ANCIENT WRITINGS
Answers Contents

The Sibylline Oracles




Book eleven


Introduction of the Sibyl


World of widespread men, long walls,
Great cities, and innumerable nations
Of east, west, south, and north,
Divided in many diverse languages and kingdoms,
5To you I am about to speak the most disastrous tidings.


The Tower of Babylon


For from the time when the Flood came upon the men of old
And destroyed that generation with many waters,
The universal ruler himself furnished another race
Of restless men, who in opposition to heaven
10Built a tower to an awful height. The tongues
Of all were loosed, but on them came the wrath
Of the Most High God, hurled down, and the wondrous tower
Fell. For they roused evil strife against each other.
Then also was the tenth generation of articulate men.
15From the time when these things happened, the entire earth was divided
Between diverse men and all sorts of dialects
Of which I will tell the numbers and name them in acrostics,
According to the first initial, and I will reveal the name.


The Rule of Egypt


First Egypt will receive royal dominion
20Outstanding and just. Then many counseling
Men will govern in her. But then
A terrible man will rule, a very mighty skirmisher.
His name will have the letter of the acrostic.
Swords will he extend against pious men.
25While he wields power this great sign will be
In the land of Egypt. In great glory she
Will then feed with corn people who are perishing by famine.
The same man, prisoner and judge, will nurture the East
And the race of Assyrian men. Know his name
30,,,of the measure of the tenth number.
But when the affliction often plagues comes upon Egypt
From shining heaven, then I will again proclaim these things to you.
Woe to you, Memphis, woe, great kingdom.
The Red Sea will destroy a great multitude of you.
35Then when the people of twelve tribes, bidden by the Immortal,
Leave the fruitful plain of destruction
And God himself, the prince, gives a law to men,
Then a great, great-spirited king will rule the Hebrews,
One who has a name from sandy Egypt,
40A man falsely thought to have Thebes as his homeland.
But a terrible snake will love Memphis, and will devour many things in wars.


The Rule of Persia


In the twelfth decade of revolving kingship
In the seventeenth century of years, when five more
Are left, then will be the empire of Persia.
45Then there will be darkness upon the Jews, and they will not escape
Famine and pestilence, which is hard to bear, on that day.
But when a Persian rules and leaves the scepters
To the sons of his grandson as the years pursue their cyclic course,
For only five times four and a hundred in addition to these,
50You will complete a hundred enneads and make amends for all.


The Rule of Media


Then, Persia, you will be given as a servant to the Medes,
Perishing with afflictions through mighty was.
Immediately disaster will come upon Persians and Assyrians,
All Egypt, Libyans and Ethiopians.
55Carians and Pamphylinas, and all other mortals.
Then he will give the royal empire to descendants
Who again will lay waste races for many spoils,
Ravaging the entire earth without sympathy.
Mournful, the Persians will wail dirges by the Tigris.
60Egypt will moisten much earth with tears.
Then a very rich Indian will cause many evils
For you, Median land, until you make amends for all
Which you had formerly done with shameless spirit.
Woe to you, Median nation, thereafter you will serve
65Ethiopian men beyond the land of Merois.
You will complete a hundred years from the beginning, wretched one,
Adding seven to these, and you will place your neck under the yoke.


The Rule of India/Ethiopia


Then thereafter there will arise a dark-skinned, gray-haired,
Great-spirited Indian prince (possibly Artaxerxes) who will cause many evils
70To the East through mighty war,
And he will damage you, or rather destroy you beyond all.
But when he reigns twenty years and ten
Plus seven and ten, then every nation
Of the royal empire will rage and display freedom,
75Abandoning slave blood for three single years.
But he will come again and every nation of men
Will place its neck under the yoke for the mighty one again
As it was formerly subject to the king, and it will willingly be subordinate.
There will be great peace throughout the whole world.


