"Turn us again, O LORD God of hosts, cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved."

Around the time Jesus was born, there was a group of religious, poor people who still hoped for God to save them. They knew that salvation couldn't and wouldn't happen without a significant price to pay, both for themselves and for God. In his Servant Songs, Isaiah had given hints about this (cf. Isaiah 53). They had been through it in their own past. So, from the bottom of their hearts, they admitted that they didn't have the power to save and deliver people. This power had to come from God and be given to people who wanted to change their lives with God's help. God had to give it to them. They had to seek His face and feel His presence every day. We must, too!