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Whenever the moment calls and the prime of opportunity urges, in the same way also the symbols of prudence, which is set above all the virtues or rather, to speak more excellently, which gave form to the virtues and persuaded them to be and to be called virtues, of all these, as far as it is possible for us and as the moment allows, the characters and images have been outlined; but since we have also made mention of nobility and gentleness, here at this point in my speech the tears leap forth as I consider his compassion for those who have erred, and I think that all of you will lament more at these things. For recall to mind: has any man died by the emperor’s hand even for the greatest of charges? And this would indeed be famous even for one who had completed his reign in a few years, but for one who was distinguished in these things, how much more marvelous and extraordinary. For who has known anyone to have had his soul violently torn from him by that man, I do not say for moderate or even slightly greater offenses, but for the very greatest of charges, for very malicious and treacherous rebellions? And for the last and first of evils, for acts of tyranny themselves—for at the same time the one who plotted tyranny against him was captured—O justice and virtue! Who against whom!—and whatever sort of man he was who contrived this treacherous plot, if only he ate bread and drank water and was called one of the mortals, at the very same time, as I said, he was captured and immediately shown mercy, either having his nose cut off or his hand cut off or, the greatest punishment, his eyes gouged out; this was the first act of the drama, but many of the co-conspirators did not even know his anger nor endure his wrath, but were immediately acquitted and released. And these things happened not once, but twice and many times. And he indeed thus released the terrible and blood-guilty avengers who were found to be evil towards him, whom he benefited most of all and to whom his gifts were infinitely multiplied, but God justly passed judgments. For the emperor showed mercy, for he knew he was protected by the mightier one, but He scourged and struck one with incurable diseases and long-lasting confinements to bed, and another who had been healthy in body his whole life with a sudden death, and another who was with many in battle, He singled out alone and, as it were, set him up as a target for the arrow of a wicked man, and, to put it simply, He has sent them all down to the depths of the earth; thus God knows how to avenge those who hope in him, while these men for a time will release them from their charges.

14

But as for the other things of his cheerfulness and meekness, who would boast that he could praise them fully? And David the most meek—may he be merciful—has, I think, been surpassed by him alone. For if someone erred, the punishment was only words or, at worst, moderate blows. And he endured harsher words uttered by the insolent, thinking them to be sounds dissolving into the air, and he bore with more disorderly actions, knowing that mercy is weighed in return by God for the merciful and that loving-kindness is measured back to us for loving-kindness. These were the symbols of his meekness, these the proofs of his gentle heart, in which God delights, in which all his subjects rejoice.

15

For my part, O Romans present, who have gathered together in this sorrow and have prepared yourselves for lamentation, I am struck with awe by the many and great good deeds of the emperor and by the abyss of his virtues and the boundless flood of his noble achievements. But I am altogether unable to give a full account, and though I wish to speak of some of his masterpieces and to weave in something of his nobility, yet there is boundlessness in both, and in those things about which another would have had much to say, I suffer from speechlessness, and the great abundance of the flood causes a lack of water, just as when a sudden rush of water is brought upon the narrow mouths of vessels, it finds no way to enter. Thus indeed it also happens with certain of the greatest subjects, which confront writers with both immeasurable quantity and supernatural greatness. For Titus the Caesar is admired because