The Rule of the “Assyrians”


80Then a great man will be king over the Assyrians. (Solomon)
He will rule and persuade everyone to speak according to his mind
What God disposed on laws. Then all the kings
Will fear this man. They who plume themselves with spears,
Fearful and speechless, exceedingly mighty and lovely to behold,
85Will serve this man, through the plans of the great God.
For he will persuade everything by speech and subdue everything,
And he will mightily build the temple of the great God
And the lovely altar, and he will cast down idols.
He will gather tribes and the generation of fathers
90And infant children into one place as settlers and build a wall around them.
He will have a name of the number two hundred,
And will show the signs of an initial of eighteen.
But whenever he prevails. As decades pursue their cyclic course,
For two plus five, coming to the end of time,
95There will be as many kings as tribes of men,
As clans, as cities, and as islands,
Lands of the blessed and fields of shining fruit,
But there will be one great king over them, a leader of men.
Many great-spirited kings will yield to him.
100They will give to him and his cons and prosperous grandsons
Portions of the kingdom for empire
Until eight decades of decades and six single years
In addition to these. He will rule even those who are his opponents to the end.


The Advent of Macedonia


But when a strong wild beast comes with mighty Ares, (possibly Alexander)
105Then for you also, royal land, will wrath spring up.
Woe to you, Persian land, how many effusions you will receive
Of human blood when that man of mighty spirit
Comes to you. Then again I will proclaim these things to you.


Romulus and Remus


But when Italy produces a great marvel for men,
110A murmuring of infants by an unpolluted spring,
In a shady cave, children of a flock-devouring beast,
Who, when they have become men, will cast down headlong
Many who have shameless spirit on seven strong hills.
Both number a hundred. Their name will show them
115A great sign of things to come. They will build strong walls
On seven hills and will set up grievous war
About them. Then there will be an insurrection of men
Springing up about you great land of beautiful corn,
Great-spirited Egypt. But I will again proclaim these things,
120And in addition you will receive a great affliction in your homes,
And again you will have an insurrection of your own men.


The Trojan War


Now you, wretched Phrygia, do I bewail piteously,
For on you will come captivity from Greece, which subdues horses,
And terrible war, through mighty battles.
125Ilium, I pity you, for a fury from Sparta (Helen)
Will come to your swelling, mingled with a destructive star.
It will especially cause you toils, labors, groanings, and wailings
When skilled men begin battle,
The heroes of the Greeks, by far the best of those who love war.
130One of these, a mighty warrior, will be king (Agamemnon, and his brother Menelaus)
For the sake of his brother he will perform most evil deeds.
They will destroy the famous walls of Troy of the Phrygians,
When the son of Cronos (Zeus) for twice five revolving years
Fulfills the murderous deeds of war.
135Suddenly a wooden deceit (Trojan Horse) will cover men around,
And the one of deep grief will receive it, on her knees,
Not perceiving that it is an ambush pregnant with Greeks.
Alas, how many Hades will receive in one night!
How much spoils will it carry off from the old man of many tears! (Priam, king of Troy)
140But there will be ageless glory in future generations.
A great man from Zeus, (Agamemnon) a king, will have the name
Of the first letter. He, when he has returned home,
Will then fall at the hand of a deceitful woman.
A famous child of heroes from the race and blood
145Of Assaracus will rule, (Aeneas) a mighty and brave man.
He will come from Troy when it has been destroyed by a great fire,
Fleeing from his fatherland on account of the turmoil of Ares.
Carrying on his shoulders his elderly father,
Holding his only son by the hand, he will perform
150A pious deed, glancing around, he who split the onslaught
Of the fire of blazing Troy, and pressing on through the throng.
In fear he will cross the land and frightful sea.
He will have a name of three syllables; for the first letter
Is not insignificant but reveals the supreme man.
155Then he will set up the mighty city of the Latins.
In the fifteenth year on the depths of brine
Perishing on the waters he will meet the end of death.
But even when he dies the nations of men will not forget him.
For the race of this man will later rule over all
160As far as the rivers Euphrates and Tigris, in the midst
Of the land of the Assyrians, where the Parthian tarried.
It will come to pass in future generations when all these things happen.


