And the goddess bright-eyed Athene made answer to
him: “So be it, Far-darter; in this mind
I likewise came from Olympus to the midst of Trojans
and Achaians. But come, how thinkest thou to stay
the battle of the warriors?”
And king Apollo, son of Zeus, made answer to her:
“Let us arouse the stalwart spirit of horse-taming
Hector, if so be he will challenge some one of the
Danaans in single fight man to man to meet him in deadly
combat. So shall the bronze-greaved Achaians be
jealous and stir up one to fight singly with goodly
Hector.” So spake he and the bright-eyed
goddess Athene disregarded not. Now Helenos Priam’s
dear son understood in spirit their resolve that the
gods in counsel had approved; and he went to Hector
and stood beside him, and spake a word to him:
“Hector son of Priam, peer of Zeus in counsel,
wouldest thou now hearken at all to me? for I am thy
brother. Make the other Trojans sit, and all the
Achaians, and thyself challenge him that is best of
the Achaians to meet thee man to man in deadly combat.
It is not yet thy destiny to die and meet thy doom;
for thus heard I the voice of the gods that are from
everlasting.” So said he, and Hector rejoiced
greatly to hear his saying, and went into the midst
and refrained the battalions of the Trojans with his
spear grasped by the middle; and they all sate them
down: and Agamemnon made the well-greaved Achaians
sit. And Athene withal and Apollo of the silver
bow, in the likeness of vulture birds, sate them upon
a tall oak holy to aegis-bearing father Zeus, rejoicing
in their warriors; and the ranks of all of them sate
close together, bristling with shields and plumes
and spears. Even as there spreadeth across the
main the ripple of the west wind newly risen, and the
sea grows black beneath it, so sate the ranks of Achaians
and Trojans upon the plain. And Hector spake
between both hosts: “Hearken to me, Trojans
and well-greaved Achaians, that I may speak what my
mind within my breast biddeth me. Our oaths of
truce Kronos’ son, enthroned on high, accomplished
not; but evil is his intent and ordinance for both
our hosts, until either ye take fair-towered Troy
or yourselves be vanquished beside your seafaring
ships. But in the midst of you are the chiefest
of all the Achaians; therefore now let the man whose
heart biddeth him fight with me come hither from among
you all to be your champion against goodly Hector.
And this declare I, and be Zeus our witness thereto;
if that man slay me with the long-edged sword, let
him spoil me of my armour and bear it to the hollow
ships, but give back my body to my home, that Trojans
and Trojans’ wives may give me my due of burning
in my death. But if I slay him and Apollo vouchsafe
me glory, I will spoil him of his armour and bear
it to holy Ilios and hang it upon the temple of far-darting
Apollo, but his corpse will I render back to the well-decked
ships, that the flowing-haired Achaians may entomb
him, and build him a barrow beside wide Hellespont.
So shall one say even of men that be late born, as
he saileth in his benched ship over the wine-dark
sea: ’This is the barrow of a man that died
in days of old, a champion whom glorious Hector slew.’
So shall a man say hereafter, and this my glory shall
never die.”
