A survey found that nearly half of Americans do not know what the 4th of July is about:
Nearly half of Americans don’t know what 4th of July is about – poll
3 July 2026
Nearly half of Americans do not know what the country’s 250th anniversary is actually celebrating, despite overwhelming majorities saying they are proud and grateful to be American, according to the Cato Institute.
The milestone commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, when the 13 American colonies declared independence from Great Britain.
The think tank published its Fourth of July national survey on Thursday, saying the poll of 2,253 US adults was conducted by Morning Consult on June 25-26. It found “civic ignorance” about US history and the system of government, with 46% of Americans not knowing what the country’s 250th anniversary commemorates, while 53% correctly identified it as the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.
The confusion was sharpest among young adults. Nearly two-thirds of respondents aged roughly 18 to 26 (often referred to as Generation Z), 61%, did not know what America’s 250th anniversary commemorates, while only 39% correctly linked the celebration to the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. https://www.rt.com/news/642526-americans-july-four/
This is shocking for several reasons. One of which is that nearly all adults in the USA were required to take some version of American History/Civics in high school. So, one would think that over 90% of Americans would know.
Furthermore, it is pretty obvious that many lawmakers and others in governmental positions, while likely knowing what happened on the 4th of July in 1776, do not understand why as many laws and regulations go against what the USA was supposed to stand for. For more on that, check out the following post from earlier today: The USA does not live up to its Declaration of Independence.
That being said, although there are multiple millions of Bibles in the USA, the vast majority of its people do not realize that the USA was prophesied to be great in the Book of Genesis.
Here are some passages of scripture, citations, and comments from my free eBook Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America?:
The Bible shows that Isaac had two sons. And that Isaac ended up giving the following blessing to his son Jacob:
26 Then his father Isaac said to him, … 28 … may God give you Of the dew of heaven, Of the fatness of the earth, And plenty of grain and wine. 29 Let peoples serve you, And nations bow down to you. Be master over your brethren, And let your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, And blessed be those who bless you!” (Genesis 27:26,28-29)
Not long thereafter, Jacob fell in love with Rachel (Genesis 29:18). Their first son she named Joseph, meaning He (God) will add (Genesis 30:24).
When Jacob was older, God renamed him Israel (Genesis 32:28). When he was even older, he passed on his name and gave blessings to Joseph’s two sons:
11 And Israel said to Joseph, “I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!” …
15 And he blessed Joseph, and said:
“God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has fed me all my life long to this day, 16 The Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, Bless the lads; Let my name be named upon them, And the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; And let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
17 Now when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him; so he took hold of his father’s hand to remove it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. 18 And Joseph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.”
19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations.”
20 So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will bless, saying, ‘May God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh!’ “
21 Then Israel said to Joseph, “… 22 Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow.” (Genesis 48:11,15-22).
In Genesis 48, Jacob is clearly indicating that biblically one or both of the sons of Joseph could be referred to by the name Israel (though Ephraim looks to be referred to more as Israel than Manasseh through scripture) and seemingly also Jacob. …
A Nation and Multitude of Nations
Israel promised that Manasseh would become a great nation and Ephraim a multitude of nations.
Here is something from a Jewish source (Yair Davidiy), followed by that source citing a different source:
Joseph: Menasseh U.S.A. The United States of America[i]
From the West of England and from Wales, Scotland, and Ireland the United States of America received approximately 87% of its British immigrants in its formative period. In other words, early American society was formed largely by groups from the Tribe of Manasseh.[ii]
We in the Continuing Church of God believe that the United States received the blessings to Manasseh and did become a great nation. The Encyclopedia Britannica once reported:
The United States is the world’s greatest economic power, measured in terms of gross domestic product (GDP). … The United States is relatively young by world standards, being less than 250 years old; it achieved its current size only in the mid-20th century. … Probably no other country has a wider range of racial, ethnic, and cultural types than does the United States. … Annually, the U.S. spends more on its military than the next seven highest-ranking countries in military spending combined.[iii] …
Although the birthright was originally Reuben’s, he lost it and it went to Ephraim (1 Chronicles 5:1-2). … when it comes to wealth and territory, Reuben-France sold off much territory (828,000 square miles) in the form of the Louisiana Purchase to the then rising U.S.A. in 1803.
