I will speak of Your testimonies also before kings,
And will not be ashamed.
And I will delight myself in Your commandments,
Which I love.
My hands also I will lift up to Your commandments,
Which I love,
And I will meditate on Your statutes.

  - Psalm 119.46-48

I and Pangur Ban my cat,
‘Tis a like task we are at:
Hunting mice is his delight,
Hunting words I sit all night...

Practice every day has made
Pangur perfect in his trade;
I get wisdom day and night
Turning darkness into light.

  - Anonymous, Pangur Ban, Irish, 12th century?[1]

The discipline of the Word
Robin Flower’s translation of “Pangur Ban” (here just the first and last stanzas) is one of the joys of Celtic Christian literature, one example of what this much-neglected period has to offer us today.

This poem was inscribed in the margin of an academic manuscript, a moment’s amusement amid the tedious, difficult, but apparently delightful work of studying the Word. A scribe, perhaps weary from his studies, contemplates his cat as it seeks out a mouse. And, as he does, God speaks to him about his own calling.

Our scribe would have worked in his monastery’s scriptorium, where, like The Scriptoriumof The Fellowship of Ailbe, the Word of God is studied and annotated. In his poem the scribe compares his love for the Word – carefully reading and copying, dutifully studying, and prayerfully meditating on every word – to his white cat’s quest for a meal.

Perhaps he was put in mind of Job, who treasured God’s Word more than his necessary food (Job. 23.12). Or Jeremiah, who delighted to “eat” the Word of the Lord (Jer. 15.16). Or John, who upon eating the Word found it sweet to the taste, but bitter in the stomach because of the words of judgment it contained (Rev. 10.8-10).

Our scribe found new delight and significance in his labor as the Lord spoke to him through the exertions of his little Pangur Ban (“white cat”).

Do we delight in the Word of God? Do we even think that way? We may read it, perhaps carry it to church, and maybe even enjoy some of our studies. But can we say that we delight in the Scriptures of our Lord? Do you find the Word daily “Turning darkness into light” in your experience?

“Practice every day…” Reading, meditating on, and studying the Bible should be a source of great joy and spiritual enrichment every day of our lives.

But we have to come to this discipline not grudgingly or half-heartedly; instead, let us imagine ourselves like Pangur Ban, on a mission to locate, capture, and consume a prize. Nothing satisfies the deep desires of our souls the way Scripture can.

The more we cultivate delight in God’s Word, the more time we’ll spend in it. The more time we spend in it, the more we will delight in it.

When that begins to happen, our delighting in God’s Word will translate into joyous living according to the commandments and promises of the Lord.

Do the people closest to you know that you delight in the Word of God?

Psalm 119.171-176 (Regent Square: “Angels from the Realms of Glory”)
With our lips we praise You, Jesus, for You teach us full and free.
Now Your Word will ever please us; Your commandment, true shall be.
Let Your hand come forth to ease us; we Your Word choose gratefully!

For Your saving grace we plead, Lord, and Your Law is our delight.
We to live and praise You need, Lord, all Your help by day and night.
Straying sheep, we do not heed, Lord; come and seek us by Your might!

Lord, teach me to delight in Your Word!

Improve your Bible reading!
You can, you know, if you learn to read the Bible as God intends. We’ve prepared a brief guide called Reading Right, Reading Wrong that can help you improve your reading of Scripture so that you will delight in God’s Word as He intends. It’s free, of course, and all you have to do to receive it is drop me a line at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and request it.

And if you haven’t visited The Scriptorium at The Fellowship of Ailbe website, I encourage you to do so. This week we finish our study of Ecclesiastes, and study guides for all 12 chapters will be available by later today. They can help you go deeper in God’s Word. Each study includes explanation of the text, questions for meditation and discussion, and steps to take in putting your learning to work. Scriptorium studies are suitable for use in groups, so put a group together and study this very important and relevant Old Testament book. Next week we begin 1 and 2 Peter, and you’ll find those studies at The Scriptorium as well.

Psalms to Pray for Today and Tuesday
Today
Morning: Psalm 119.9-16; Psalm 121
Evening: Psalm 45

Tuesday
Morning: Psalm 119.17-24; Psalm 122
Evening: Psalm 46

T. M. Moore, Principal
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All Psalms for singing from The Ailbe Psalter. Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.