὐτοὶ δηλώσουσιν τοὺς λόγους αὐτῶν· καὶ ἐκλήθησαν καὶ εἰσήλθοσαν. | |
| 17 | And they said to them, "Explain to us what you have written." Then the first, who had spoken of the strength of wine, began and said: | καὶ εἶπαν αὐτοῖς Ἀπαγγείλατε ἡμῖν περὶ τῶν γεγραμμένων. | |
| 18 | "Gentlemen, how is wine the strongest? It leads astray the minds of all who drink it. | Καὶ ἤρξατο ὁ πρῶτος ὁ εἴπας περὶ τῆς ἰσχύος τοῦ οἴνου καὶ ἔφη οὕτως | |
| 19 | It makes equal the mind of the king and the orphan, of the slave and the free, of the poor and the rich. | Ἄνδρες, πῶς ὑπερισχύει ὁ οἶνος; πάντας τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τοὺς πίνοντας αὐτὸν πλανᾷ τὴν διάνοιαν. | |
| 20 | It turns every thought to feasting and mirth, and forgets all sorrow and debt. | τοῦ τε βασιλέως καὶ τοῦ ὀρφανοῦ ποιεῖ τὴν διάνοιαν μίαν, τήν τε τοῦ οἰκέτου καὶ τὴν τοῦ ἐλευθέρου, τήν τε τοῦ πένητος καὶ τὴν τοῦ πλουσίου. | |
| 21 | It makes all hearts feel rich, forgets kings and satraps, and makes every one talk in millions. | καὶ πᾶσαν διάνοιαν μεταστρέφει εἰς εὐωχίαν καὶ εὐφροσύνην καὶ οὐ μέμνηται πᾶσαν λύπην καὶ πᾶν ὀφείλημα. | |
| 22 | When men drink they forget to be friendly with friends and brothers, and before long they draw their swords. | καὶ πάσας καρδίας ποιεῖ πλουσίας καὶ οὐ μέμνηται βασιλέα οὐδὲ σατράπην καὶ πάντα διὰ ταλάντων ποιεῖ λαλεῖν. | |
| 23 | And when they recover from the wine, they do not remember what they have done. | καὶ οὐ μέμνηται, ὅταν πίνωσιν, φιλιάζειν φίλοις καὶ ἀδελφοῖς, καὶ μετ' οὐ πολὺ σπῶνται μαχαίρας· | |
| 24 | Gentlemen, is not wine the strongest, since it forces men to do these things?" When he had said this, he stopped speaking. | καὶ ὅταν ἀπὸ τοῦ οἴνου γενηθῶσιν, οὐ μέμνηται ἃ ἔπραξαν. | |