From the 19th century to present, the U.S.A. and United Kingdom have dominated the world (though this will be lost later in the 21st century). They have received the blessings that God promised them through Jacob.
Notice something that was told to the wife of Isaac:
60 “Our sister, may you become The mother of thousands of ten thousands; And may your descendants possess The gates of those who hate them” (Genesis 24:60).
We do not see in history that the Jews possessed the gates of those who hate them. Yet, in the 19th and/or 20th centuries, many of the major sea gates of the world were possessed/controlled by the United States (Panama Canal and several locations in the Pacific ocean) and the British Empire (Straits of Malacca, Singapore, Suez Canal, Bab el Mandeb, Strait of Hormuz, Hong Kong, Simon’s Town/Cape of Good Hope, etc.). And while that is no longer the case for many of them, they seem to have been prophesied to be taken away for disobedience as well:
58 “If you do not carefully observe all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, THE LORD YOUR GOD, 59 then the Lord will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary plagues — great and prolonged plagues — and serious and prolonged sicknesses. … 63 And it shall be, that just as the Lord rejoiced over you to do you good and multiply you, so the Lord will rejoice over you to destroy you and bring you to nothing; and you shall be plucked from off the land which you go to possess. (Deuteronomy 28:58-59,63).
Certainly, these nations have disobeyed the God of Abraham. It appears that the remaining “sea gates” that the UK has such as Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands will be separated from UK control.
Partially related to the prophecy about Joseph’s bow being strong in Deuteronomy 33:22-26, the Jews have a tradition that the descendants of Joseph would reign over the ten tribes in a military way:
The Malibim (1809-1879) on Masiach ben Yosef
#Our Sacred Sages had a tradition in the beginning
[of the End Times] there would arise a Messiah [i.e. Anointed Savior] from the House of Joseph, who will reign over the Ten Tribes. He will wage war and all of Israel will be gathered under his banner.[iv]
While the U.K. and later the U.S.A. did not necessarily officially rule over the other ten tribes and no one Messiah came up from them, they led the allied fight in World War II and had support from descendants from almost all the tribes of Israel. The U.S.A. and U.K. have ruled the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) which directly includes the descendants of most (and in a way, all) of the tribes, and plus the U.S.A. and U.K. have also provided some type of protection to all of the other tribes.
That being said, the Bible warns about trusting in Mount Samaria (prophetically, the U.S.A.) in the end times (Amos 6:1)—which Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK do militarily.
Here is a bit more from a Jewish source:
The Malbim {Meir Leibush ben Yehiel Michel Wisser} interprets the blessing of Jacob (Genesis 48) to Ephraim would become great before Manasseh. Ephraim would become great through his own merits and self-assertion almost from the beginning. Manasseh would wait until the vast numbers of his population and the weight of his blessing would of itself result in greatness. We identify Ephraim with the British and Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the whites of South Africa. The USA is Manasseh. The interpretation of the Malbim concerning Ephraim and Manasseh fits historic reality.[v]
And Ephraim did arise first, followed by Manasseh’s rise.
Samaria
Some Christians have taught that:
The peoples of the United States and Britain are actually descended from the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, which were part of the kingdom of Israel. The United States and Britain are often referred to in biblical prophecy as the “house of Israel,” “all Israel,” “Jacob,” “Ephraim,” “Samaria” and “Isaac.”[vi]
As far as the U.S.A. goes, some may wonder about its high degree of ethnic diversity.
By Jesus’ time, the Samaritans were only partially, Israelites—even though they claimed to be from the tribe of Joseph.[vii] The Bible shows that they were highly ethnically mixed (2 Kings 17:24). Apparently, though, those of Samaritan cities were not considered Israelitish by Jesus (cf. Matthew 10:5). Yet, Peter, Philip, and John later did preach to people in a Samaritan city (Acts 8:5,14).