Virgil


There will be again a certain elderly wise man, a bard,
Whom all call the wisest among men,
165By whose noble mind the whole world will be educated.
For he will write the chief points with power and intelligence
And at various times he will write clearly, very wondrous things,
Having mastered my words and meters and phrases.
For he will be the very first to unfold my books.
170Afterward he will also conceal them and will no longer show them to men
Until the goal of wretched death, the end of life.


Prophecies of Confusion and Tumult


But whenever these things are accomplished of which I spoke,
The Greeks will again fight against each other.
Assyrians and Arabs, and further, quiver-bearing Medes,
175Persians and Sicilians and Lydians will rise up,
Thracians and Bithynians and those who inhabit the land
Of beautiful corn by the streams of the Nile. Imperishable
God will cause tumult among them all at once. But an Assyrian man,
A bastard Ethiopian, will very terribly come, suddenly,
180With the spirit of a wild beast, and he will cut through the entire isthmus (possibly Xerxes’ invasion of Greece)
Glancing about, going against everyone, and will sail across the sea.
Then very many things will happen to you, faithless Greece.
Woe to you, wretched Greece, how many lamentations you must make!
For seven and eighty revolving years
185You will be the mournful refuse of frightful war of all the tribes.


The Rise if Macedonia


Then again the affliction of the Macedonians will come upon Greece,
And it will destroy all Thrace and the turmoil of Ares,
In islands and mainlands and among the Triballi, who love war.
He will be among the foremost fighters, and will have this name,
190An initial which shows the number fifty ten times. (Phillip of Macedon)
He will have swift fate in empire, but he will leave behind
A very great kingdom throughout the boundless earth.
He himself will fall at the hand of a bad counselor, a spear-bearer,
Having lived as a leader with fair wind as no one else.


Alexander


195Thereafter the great-spirited son of this man will rule,
Of the first letter. There will be a detailed account of his race.
Although this man was not born of Zeus or Ammon, all
Will nevertheless declare him to be, and will depict him as a bastard of the son of Cronos.
He will lay waste the cities of many articulate men,
200But the greatest wound will spring up for Europe.
This man will also afflict the city of Babylon with pestilence,
And every land on which the sun looks,
In the East, He alone will sail the world.
Woe to you, Babylon, you will be in servitude at triumphal processions,
205You who were called mistress. Ares will come to Asia.
He will truly come and will kill many of your children.
Then you will send out your royal man
Whose name is of the number four, (Darius III) fighter with the spear,
And terrible arrow-shooter, with mighty warriors.
210Then indeed famine and war will seize the midst of
Cilicians and Assyrians. But great-spirited kings
Will drape themselves in terrible conflict of spirit-destroying strife.
But you, flee the former king and abandon him.
Do not wish to remain and do not be ashamed to be cowardly,
215For a terrible lion will come upon you, a carnivorous beast,
Wild, stranger to justice wearing a cloak about his shoulders.
Flee the man who is like a thunderbolt. An evil yoke will come to Asia,
And the whole earth will drink inundating murder.
But whenever Pellaean Ares will establish
220The great city of Egypt, giver of wealth, and name it for himself, (Alexander founds Alexandria)
Betrayed deceitfully by his companions, (he will undergo) fate and death…
For when he leaves the Indians and goes to Babylon,
Foreign murder will destroy him about the tables.


The Diadochi


Thereafter others will rule each individual tribe,
225Kings who are devourers of the people and overbearing and faithless
For a few years; then a great-spirited leader
Who will glean all Europe bare (Antiochus the Great invaded Europe in 196B.C.)
From the time when the whole earth drinks the blood of all the tribes,
But he will leave life, having undone it by his own fate.
230There will be other kings, twice four men
From his race, all of whom have the same name,


The second rule of Egypt


Then Egypt will be a ruling bride
And the great city of the Macedonian prince,
Revered Alexandria, famous nurse of cities,
235Glittering with beauty, will alone be metropolis.
Then let Memphis blame its rulers.
There will be deep peace throughout the whole world, And the earth of dark soil will then give more abundant fruits.
And then evil will come upon the Jews, and they will not escape
240Famine and pestilence on that day which is hard to bear,
But the ambrosial earth, dark-soiled with its beautiful corn,
Newly adorned, will receive many dying men.


