The exiles returned from Babylon to a ruined city and a neglected land. This short hymn expresses the trust that upheld this ‘remnant of Israel’. The silent plea of the ‘eyes’ highlights the simplicity of the psalm. It is so straightforward that it would hardly need to be adapted to a true Christian heart. The eyes we turn to God with are the eyes of a child who is confident that he is loved; they are not the eyes of an anxious servant. Encouraging us to say: ‘Father!’ our Lord wants us to see ourselves as children. Let us sing this psalm like a child.