Main >> Cultures & Beliefs >> Western European

 
In The Bleak MidWinter

            In The Bleak MidWinter




            In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
            Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
            Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
            In the bleak midwinter, long ago.

            Our God, heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
            Heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
            In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
            The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ.

            Angels and archangels may have gathered there,
            Cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;
            But His mother only, in her maiden bliss,
            Worshipped the beloved with a kiss.

            What can I give Him, poor as I am?
            If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
            If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
            Yet what I can give Him: give my heart.