Caroling! The Songs of Christmas

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====== In The Bleak Midwinter ======

===== Lyrics =====

1. 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.

2. 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.

3. Angels and archangels may have gathered there,\\
cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;\\
but his mother only, in her maiden bliss,\\
worshiped the beloved with a kiss.

4. 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 I give him: give my heart.

**By:** Christina Rossetti
==== Music & Performance ====

{{wiki:in_the_bleak_midwinter.mp3}}\\
[[https://musescore.com/sangerforum/scores/5744009|Source]]

{{youtube>8Z3dLTxtUSM?small=rel=0}}

===== Background =====

The 3rd verse of the poem does not appear in most musical works:

Enough for Him, whom Cherubim worship night and day,\\
A breastful of milk and a mangerful of hay;\\
Enough for Him, whom Angels fall down before,\\
The ox and ass and camel which adore.

**Origin:** England\\
**First Published:** 1876
===== More Information =====

[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Bleak_Midwinter|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Bleak_Midwinter]]

[[https://hymnary.org/text/in_the_bleak_midwinter|https://hymnary.org/text/in_the_bleak_midwinter]]