Shopping for an Independence Day barbecue, you face a barrage of questions that can be summed up as: “Which one?”

Sweet relish or spicy? Dijon, honey or traditional yellow mustard? All-American Heinz ketchup or the more wallet-friendly store lookalike brand? For ice cream, there is rocky road or cookies and cream. What about vanilla? French vanilla, vanilla bean, or “regular”? And which brand—Breyers, Ben & Jerry’s, Turkey Hill, or Haagen-Dazs? As for drinks, imported or domestic beer? Hoppy or malty?

You cannot forget the extra flare. What about glow sticks, American mini-flags, and Uncle Sam hats? Or a smattering of fireworks: sparklers, colorful fountains, or bottle rockets?

The number of options available to American consumers can shock even those from developed European nations. But this is July 4, after all, so isn’t it fitting that it is celebrated with a little panache?

Founding Father John Adams thought so. Writing to his wife Abigail, he stated that American independence will go down as “the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival…It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.”

But beyond bratwurst and bombast, the day was intended to mark the birth of a miracle nation—which is evidenced by the abundance and freedoms it experiences today. Adams also wrote, “It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.”

“Standing Miracle”

Historian Jack Kelly, a contributor to History and National Public Radio, wrote: “George Washington called the American victory in the Revolutionary War ‘little short of a standing miracle.’ In 1776, an overwhelming British army had defeated his poorly trained force, driven them out of New York City, and chased them across New Jersey. Washington then lost Philadelphia, and his men had barely survived the wretched winter at Valley Forge. In 1780, the British captured the major southern port at Charleston, imprisoning the American garrison there, and utterly defeated a second patriot army. Before that year was out, his long-suffering troops were on the verge of mutiny and one of his senior generals had gone over to the enemy.

“A year later he had effectively won the war. How was it possible?”

Mr. Kelly posited that the British should have won the war given their longstanding military establishment, naval superiority, and the fact that many colonists were loyal to the British crown. While the French provided additional guns, soldiers, food, ships and training needed to wage a lasting war, ultimately the Americans won seemingly by no feat of their own.

He continued: “Again and again during the war, they reached points when they could have thrown in the towel. At times, the Continental Army seemed only weeks or days from disbanding. In spite of defeat after defeat, in spite of no pay, rampant disease and inadequate supplies, they kept at it.”

Eventually the British lost interest when their attention was diverted to a conflict with Spain over Gibraltar. At this point, the empire recognized America’s autonomy.

While winning the fight was impressive by itself, the new nation of 13 loosely connected states cobbled together a constitution that has remained in place since 1787. By comparison, constitutions in other countries have an average lifespan of 17 years.

The miracle of independence was just the first instance of divine providence for America. Yet similar astounding events happened at every step during its rise to sensational power and prestige.

Manifest Destiny

Almost immediately at the turn of the century, America went through one of the greatest growth spurts in history. The U.S. more than tripled in size in less than 100 years.

In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson made the Louisiana Purchase—a vast territory that stretched from the Gulf of Mexico to the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains—from France for a meager $15 million. Adjusting for inflation, this would be roughly $300 million today.

Nonprofit firm Earth Economics estimated that if just the “natural capital” of the Mississippi River Delta were treated as an economic asset, its value could approach $1.3 trillion dollars. And this does not include all the other natural resources throughout the territory that made it even more valuable. The acquisition practically doubled America’s size, subsequently motivating millions to leave their homes in search of economic opportunities—namely land ownership and farming.

This was vastly different from what was occurring in Europe. According to History: “In Europe, large numbers of factory workers formed a dependent and seemingly permanent working class; by contrast, in the United States, the western frontier offered the possibility of independence and upward mobility for all.”

With the Louisiana Purchase, the 27-year-old nation began to be fueled by the notion of “manifest destiny,” a phrase coined by journalist John O’Sullivan in 1845. Americans felt it was their responsibility to “overspread and to possess the whole of the [land] which Providence has given us,” the reporter noted (ibid.).

Piece by piece, the nation’s property rapidly expanded—Spain ceded Florida in 1819—Texas became attached to the United States in 1845—a year later, Great Britain gave the Oregon Territory to the U.S.—and in 1848, Mexico ceded territories of California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona. America’s “great leap westward” from the Atlantic to the Pacific was complete in half a century.

In 1867, another rich piece of land fell in America’s lap. The nation purchased Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million—two cents per acre—or just $110 million today. Some homes in Southern California are valued at twice that price!

Some considered the acquisition of Alaska a mistake. An American editorial labeled it a “sucked orange”—a tundra bare of resources. Of course, hindsight shows this was completely wrong.

