Pausanias Analysis

Passage 8.7.6

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Passage 8.7.6: Philip fulfilling the Delphic oracle that foretold his doom.

Historical Skeptical

Greek Text

καί οἱ τὸ ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ μήνιμα ἀπήντησεν οὐκ ὀψέ, πρῶτα δὲ ὧν ἴσμεν. Φίλιππος μὲν οὐ πρόσω βιώσας ἕξ τε καὶ τεσσαράκοντα ἐτῶν τὸ μάντευμα ἐξετέλεσε τὸ ἐκ Δελφῶν, ὃ δὴ χρωμένῳ οἱ περὶ τοῦ Πέρσου γενέσθαι λέγουσιν, ἔστεπται μὲν ὁ ταῦρος, ἔχει τέλος, ἔστιν ὁ θύσων· τοῦτο μὲν δὴ οὐ μετὰ πολὺ ἐδήλωσεν οὐκ ἐς τὸν Μῆδον, ἀλλὰ ἐς αὐτὸν ἔχον Φίλιππον·

English Translation

Not long afterward, divine anger overtook him, bringing upon him first of all the punishments known to us. Philip, who lived no more than forty-six years, fulfilled the oracle given at Delphi, which, as they relate, had been delivered to him in his inquiry about the Persian: "The bull is garlanded; the end is at hand; there is one who will sacrifice him." Indeed, not long afterward, this oracle was clearly revealed to signify not the Persian, but Philip himself.

Proper Nouns

Mede (Μῆδος) person
Persian (Πέρσης) person
Philip (Φίλιππος) person
Delphi (Δελφοί) place Q75459 Pleiades
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