Sec Def Hegseth is evidently out on a “Send Me” tour telling people how the bible justifies all manner of war and destruction. The current video has him quoting Isaiah.
Using “send me” as a slogan for literal war against ideological or religious enemies rips v. 8 out of its literary and theological setting. Isaiah 6:1–13 is a prophetic commissioning narrative, not a military commission. The chapter’s structure is important: vv. 1–4 present Isaiah’s throne-room vision of God’s holiness; vv. 5–7 move to Isaiah’s confession of uncleanness and ritual purification; only then, in v. 8, does the divine question “Whom shall I send?” appear, to which Isaiah responds, “Here am I; send me.” In context, the verb “send” marks prophetic dispatch—Isaiah is commissioned as a spokesman, not as an agent of physical coercion.
That becomes explicit in vv. 9–13, where the content of his mission is to speak a message of judgment. Isaiah is told the people of Judah will hear but not understand. Will see but not perceive. He is not being sent to win a campaign or wage violence; he is being sent to proclaim an unwelcome truth in the face of disbelief, judgment, and national crisis. It is an especially strange prooftext for militarized rhetoric because Isaiah is sent on a mission defined, at least from a human perspective, by rejection rather than success. The point of Isaiah 6 is not heroic conquest but prophetic witness under judgment.
In parallel with the passage’s description of those who “hear but do not understand,” Hegseth seems to read but not comprehend: he extracts words from the text and repurposes them to sanctify his own commitments without reckoning with what the passage actually means.
Sure, it sucks to vote for the “least bad”, but that is better than being governed by the worst.
Vote for the person who is closer to where you think we should be instead of the waiting for your perfect candidate.