The view that Alaska was a barren wasteland changed after a gold rush in 1893 and discoveries of vast oil reserves later. The land was also an important barrier from the Soviet Union as well as a strategic military base in the northern Pacific during the two world wars.

Hawaii was annexed in 1898 and Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain the same year. Both of these have been vital naval ports and natural barriers against invading forces during times of conflict.

The total cost of America’s territory after adjusting for inflation? $1.6 billion dollars. Considering that the U.S. spends over $600 billion each year on defense spending, it was a small price to pay to create the greatest nation on Earth.

Resource Rich

“The Greater Mississippi Basin together with the Intracoastal Waterway has more kilometers of navigable internal waterways than the rest of the world combined,” according to Stratfor, a geopolitical intelligence company. “The American Midwest is both overlaid by this waterway and is the world’s largest contiguous piece of farmland. The U.S. Atlantic Coast possesses more major ports than the rest of the Western Hemisphere combined. Two vast oceans insulated the United States from Asian and European powers, deserts separate the United States from Mexico to the south, while lakes and forests separate the population centers in Canada from those in the United States.”

These lands contain world-renowned natural wonders including the Grand Canyon, Redwood Forest—home to the tallest and oldest trees on Earth—and Yellowstone, which houses the majority of the world’s geysers. Yellowstone was also America’s first national park, a concept of natural preservation that spread worldwide. Besides their beauty and natural resources, these features are a boon for scientific research and tourism.

This exceptional landscape allows for highly efficient agriculture. Stratfor continued: “Normally, agricultural areas as large as the American Midwest are underutilized as the cost of shipping their output to more densely populated regions cuts deeply into the economics of agriculture. The Eurasian steppe is an excellent example. Even in modern times Russian and Kazakh crops occasionally rot before they can reach market. Massive artificial transport networks must be constructed and maintained in order for the land to reach its full potential. Not so in the case of the Greater Mississippi Basin. The vast bulk of the prime agricultural lands are within 200 kilometers of a stretch of navigable river. Road and rail are still used for collection, but nearly omnipresent river ports allow for the entirety of the basin’s farmers to easily and cheaply ship their products to markets not just in North America but all over the world.”

By contrast, Mexico does not even have one navigable river to transport crops to a market.

Given the central location of the continent, the United States also has a perfect balance of temperate climates and vast flatlands. Mexico and Central America possess too many wetlands and mountainous regions for large-scale farming while Canada is generally too cold.

The United States’ unique geography allows it to be the world’s top agricultural exporter today. Most exports are staple foods for the rest of the globe, including 50 percent of the world’s corn and soybeans, as well as one-fifth of its wheat.

Yet the nation’s accomplishments go beyond farming. In fact, it stands out in nearly every other endeavor today.

Economy: The U.S. GDP is more than $18 trillion. This amounts to nearly $60,000 per capita. While China comes in second with a GDP of nearly $11 trillion, its per capita GDP is only about $8,000. In addition, the U.S.-run NYSE and NASDAQ are bigger than the next largest six international stock exchanges combined.

Industry: According to the U.S. Council on Competitiveness, the country ranks first in manufacturing, research, technology and innovation. To this day, it is the only one to put men on the moon and is the birthplace of world-changing developments such as aviation and the internet.

Humanitarianism: While difficult to calculate, Americans provide about half of all global food aid—$2 billion per year.

Military: The U.S. has the most powerful and versatile armed forces. America’s Air Force is the largest in the world. If combined, the Navy and Marine Corps would be the world’s second largest air force. The United States has the highest military budget of any nation—roughly $600 billion per year (compared to China’s $216 billion)—as well as the greatest number of foreign bases and allies.

Standard of living: In 2014, the median income was $48,000. Even those below the poverty line (50 percent of the median income) received benefits from government programs such as food stamps and public housing. Approximately 80 percent of poor households have air-conditioning and two-thirds have cable or satellite television.

In addition, spending per person in the U.S. is nearly twice the European average. Approximately 95 percent of American households own a car, with roughly 55 percent owning two or more. About 84 percent of households have a computer and 73 percent have internet access.

From independence to becoming a global superpower, America is the ultimate success story—what Washington could still call “little short of a standing miracle.”

Was this all through human effort?

Source of Miracles

In 1789, while being sworn in as the first president of the U.S., Washington randomly opened the Bible to Genesis 49 and placed his hand there. As he pondered the future of the newborn nation and the importance of his position, he had no idea that, underneath his hand, America’s prosperous future had already been laid out.

David C. Pack’s book America and Britain in Prophecy discusses this universally ignored chapter in the Bible.

“Genesis 49 contains the patriarch Israel’s latter-day prophecies for the descendants of each of his sons. God inspired this description to be recorded because He also intended that the final homelands of these peoples be known.”

