Text by: Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830-1894)
Set by:
Harold Edwin Darke (1888-1977)
Gustav Holst (1874-1934)
In the bleak midwinter
Frosty wind made moan
Earth stood hard as iron
Water like a stone
Snow had fallen
Snow on snow on snow
In the bleak midwinter
Long, 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 mid-winter
A stable place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty,
Jesus Christ.
Angels and archangels
May have gathered there
Cherubim and seraphim
Thronged the air
But only his mother
In her maiden bliss
Worshiped the beloved
With a kiss.
What can I give him
Poor as I am
If I were a sheperd
I would give a lamb
If I were a wise man
I would do my part
But what I can I give him
Give him my heart.
