ἔνθά κεν αὖτε Τρῶες ἀρηιφίλων ὑπ' Ἀχαιῶν
Ἴλιον εἰσανέβησαν ἀναλκείῃσι δαμέντες:
Ἀργεῖοι δὲ κε κῦδος ἕλον καὶ ὑπὲρ Διὸς αἶσαν
κάρτει καὶ σθένει σφετέρῳ: ἀλλ' αὐτὸς Ἀπόλλων
Αἰνείαν ὤτρυνε: δέμας Περίφαντι ἐοικώς:
κήρυκι Ἠπυτίδῃ: ὅς οἱ παρὰ πατρὶ γέροντι
κηρύσσων γήρασκε: φίλα φρενὶ μήδεα εἰδώς:
τῷ μιν ἐεισαμενος προσέφη Διὸς υἱὸς Ἀπόλλων:
Αἰνεία: πῶς ἂν καὶ ὑπὲρ θεὸν εἰρύσασθε
Ἴλιον αἰπεινὴν: ὡς δὴ ἴδον ἀνέρας ἄλλους
κάρτεί τε: σθὲνεί τε πεποιθότας ἠνορέῃ τε:
πλήθεί τε σφετέρῳ: καὶ ὑπερδέα δῆμον ἔχοντας:
ὑμῖν δὲ Ζεύς πολὺ βούλεται ἢ Δαναοῖσι:
νίκην: ἀλλ' αὐτοὶ τρεῖτ' ἄσπετον: οὐδὲ μάχεσθε:
Then would the Trojans have been driven again by the Achaeans, dear to Ares, up to Ilios, vanquished in their cowardice, and the Argives would have won glory even beyond the allotment of Zeus, by reason of their might and their strength, had not Apollo himself aroused Aeneas, taking upon him the form of the herald, Periphas, son of Epytos, that in the house of his old father had grown old in his heraldship, and withal was of kindly mind toward him. In his likeness spake unto Aeneas the son of Zeus, Apollo: "Aeneas, how could ye ever guard steep Ilios, in defiance of a god? In sooth I have seen other men that had trust in their strength and might, in their valour and in their host, and that held their realm even in defiance of Zeus. But for us Zeus willeth the victory far more than for the Danaans; yet yourselves ye have measureless fear, and fight not."