6

ὁπότε καιρὸς καλοῖ καὶ ἀκμὴ κατεπείγει καιροῦ, κατὰ ταὐτὰ δὲ καὶ τὰ τῆς φρονήσεως σύμβολα, ἣ πασῶν τῶν ἀρετῶν ὑπερτέθειται ἢ μᾶλλον κρεῖττον εἰπεῖν ἣ τὰς ἀρετὰς εἰδοποίησε καὶ ἀρε τὰς εἶναι καὶ ὀνομάζεσθαι πέπεικε, τούτων δὴ πάντων ὡς ἐνὸν ἡμῖν καὶ ὡς ὁ καιρὸς δίδωσιν οἱ χαρακτῆρες καὶ τὰ ἰνδάλματα προκεκέντηνται· ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ καλοκαγαθίας καὶ ἡμερότητος ἐμνήσθημεν, ἐνταῦθά μοι τοῦ λόγου τὰ δάκρυα προπηδᾷ ἀναλογιζομένῳ τὴν τούτου περὶ τοὺς ἐπταικότας συμπάθειαν, οἶμαι δὲ καὶ πάντες ἐν τούτοις πλέον θρηνήσετε. ἀναπολέσατε καὶ γὰρ κατὰ νοῦν· τέθνηκέ τις καὶ ἐπὶ μεγίσταις αἰτίαις πρὸς τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος ἄνθρω πος; καὶ τοῦτο μὲν ἂν οὖν καὶ ἐπὶ χρόνοις ὀλίγοις τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀνύσαντος περιβόητον, ἐπὶ τούτοις δὲ διαπρέψαντος πόσῳ θαυμαστὸν καὶ ἐξαίσιον. τίς γὰρ ἔγνω παρ' ἐκείνου τινὰ βιαίως τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπορρήξαντα, οὐ λέγω γοῦν ἐπὶ μετρίοις ἢ καὶ μικρὸν μείζοσι πταίσμασιν, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ μεγίσταις ἄγαν ταῖς ὑποθέσεσιν, ἐπὶ χαιρεκάκοις ἄγαν καὶ δολεραῖς ἐπ' ἀνταρσίαις; τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον καὶ πρώτιστον τῶν κακῶν ἐπὶ τυραννίσιν αὐταῖς-ἅμα τε γὰρ ἥλω ὁ τυραννίδα βουλευσά μενος κατ' αὐτοῦ-ὦ δίκη καὶ ἀρετή! ὁ κατὰ τίνος τίς!- κἂν ὁποῖος ἄρα καὶ ἦν ὁ τοῦτο σκαιωρήσας τὸ δολορρά φημα, εἰ μόνον ἤσθιεν ἄρτου καὶ ὕδατος ἔπινεν καὶ τῶν θνητῶν ὠνομάζετο, ἅμα τε γοῦν, ὡς ἔφην, ἥλω καὶ εὐθὺς ἠλέηται, ἢ ῥῖνα ἀποτμηθεὶς ἢ χεῖρα ἀποκοπεὶς ἤ, τὸ μέγι στον, ἐξορυχθεὶς ὀφθαλμούς· ὁ πρῶτος ταῦτα τοῦ δρά ματος, πολλοὶ δὲ τῶν συνιστόρων οὐδ' ἐγίνωσκον τὴν ὀργὴν οὐδὲ τὸν χόλον ὑπέμενον, ἀλλ' εὐθὺς ὑφωρῶντο καὶ ἀπελύοντο. ταῦτα δὲ οὐχ ἅπαξ, ἀλλὰ καὶ δὶς καὶ πολλάκις ἐπισυνέβησαν. κἀκεῖνος μὲν οὕτως ἀφίει τοὺς δεινοὺς καὶ παλαμναίους ἀλάστορας τοὺς περὶ αὐτὸν ὀφθέντας κακούς, οὓς εὐηργέτει τὰ μάλιστα καὶ οἷς ἀπει ροπλάσια τὰ δωρήματα, θεὸς δὲ καλῶς τὰς κρίσεις ἐδίκαζεν. ὁ μὲν γὰρ βασιλεὺς ἠλέει, ᾔδει γὰρ σκεπόμενος πρὸς τοῦ κρείττονος, ὁ δὲ ἐμαστίγου καὶ ἔπληττε τὸν μὲν νόσοις ἀνη κέστοις καὶ μακροχρονίοις ταῖς κατακλίσεσι, τὸν δὲ καὶ αἰφνιδίῳ θανάτῳ τὸν πάντα χρόνον ὑγιῶς τοῦ σώματος ἔχοντα, ἄλλον πολλοῖς περὶ μάχην συνόντα μόνον ἀπο χωρήσας καὶ οἷα σκοπὸν φλαύρου ἀνδρὸς ὑποθέμενος ὀϊστεύματι, καὶ ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν ἅπαντας ἄρδην τῷ τῆς γῆς μυχῷ παραπέπομφεν· οὕτω θεὸς οἶδε διεκδικεῖν τοὺς ἐπ' ἐκείνῳ ἐλπίζοντας, καὶ οὗτοι πρὸς καιρὸν τῶν ἐγκλημάτων τούτους ἀνήσουσι.

