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“Blessed Be the Lord, My Rock, Who Trains My Hands for War and My Fingers for Battle,” Pete Hegseth Prays Over Iran War — “May the Lord Grant Unyielding Strength and Refuge to Our Warriors; Unbreakable Protection to Them and Our Homeland, and Total Victory Over Those Who Seek to Harm Them”

  • Rob Glenn
  • March 11, 2026
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Secretary of War Pete Hegseth during a Pentagon briefing during the ongoing U.S. military campaign against Iran, closed with a prayer drawn from scripture, invoking protection and strength for American service members participating in the conflict. Hegseth concluded his prepared remarks with a passage from the Bible and a prayer asking for divine protection for troops and victory over adversaries.

Quoting from Book of Psalms 144, Hegseth referenced a verse traditionally attributed to the biblical king David that describes God as a source of strength in battle. “Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle,” Hegseth said, reciting the scripture before continuing with a prayer for U.S. forces. “May the Lord grant unyielding strength and refuge to our warriors, unbreakable protection to them and our homeland, and total victory over those who seek to harm them. And amen. God bless our troops and this mission.”

Hegseth framed the conflict as personal, citing his previous military service in Iraq and Afghanistan and the losses suffered by American troops in attacks linked to Iranian-backed groups. He said the current campaign “hits home” for many veterans of the post-9/11 conflicts. “As someone who led troops in the streets of Baghdad and Samara, Iraq, and who trained counterinsurgents in Kabul, Afghanistan, and who still carries the weight of brothers lost to Iranian terrorist proxies… this fight… hits home,” Hegseth said. He argued that Iranian-backed militias have been responsible for the deaths of American service members for decades and warned that Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons posed a broader threat.

The secretary described the objectives of Operation Epic Fury as narrowly defined and focused on dismantling Iran’s military capabilities. According to Hegseth, the campaign centers on three goals: destroying Iran’s missile stockpiles and defense industrial base, eliminating its naval capabilities, and permanently preventing the country from obtaining nuclear weapons. “We are executing them with ruthless precision,” he said, adding that the mission was being carried out with “no hesitation, no half measures.”

Operation Epic Fury began at 1:15 a.m. on February 28, 2026, under the direction of President Donald Trump and is being conducted by forces under United States Central Command. In its first ten days, more than 5,000 targets across Iran were struck, including command centers, intelligence sites, ballistic missile facilities, and air defense systems. U.S. forces have also damaged or destroyed dozens of Iranian naval vessels while targeting missile and drone manufacturing sites linked to the country’s military infrastructure.

The campaign involves a wide array of U.S. military assets, including strategic bombers such as B-1, B-2, and B-52 aircraft, stealth fighters including F-22 and F-35 jets, naval strike groups built around nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, reconnaissance platforms, and drone systems.

Hegseth said the operation differs from previous U.S. conflicts in the Middle East, emphasizing that the mission is limited in scope and focused strictly on military objectives. “This is not 2003. This is not endless nation building,” he said, contrasting the campaign with earlier wars in the region. “We’re winning decisively with brutal efficiency, total air dominance, and an unbreakable will to accomplish the president’s objectives on our timeline.”