Verse 1 of the chapter opens with, “Jacob called his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.”

Dozens of other Bible prophecies about “the last days” prove we are in that time! (Read the booklet, Are These the Last Days? for proof.)

The prophecy in Genesis describes the future of each tribe of Israel, represented by each of Jacob’s 13 sons. The most obvious example is that the Jews are the modern-day descendants of Judah.

“Jacob’s prophecy foretells Judah will be a ‘lion’s whelp,’” Mr. Pack continued. “A whelp is another name for a young lion cub. Jacob prophesied that Judah would be a very young nation in the latter-day period of time. This describes the modern Israeli nation, which was ‘born’ in 1948 and is still a ‘young nation’ by today’s standards.”

The Bible shows that the descendants of Jacob’s son Joseph would also be clearly noticeable, as they were given a distinctly higher number and quality of blessings.

Mr. Pack writes: “As the primary subject of this book, ‘Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall: the archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: but his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob…’ (Gen. 49:22-24).

“In this scripture, Joseph—the father of Ephraim and Manasseh—is likened to a fruitful bough or branch, most likely an olive branch. Joseph is also described as being shot by archers.

“Later, Joseph’s descendants are further described: ‘His glory is like the firstling of his bullock, and his horns are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth: and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh’ (Deut. 33:17).

“With these descriptions divided between both sons, Manasseh’s primary emblem was that of an olive branch, and his secondary emblem a cache of arrows. Also attached to Manasseh’s ensign was the number 13, since he was the thirteenth tribe.”

Interestingly, the official seal of the U.S. features an eagle carrying an olive branch and a cache of arrows, as well as 13 stars. This is an interesting link between America and the symbols described in the Bible for Manasseh.

Another key to identifying these nations is in Genesis 48, in which Joseph’s two sons were given separate blessings.

Verse 19 states that Manasseh “also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.”

Scour the record of history. There are only two brother nations with a common heritage where one was a massive empire (a “multitude” or “company of nations”) and the other became a single, great nation. These are the United Kingdom and the United States.

Best Gifts

In Genesis 49, Jacob outlined more specifically the blessings that both America and Britain were to experience in the latter days.

Material wealth: “…the Almighty…shall bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies under…” (vs. 25).

The United States has the most varied weather patterns on the planet, contributing to diverse wildlife, plants and landscapes. The nation also has a greater concentration of natural resources in the ground and waters it controls than any other geographic location. It was the world’s highest oil producer for much of the 20th century, and today produces nearly as much as top-oil producers Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Military power and divine deliverance: “The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob…” (vs. 23-24).

The United States has experienced overwhelming victories in strategic wars and battles.

Global expansion and influence: “Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall” (vs. 22).

Joseph’s descendants are pictured expanding over their territorial limits. This speaks to the significant benefits, symbolized by fruit, America would share with the world.

Mr. Pack wrote: “Recall that, anciently, Joseph himself stored food in Egypt and helped other peoples and nations as a result. When God’s blessings were still being poured out upon our peoples without measure…over and over, our blessings became blessings to other nations of the world. This same spirit in modern Joseph—Ephraim and Manasseh—gave birth to the Alliance for Progress, Marshall Plan, Hoover Program, Four Point Program and so many others that saved millions from starvation after World War I and World War II. No other nations ever did any of these things, let alone all of them.”

Possessing the gates of enemies: “…let your seed possess the gate of those which hate them” (Gen. 24:60).

This prophecy to Rebekah, Jacob’s mother, was fulfilled when her descendants owned strategic positions throughout the world. These included America’s possession of the Philippines, Hawaii and the Panama Canal, as well as Britain’s access to Gibraltar, Suez, India, Hong Kong, South Africa, and Australia, among many others.

America has consistently “brought the battle” to its enemies’ homelands—from the Mexican War to the world wars to the War on Terror—but the nation’s cities have never been directly bombed in war, neither have foreign armies fielded ground battles on American soil.

“America’s forefathers could never have envisioned this nation as the global superpower it became,” Mr. Pack summarized in his book. “The United States has continually been at the forefront of economic prosperity, medical science, technology, food production, sanitation, architecture, space exploration, etc. Its citizens enjoy freedoms unattainable to so many. The income and standard of living for most Americans, Britons, Australians and Canadians is far higher than even most other industrialized nations.”

“But we have forgotten where these blessings came from!”

The nation’s citizens take for granted the incredible miracle of America. And because the nation does not realize the true source and reason for its unique power and status, it is blind to the role it will play in the future.

But the knowledge is freely available. America and Britain in Prophecy provides the real story of these nations’ history, and shows their destiny—straight from the Bible.