What is faith? Having faith is often compared to sitting on a chair: when we sit, we have faith that the chair will hold our weight and not collapse. The problem with this analogy is that a chair is impersonal. It has not made any promises to you that it will hold you up. In contrast, faith that the Bible refers to is personal. It is having trust in someone, not something. For example, we trust people and what they say to us, even though they let us down sometimes. But God can always be trusted because His word is true. Trusting God is the wonderful refrain in Psalm 56 (vv. 3-4 and 10-11).

The superscription above the psalm reads, ″To the tune of 'A Dove on Distant Oaks'″. This tells us that David wrote these songs for everyone to sing in the gathered assembly. While the situation he described was particular to his own life, each of God's people can sing the song and apply the words to their own situation.

David had a particular event in mind when he wrote this psalm. 1 Samuel 21:10-15 tells of the time when David sought refuge from Saul in Gath, a Philistine city. Given that David was their sworn enemy, this was a brave and risky thing to do. So ″he feigned insanity″ and ″acted like a madman″ (v. 13) while hiding in Gath. Despite this ruse, David sensed the hostility of the city. These people are probably the enemies he describes here in Psalm 56.

The psalm can be divided into two parts. In verses 1-8, David laments his situation and asks for deliverance. His enemies are scheming relentlessly, ″hoping to take my life″ (Psalm 56:6). We are reminded of the Jewish leaders who, from the early days in Jesus' ministry, conspired together ″how they might kill Jesus″ (Mark 3:6). David asks God to ″list my tears in your scroll″ (Psalm 56:8). With this beautiful picture, David asks God to remember all the sufferings he has endured because of his faithfulness. This recording of David's unjust treatment also provides a basis for the Lord's judgment on those who've made him suffer (v. 9). It's a wonderful comfort to know that God both sees and remembers the sufferings of His people.

In the second part of the psalm (vv. 9-13), David expresses his confidence that God will answer his prayer. David had experienced God's deliverance in the past and, more importantly, God had promised him the kingdom. Of course, at this point in David's life, it didn't look like he'd be king one day. He was surrounded by enemies. But David trusted God's word. This is faith. God has spoken. We believe that His word is true and He will bring it to fulfilment in our life.