As it turns out, some of the prophecies related to Manasseh instead refer to it as Samaria:
8 The Lord sent a word against Jacob, And it has fallen on Israel. 9 All the people will know — Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria … 21 Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh; Together they shall be against Judah. (Isaiah 9:8-9,21)
1 “When I would have healed Israel, Then the iniquity of Ephraim was uncovered, And the wickedness of Samaria. (Hosea 7:1)
So, we see that Ephraim and Samaria are separate and at the end Ephraim and Manasseh (who was referred to as Samaria by Isaiah and Hosea) are separate. Hence, while Ephraim is not Samaria, sometimes it appears that Manasseh is (cf. Hosea 7:1). Isaiah 9 seems to suggest that some of peoples who are alluded to in Psalm 83 (discussed later) will also harass Ephraim and Manasseh after they have suffered. Isaiah 9 ties the identity of Manasseh in with prophetic Samaria—Amos 6:1, Jeremiah 31:5-6, and Obadiah 19 seem too as well.
In addition to the intermingling that occurred in ancient Samaria, Samaria was part of the old territory of Manasseh:
The hill of Samaria was in the tribal territory of Manasseh, but apparently was not significantly inhabited until the time of King Omri (Ahab’s father). For the next 160 years, the city was the capital of the northern kingdom, apparently reaching a size of 150 acres (as large as Jerusalem in Hezekiah’s time). Samaria is well situated with steep slopes on all sides.[viii]
23 Omri became king over Israel, and reigned twelve years. Six years he reigned in Tirzah. 24 And he bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver; then he built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, Samaria, after the name of Shemer, owner of the hill. (1 Kings 16:23-24)
Northern Samaria is often referred to by its biblical tribal designation: Manasseh.[ix]
Jewish scholars have, also, long recognized that the Samaritans were of mixed Israelite and non-Israelite heritage.[x] Scripture shows that some of the poorer Israelites were allowed to remain as laborers and not be taken away by the Babylonians (2 Kings 25:12), hence they apparently interbred with the peoples the Assyrians brought to their ancestral land (2 Kings 17:24).
Scripturally, some have pointed to 2 Chronicles 34:9 as further proof that there were descendants of Manasseh and Ephraim that remained in Samaria (or perhaps returned there). Furthermore, since Herodotus reported that Scythian armies entered Palestine[xi] in what is considered to be the Samaritan region, some may have sired children and/or stayed there.
That said, the 16th century Jewish sage Isaac Arbarbanel equated prophesies of Samaria to being the tribe of Manasseh. [xii]
It is interesting to note that while a mixture of peoples, those identifying themselves as Samaritans have claimed to be from the tribe of Joseph. A Midrash from 300-500 A.D. (Genesis Rabbah Sect. 94,) relates about an encounter between a Jewish rabbi and a Samaritan and includes the following dialogue:
- Meir asks the Samaritan: What tribe are you from?
The Samaritan answers: From Joseph.
- Meir: No! [xiii]
The following from a Jewish source related to Obadiah:
[Obadiah 1:19] AND THEY OF THE SOUTH SHALL POSSESS THE MOUNT OF ESAU; AND THEY OF THE PLAIN THE PHILISTINES: AND THEY SHALL POSSESS THE FIELDS OF EPHRAIM, AND THE FIELDS OF SAMARIA: AND BENJAMIN SHALL POSSESS GILEAD.
Samaria means Menasseh (says Daat Sofrim) who according to Rashi shall possess the Gilead.[xiv]
Yes, there are reasons to consider that Manasseh is prophetic Samaria.
As far as those calling themselves Samaritans in the Holy Land in the 21st century, the Israelite Samaritan Information Institute has claimed that there are Samaritan descendants of the houses of Manasseh and Ephraim there.[xv] Some believe that the Samaritans have forgotten their true ancestry. [xvi]
That being said, the ethnic diversity of the population of the United States, with the majority seemingly not being Manassites, is consistent with it representing prophetic Samaria.