14 Τὰ δ' ἄλλα τῆς ἱλαρότητος αὐτοῦ καὶ πραότητος ποῖος ἂν καυχήσαιτο ἐξυμνήσασθαι; καὶ ∆αυὶδ ὁ πραότατος-ἱλήκοι δὲ οὑτοσί-ὑπ' ἐκείνου ἂν οἶμαι μόνου νενίκηται. ἡμάρ τανε γάρ τις, καὶ μέχρι λόγων ἡ κάκωσις ἢ μετρίων πληγῶν, τὸ δεινότερον. ὑπέμενε δὲ καὶ λόγους τραχυτέρους ἐκ θρα συστομούντων προφερομένους, ὡς ψόφους εἰς ἀέρα διαλυο μένους οἰόμενος, καὶ πράξεις ἀτακτοτέρους διέφερεν, ἀντι σταθμίζεσθαι γνοὺς ὑπὸ θεοῦ τοῖς ἐλεοῦσι τὸν ἔλεον καὶ τῷ φιλανθρώπῳ ἀντιμετρεῖσθαι ἡμῖν τὸ φιλάνθρωπον. ταῦτα ἐκείνου καὶ τὰ τῆς πραότητος σύμβολα, ταῦτα τῆς προση νοῦς καρδίας τεκμήρια, οἷς θεὸς ἐπιγάννυται, οἷς ἐπιχαίρει σύμπαν ὑπήκοον.

15 Ἔγωγε μὲν, ὦ παρόντες Ῥωμαῖοι οἱ τῷ πάθει συνειλεγμένοι καὶ πρὸς θρηνῳδίας ἑαυτοὺς εὐτρεπίσαντες, ἐκπέ πληγμαι μὲν ὑπὸ τῶν πολλῶν καὶ μεγάλων τοῦ αὐτοκρά τορος ἀγαθῶν καὶ τῆς ἀβύσσου τῶν ἀρετῶν καὶ τοῦ ἀπείρου τῶν ἀριστειῶν χεύματος. ἀδυνατῶ δὲ ὅλως πρὸς περιήγησιν, καὶ βούλομαι μὲν ἐξειπεῖν τι τῶν ἀριστουργημάτων αὐτοῦ καί τι τῆς καλοκαγαθίας συμπλέξασθαι, ἀλλ' ἀπειρία τυγχάνει καὶ ἐν ἀμφοῖν, καὶ ἐν οἷς ἂν ἄλλος εἶχε λέγειν πολλά, ἐν τούτοις ἔγωγε πάσχω τὸ ἄναυδον, καὶ τὸ πολὺ τῆς πλημμύρας τὸ λειψυδρεῖν προξενεῖ, ὡς ἐν τοῖς τῶν ἀγγείων συστόμοις εἴπερ ἄθρουν ὕδωρ ἐπενεχθῇ οὔκουν εὑρίσκει παρείσδυσιν. οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἐπί τισι μεγίσταις συμβαίνει τῶν ὑποθέσεων, αἳ προσυπαντῶσι ποσῷ τε ἀπλέτῳ καὶ ὑπερφυεῖ μεγέθει τοῖς γράφουσι. θαυμάζεται μὲν Τῖτος ὁ καῖσαρ ὅτιπερ