Cleopatra


But eight kings of marshy Egypt
Will complete numbers of years three and thirty
245Plus two hundred. But their race will be destroyed,
Not of them all, but a root will grow out,
A female, destructive of mortals, betrayer of her own kingdom.
But thereafter they will perform evil deeds
Among themselves in wickedness, and one will destroy another.
250A royal son will cut down a warrior father,
And he himself will fail at the hands of his son, but before that
He will sprout another plant. A root will shoot up thereafter
Spontaneously. From it there will be a race that grows on the side.
For there will be a queen of the land but the streams of the Nile,
255Which advances to the sea with sevenfold mouths;
She will have a much-loved name of the number twenty.
She will make innumerable requests and collect all wealth
Of gold and silver. There will indeed be treachery against her
From her own men. Then again, blessed land, you will have
260Wars and battles and slaughters of men.


Julius Caesar


But when many rule luxuriant Rome,
In no respect chosen from the blessed but tyrants,
Leaders of thousands and myriads,
Supervisors of lawful assemblies and most great
265Caesars will rule in succession all the days.
Last of these, of the number ten,
Caesar will rule last (evidently the Sibyl thought all the Roman counsels were called Caesar) who will be struck in dread war
By hostile men, and stretch out his limbs on the ground.
The children of Rome will carry him in their own hands
270And bury him piously and pour a mound on him
Sharing favor to his memory, because of his friendship.
But when the end of the time of the age is at hand
Fulfilling twice three hundred and twice ten
From the time when your founder, the son of the beast, was leader,
275No longer will a dictator be a limited ruler
But a prince will be king, a godlike man.


The Conquest of Egypt


Know then, Egypt, that a king is coming against you.
He will truly come, a terrible Ares with gleaming helmet.(evidently Octavian)
Then for you, widow, there will thereafter be captivity.
280For there will be wars which cause evils, terrible and raging
In force around the walls of the land. In wars
You yourself, suffering mournfully, will flee, wretched one,
Over the newly slain. Later you will come to bed
With the terrible one himself. The conclusion is the joining marriage.
285Woe to you, ill-wed maiden, you will give
The royal rule to a Roman king and will make amends
For all you formerly did in wars of men.
You will give your whole land as a dowry to a powerful man
As far as inner Libya and dark-skinned men.
290You will no longer be a widow, but you will live with a lion,
A man-eating, terrible warrior of the war cry.
And then, wretched one (you will be) inconspicuous to all among men
For you will depart with shameless spirit.
A tomb like a circular mound well-wrought,
295Fitted with pinnacles, will receive you alive within it, in a snare
Cleverly made…A great people will mourn you,
And a king will raise a terrible piteous lament for you.


Punishment for Egypt


Then also Egypt of many labors will be a servant,
Which for many years brought spoils from the Indians.
300She will disgracefully be enslaved and will mingle tears in the river,
The fruit-bearing Nile, because when she has acquired wealth
And abundance of all goods, nurse of cities,
She will nourish the race of the devourer of flocks, of terrible men.
Alas, to how many wild beasts will you be servant and booty,
305Prosperous Egypt, lawgiver to peoples.
You who formerly also rejoiced in great kings
Will be slave to peoples, wretched one, on account of that people
Which formerly, when it was living piously, you brought to great affliction.
Of labors and lamentations, and you placed on its neck
310The yoke of a plow and you moistened the fields with tears of mortals.
Therefore God himself, the imperishable prince who lives in the sky,
Will utterly destroy you and impel you to lamentation,
And you will make amends for what you formerly did lawlessly.
At last you will realize that the anger of God has come upon you.


Conclusion of the Sibyl


315But I will go to Pytho and well-built
There all will pronounce me a true
Seer, chanter of oracles, though someone will call me
A messenger with frenzied spirit. But when he approaches the books
Let him not shrink from them. He will know all that is to be and that was before
320From our words. Then no longer will anyone call
The divinely possessed seer an oracle-monger of necessity.
But, prince, now stop my very lovely speech
Thrust away the frenzy and the true inspired voice
And the terrible madness, but grant a pleasant refrain.

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