Outrage! Pentagon Chief Quotes "Fake" Bible Verse, Turns Out to Be Film Dialogue

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has caused a stir after delivering a prayer at a Pentagon service that turned out to resemble dialogue from the film Pulp Fiction. During the event, Hegseth led a prayer related to a US military pilot rescue mission in Iran, referring to it as “CSAR (Combat Search and Rescue) 25:17” and linking it to the Bible verse Ezekiel 25:17. However, the content of the prayer bore a strong resemblance to the famous monologue delivered by Samuel L. Jackson in Quentin Tarantino’s film. In his prayer, Hegseth recited a lengthy passage about a “path full of injustice and great wrath”, which was structurally and narratively almost identical to the fictional version in the film, not the original biblical text. For comparison, the actual Ezekiel 25:17 in the Bible is much shorter and does not contain such an extended narrative. The speech immediately drew public attention, particularly on social media, with many users questioning whether Hegseth realised the quote originated from a film rather than scripture. Quoting Al-Jazeera on Friday (17/4/2026), some comments even described the incident as “embarrassing”, highlighting the inconsistency between religious rhetoric and the source of the quotation used. This controversy arises amid rising geopolitical tensions, particularly the conflict involving the US and Iran. The prayer was delivered in the context of support for military operations, including the mission to rescue a pilot who crashed in Iranian territory. This has prompted broader criticism regarding the use of religious symbols and narratives in the context of war. The case also adds to the list of controversies in the Donald Trump administration, where issues of religion, politics, and the military often intersect. Meanwhile, according to The Guardian, Hegseth claimed the verse was given to him by one of the US Air Force pilots who conducted strikes against Iran. He did not acknowledge that most of the text was not holy scripture at all, but rather dialogue written by the film’s creators, produced in 1994. Hegseth himself is a member of the Reformed Evangelical Churches Fellowship. He regularly holds services at the Pentagon for months. It should be noted that the prayer was recited just hours before Democratic members of the House of Representatives proposed articles of impeachment against Hegseth. He is suspected of war crimes and abuse of power in his handling of the Iran war.