[i] Davidy Y. The Tribes. Russell-Davis Publishers, Israel. 1993, p. 403
[ii] Davidiy, p. 426. #Kephart, apparently a reference to– Calvin Kephart, “Races of Mankind, Their Origin and Migration,” N.Y. 1960, pp.437-438
[iii] Harris, JT, et al. United States. Encyclopædia Britannica. Updated December 22, 2019
[iv] Davidiy, p. 205
[v] Davidiy, p. 384
[vi] THE MINOR PROPHETS SPEAK TO US! Youth Bible Lessons, Level 7, Lesson 9, 1986, p. 2
[vii] “Samaritans” in Encyclopaedia Judaica, 1972, Volume 14, col. 727, as cited in Louvish M. Religious life and communities. Keter Books, 1974, p. 61
[viii] Samaria (Sebaste). http://www.bibleplaces.com/samaria.htm viewed 02/19/14
[ix] Killebrew A. Biblical peoples and ethnicity: an archaeological study of Egyptians, Canaanites, Philistines, and early Israel, 1300–1100 B.C.E. Society of Biblical Lit, 2005, p. 159
[x] Jacobs J, Raison J. Samaritans, Jewish Encyclopedia of 1906, Volume 10, pp. 669-681
[xi] Herodotus, pp. 133-137
[xii] Isaac Arbarbanel Commentary on Obadiah 19. Sefaria.org accessed 11/l7/22
[xiii] RABIN MISHNAH STUDY GROUP Mishnah study in the religious climate of Masorti (Conservative) Judaism by Rabbi Simchah Roth. BET MIDRASH VIRTUALI of the Rabbinical Assembly in Israel. February 27th 2003 / I Adar 25th 5763 [Sotah 083] http://www.bmv.org.il/shiurim/sotah/sot083.html accessed 01/20/17
[xiv] Davidiy Y. Commentary on the book of Obadiah. http://britam.org/obadiah.html accessed 11/17/22
[xv] Families. Israelite Samaritan Information Institute, https://www.israelite-samaritans.com/about-israelite-samaritans/families/ accessed 07/25/22
[xvi] Govier G, ed. Samaritan Park … Artifax, Volume 38 (3), Summer 2022, pp. 10-11
So, yes, the USA was prophesied to be great among the nations.
However, the great nation was also prophesied to turn its friends into enemies. Here is more from my free eBook Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America?:
According to the Bible, the time will come when the U.S.A. will find that continental Europe will be an enemy (cf. Isaiah 10:5-11) and not an ally (Ezekiel 23:4,9-10). The Bible warns:
1 How lonely sits the city That was full of people! How like a widow is she, Who was great among the nations! The princess among the provinces Has become a slave! 2 All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; They have become her enemies. (Lamentations 1:1-2)
The United States has been great among the nations and has been offending the Europeans. Europe will cooperate with the U.S.A. as long as it feels the relationship is beneficial, and then (as prophecy foretells) one day turn totally against the U.S.A.
For more on the identity of the tribes as well as prophetic ramifications for them, including the USA, is in the free eBook: Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America?
Some items of related interest may include:
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about the peoples of Africa, Asia, South America, and the islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon; When Will the End of the Age Come?; Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.
Were the Ancient Tribes of Israel Black? Was Jesus Black? Some claim this is so. But what do the Bible and ancient artifacts show? Here is a link to a related sermon video: Were Ancient Hebrews Black? What About Jesus?
Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New Who were the Samaritans? Do the represent true Christianity or something else? Here is a link to a related sermon: USA in Prophecy: Samaria.
Unintended Consequences and Donald Trump’s Presidency: Is Donald Trump Fulfilling Biblical, Islamic, Greco-Roman Catholic, Buddhist, and other America-Related Prophecies? Is Donald Trump going to save the USA or are there going to be many disastrous unintended consequences of his statements and policies? What will happen? This is a free eBook.