Edgar Carew Marchant, Commentary on Thucydides: Book 7, 7.3.1

[1] αἰφνιδίως —Thuc. uses ἄφνω, αἰφνιδίως, ἐξαίφνης, and, in the earlier books, ἐξαπίνης and ἐξαπιναίως. The last two are Ionic.

σφίσιν —indirect reflexive, not referring to the subj. of its own clause, but to that of the main clause. Hence σφεῖς is regularly used only in subord. sentences. But (1) Thuc. sometimes uses σφᾶς like Ionic writers, for σφᾶς αὐτοὺς or ἐαυτούς, as II. 65 αὐτοὶ ἐν σφίσι . . . ἐσφάλησαν. (2) He uses ἑαυτῶν, like Attic writers, for σφῶν or σφετέρας, as II. 7 οἱ Λακ. πόλεις ξυμμαχίδας ποιούμενοι ὅσαι ἦσαν ἐκτὸς τῆς ἑαυτῶν δυνάμεως, where εαυτῶν refers to Λακεδαιμόνιοι .

ἐπιόντων —as Thuc. has given no hint that Gyl. had as yet passed the Athenian lines, and as the Syr. had gone out to meet him, we may assume that he was still on the west side of the lines.

ἐθορυβήθησαν μὲν . . . παρετάξαντο δέ —sharp antithesis, as III. 101 ὁμήρους μὲν ἔδοσαν, ἠκολούθουν δὲ οὔ.

θέμενος τὰ ὅπλα —lit. having grounded arms, taken up a position, cum constitisset.

ἐγγὺς —apparently in the plain, before the διπλοῦν τεῖχος.

προσπέμπει —in this use of πἐμπω the historic pres. is commoner than the aor. If the negotiation is elaborate, the imperf. is used.

λέγοντα —contrast II. 85 πέμπουσι ξυμβούλους κελεύοντες. The nom. and accus. are both used. Cf. III. 52 προσπέμπει αὐτοῖς κήρυκα λἐγοντα. (Meineke and Hw. λἐγων or λέξοντα Kr. thinks λέγοντα may be spurious.)

εἰ βούλονται —formal expression in proposing terms; e.g. IV. 37 ἐκήρυξαν εἰ βούλοιντο τὰ ὅπλα παραδοῦναι .

ἡμερῶν —any time within the period, like νυκτός, ἡμέρας.

ἑτοῖμος —as though λέγων had preceded. Cf. V. 41 οὐκ ἐώντων μεμνῆσθαι περὶ αὐτῆς, ἀλλ’ εἰ βούλονται σπένδεσθαι, ἑτοῖμοι εἶναι; VIII. 48.6 .

Edgar Carew Marchant Commentary on Thucydides: Book 7 7.3.1

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