The Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael continues its portrait of the extraordinary dialogue between Israel and the Holy Spirit with another matched pair of verses. When Israel proclaims (Deuteronomy 4:7), "Who is like the Lord our God in all our calling unto Him?"—marveling that the Creator of the universe actually listens when they pray—the Holy Spirit immediately responds with the verse that follows in the same chapter: "And who is a great nation that has God near to it?"
The pattern is the same as the preceding teaching, but the emphasis shifts. Here the focus is not on God's unity or Israel's happiness, but on something more intimate: nearness. Israel is astonished that God is accessible. Among all the powers and forces in the universe, the Supreme Being actually hears prayer. And in response, the Holy Spirit is equally astonished—in a sense—that among all the peoples of the earth, there exists a nation that has earned such closeness.
The rabbis who compiled the Mekhilta understood this exchange as evidence that the covenant between God and Israel is not one-sided. It is not simply that Israel worships and God receives. Rather, both parties marvel at the relationship. Israel cannot believe its good fortune in having a God who listens. God—speaking through the Holy Spirit—cannot help but celebrate the people who call upon Him.
This teaching from Tractate Shirah emerges from the Song at the Sea, where Israel first experienced God's dramatic intervention on their behalf. That moment of salvation at the Red Sea established a permanent channel of communication. The Mekhilta is saying: that channel remains open. Every prayer Israel offers upward is met by a divine declaration coming back down. Nearness, once established at the sea, was never withdrawn.