Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Contra hominem iustum...

Here is today's distich by Cato (so-called), 4.34, with English translations by Duff and Chase.

Contra hominem iustum prave contendere noli;
Semper enim deus iniustas ulciscitur iras.


Break not against the righteous man the laws,
For God's th' avenger of the righteous cause.
(Chase)

Strive not unfairly 'gainst an upright man:
On wrath unjustified God sets a ban.
(Duff)

Here is the vocabulary:

contra - opposite, against
homo - person, man
iustus - just, righteous
pravus - corrupt, bad, vicious
contendo - compete, contend
nolo - do not want, don't
semper - always
enim - for, the fact is
deus - god
iniustus - unjust, wrong
ulciscor - avenge
ira - anger, rage