Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Recites Pulp Fiction Monologue as Biblical Prayer

Pete Hegseth, the United States Secretary of Defense, delivered a prayer at a Pentagon worship service on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, that closely mirrored the fictional monologue from Quentin Tarantino's 1994 film "Pulp Fiction," presenting it to the audience as a biblical passage drawn from the Old Testament book of Ezekiel. Hegseth introduced the text as "CSAR 25:17," describing it as a prayer used by a Combat Search and Rescue team that had recently rescued a downed Air Force colonel from a mountain in Iran after his fighter jet was shot down. He invited the audience to pray along with him before reciting the passage, which begins: "The path of the fallen airman is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men." The Pentagon has not commented on the incident, and it remains unclear, according to multiple reports, whether Hegseth was aware he was quoting a film rather than scripture.

Tarantino's script versus the actual biblical text The actual verse Ezekiel 25:17 in the Bible is substantially shorter and contains none of the language Hegseth used for most of his recitation. The genuine biblical text reads: "And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them." In the 1994 Tarantino film, the character Jules Winnfield, played by Samuel L. Jackson, recites a significantly expanded version of this verse just before executing a character — a monologue that appears three times in the film. Hegseth's version tracked the film dialogue closely, substituting "fallen airman" for "righteous man" and replacing the film's closing line "you will know I am the Lord" with a reference to the military call sign "Sandy One." According to reporting by The Guardian, Newsweek presented a side-by-side comparison of all three texts — the Bible verse, the Jackson film dialogue, and Hegseth's Pentagon recitation — finding that Hegseth's version aligned far more closely with the Tarantino screenplay than with scripture. Critics described the episode as a "shocking mix of ignorance and theatricality" and "Hollywood cosplay," according to reporting by Open. Ezekiel 25:17 — Three Versions: Length (before: Short — one sentence in the Bible, after: Extended — multiple sentences in both Pulp Fiction and Hegseth versions); 'Path of the righteous/fallen man' phrase (before: Absent from the Bible, after: Present in both Pulp Fiction and Hegseth's recitation); 'Tyranny of evil men' phrase (before: Absent from the Bible, after: Present in both Pulp Fiction and Hegseth's recitation); Closing attribution (before: 'I am the Lord' (Bible and Pulp Fiction), after: 'Sandy One' (Hegseth's Pentagon version))

Cooper meeting preceded the sermon, Pharisee comparison followed Before delivering the prayer, Hegseth told the audience he had discussed with Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of United States Central Command, how religious precepts influence political and military decisions, according to Le Parisien citing Forbes. Hegseth said the CSAR prayer had been shared with him by the leader of the rescue mission and that it drew on certain terms from Ezekiel 25:17, without acknowledging its near-identical resemblance to the Tarantino monologue. The following day, Thursday, April 16, Hegseth stirred further controversy at a Pentagon press briefing by comparing members of the press corps to Pharisees, the religious movement depicted as antagonists of Jesus in the New Testament. „Sitting there in church, I thought: our press is exactly like these Pharisees — not all of you, not all — but the traditional press, the one that hates Trump.” — Pete Hegseth via 20 minutos Religious references have become a recurring feature of Hegseth's public appearances as he has repeatedly invoked Christian scripture to frame the ongoing US military campaign against Iran.

Impeachment articles filed, broader religious controversy widens Democratic lawmakers have introduced articles of impeachment against Hegseth in Congress, accusing him of war crimes related to the Iran conflict, abuse of power, and mismanagement, according to The Guardian and 20 minutos. The effort is not expected to succeed given the Republican majority in Congress. The Pulp Fiction episode fits into a broader pattern of friction between the Trump administration and religious authorities, which has also included controversy over an AI-generated image depicting President Donald Trump in the likeness of Jesus Christ — an image Trump reportedly attempted to explain by saying he had been depicted as a "doctor," according to Open. The similarity between Hegseth's recitation and the Tarantino dialogue was first widely noticed on social media, where users flagged the near-word-for-word overlap. The Pentagon had not issued any clarification or statement on the matter as of Thursday evening, according to multiple reports.

The US-Israel military campaign against Iran, known as Operation Epic Fury, began on February 28, 2026. The operation resulted in the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the initial strikes. His son Mojtaba Khamenei was subsequently appointed Supreme Leader on March 9, 2026. Hegseth has conducted a series of worship services at the Pentagon framed as blessings for the Iran war effort. The Pulp Fiction monologue, written by Quentin Tarantino for his 1994 film, is one of the most recognizable pieces of dialogue in modern cinema and has been widely analyzed as a meditation on violence, nihilism, and redemption.