Cook, Arthur B.: Zeus: a study in ancient religion (Band 3,1): Zeus god of the dark sky (earthquake, clouds, wind, dew, rain, meteorits): Text and notes (Cambridge, 1940)

Nephelokokkygia

59

Pisth. I delight in your hymns, I delight in your songs ;

Your words I admire.
Chor. Now sing of the trophies he brings us from Heaven,
The earth-crashing thunders, deadly and dire,
And the lightning's angry flashes of fire,
And the dread white bolt of the levin.
Blaze of the lightning, so terribly beautiful,

Golden and grand!
Fire-flashing javelin, glittering ever in

Zeus's right hand!
Earth-crashing thunder, the hoarsely resounding, the

Bringer of showers!
He is your Master, 'tis he that is shaking the

Earth with your powers !
All that was Zeus's of old
Now is our hero's alone;
His the Queen, fair to behold,
Partner of Zeus on his throne,
Now and for ever his own.
Hymen, O Hymenaeus!
Pisth. Now follow on, dear feathered tribes,
To see us wed, to see us wed ;
Mount up to Zeus's golden floor,
And nuptial bed, and nuptial bed.
And O, my darling, reach thine hand,
And take my wing and dance with me,
And I will lightly bear thee up,
And carry thee, and carry thee.
Chor. Raise the joyous Paean-cry,
Raise the song of Victory.
Io Paean, alalalae,
Mightiest of the Powers, to thee !

Throughout this splendid exodos Pisthetairos is clearly conceived
as the new Zeus. He is no longer referred to by his old name, but
always by some phrase descriptive of the Olympian king. He comes

Wielding the winged thunderbolt of Zeus1.
The chorus at his approach sing of' the fiery lightnings of Zeus2,' 'the
immortal spear of Zeus3,' etc., and salute their leader himself as

line or two to avoid his rendering 'Miss Sovereignty,' which, I fear, implies a confusion
of /3a<riXela, 'queen,' with ySaffiXeia, 'kingdom.' That the former, not the latter, word
was intended by the poet is clear from the metre of verses 1537, 1753- The same sl.ip 1S
made by G. Caramia in his article on Btw/Xfw in the Birds of Aristophanes (Kivista Me-
greco-italica difilologia—lingua—anlichita 1925 ix. 3—4. 51 ff- cited by H.J. Rose in The
Year's Work in Class. Stud. 1Q25-1926 p. 59).

1 Aristoph. av. 1714 iriWwv Ktpavvbv, vTepo<p6pov Aios (SAos. Supra ii. 777 ff-

Id. tb. 1746^ ras re 7ri'pw5ets | Aids dcsrepoTrds.

Id. ib. 1740 Aids ijxftptsTov 67x0s {supra ii. 704 11. 5).