becoming

One of my favorite Christmas hymns — In the bleak midwinter:

Yes, just what are you going to give to this new born King?

—-

In the bleak midwinter, frost 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,
worshiped 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 I give him: give my heart.

在寒冷嚴冬裏，凜風如怨訴，
大地堅如鐵鑄，凝冰像石鋪；
雪花紛紜雪上雪，蓋地又蔽天，
在寒冷嚴冬裏，遠遠在當年。

蒼天何能容祂，大地更卑微，
當祂降世統治，天地都迴避；
在寒冷的嚴冬裏，馬槽棲身地，
反容道成肉身，基督主上帝。

天使與眾天軍，排列在上方，
基路伯撒拉弗，環立在身旁；
惟有主貞潔母親，喜樂滿胸襟，
她用慈祥輕吻，來崇拜聖嬰。

像我如此貧乏，無物可獻上，
我若是個牧人，我願獻小羊；
我若是東方博士，本分我當盡，
但我所能獻呈，祇有我的心。