CHRISTMAS HYMN.

 Listen not to the word that would have you believe

That the voice of the age is a moan;

That the red hand of wrong

Is triumphant¹ and strong,

And that wrong is triumphant alone;

There was never a time on the face of the earth

When love was so near its own.

Do you think that the love which has died for the world

Has not lived for the world also?

Filling man with the fire

Of a boundless² desire

To love all with a love that shall grow?

It was not for nothing the White Christ was born

Two thousand years ago.

The power that gave birth to the Son of the King

All life doth move and thrill,

Every age as ’tis passed

Coming nearer at last

To the law of that wonderful will,—

As our God so loved the world that day,

Our God so loves it still.

The love that fed poverty, making it thrive,

Is learning a lovelier way.

We have seen that the poor

Need be with us no more,

And that sin may be driven away;

The love that has carried the martyrs³ to death

Is entering life to-day.

The spirit of Christ is awake and alive,

In the work of the world it is shown,

Crying loud, crying clear,

That the Kingdom is here,

And that all men are heirs to the throne!

There was never a time since the making of man

When love was so near its own!

1 triumphant   

adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的

参考例句：

• The army made a triumphant entry into the enemy's capital.部队胜利地进入了敌方首都。
• There was a positively triumphant note in her voice.她的声音里带有一种极为得意的语气。

2 boundless   

adj.无限的；无边无际的；巨大的

参考例句：

• The boundless woods were sleeping in the deep repose of nature.无边无际的森林在大自然静寂的怀抱中酣睡着。
• His gratitude and devotion to the Party was boundless.他对党无限感激、无限忠诚。

3 martyrs   

n.martyr的复数形式；烈士( martyr的名词复数 )；殉道者；殉教者；乞怜者（向人诉苦以博取同情）

参考例句：

• the early Christian martyrs 早期基督教殉道者
• They paid their respects to the revolutionary martyrs. 他们向革命烈士致哀。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》