Just before we recite the Song of the Sea, we recite a short summary of Jewish history taken from the Book of Nehemiah, a spiritual and national leader who lived around 450 BCE.
First, he points out that G-d was the maker of heaven and earth.
Second, he emphasizes that this G-d, maker of heaven and earth, is “Ad-nai our G-d,” who chose Abram.
Third, G-d promised to give the Land of Israel to Abraham’s descendants (i.e., us).
Fourth, G-d has fulfilled His promise.
Fifth, G-d saw our suffering in Egypt and rescued us, casting the Egyptian pursuers into the sea.
Why was it necessary to include this historical overview? The answer reflects one of the most fundamental, unique and controversial ideas in Jewish theology. The previous set of Psalms in the siddur (including the Ashrei) sing G-d’s praises in a general sense (goodness, mercy, justice, greatness, power, etc.). What’s missing from this picture, for the most part, is any specific centering of Israel (Land and People) in what is referred to as “the Divine economy.”
While Judaism certainly recognizes the universal aspect of G-d’s rule, it is in addition insistent on the unique, intimate, and virtually personal relationship between G-d and Israel.
Known in theological circles as “the scandal of particularity,” this stubborn insistence drove Christian theologians crazy. Believing in the universal G-d of heaven and earth is, relatively speaking, easy. Believing that that same G-d can focus on a very specific group of beings (Jews, i.e., us) in a very particular land on a very particular planet is, for many, a bridge too far. The great irony, of course, is that Christianity maintained that G-d was perfectly capable of focusing on one particular man.
Be that as it may, the essential impact of this particularity is national and personal responsibility. Being Jewish, being the subject of G-d’s promises concerning Israel and the beneficiary of G-d’s rescue from Egypt, obligates us in myriad ways. So when we are davening, we are underscoring both the greatness of G-d and the greatness of our obligations.