PART I: TRUTH vs. PEACE
(א) (דף טז ע״ב) ת״ר כיצד מרקדין לפני הכלה ב״ש אומרים כלה כמות שהיא ובית הלל אומרים כלה נאה וחסודה. אמרו להם ב״ש לב״ה הרי שהיתה חגרת או סומא אומרים לה כלה נאה וחסודה והתורה אמרה (שמות כג ז) מדבר שקר תרחק. אמרו להם ב״ה לב״ש לדבריכם מי שלקח מקח רע מן השוק ישבחנו בעיניו או יגננו בעיניו, הוי אומר ישבחנו בעיניו. מכאן אמרו חכמים לעולם תהא דעתו של אדם מעורבת עם הבריות. כי אתא רב דימי אמר הכי משרי קמיה כלתא במערבא לא כחל ולא שרק ולא פירכוס ויעלת חן.
(1) (Fol. 16b) Our Rabbis were taught: What do we sing in praise of a bride when dancing before her? Beth Shammai says: "A bride [describing her] as she actually is." Beth Hillel, however, says: "A handsome and graceful bride." Beth Shammai then said unto Beth Hillel: "Suppose the bride is lame or blind, should it then also be said to her, 'a handsome and graceful bride.' Behold, the Torah says (Ex. 23, 7) Keep thyself far from false speech." Whereupon Beth Hillel replied : "According to your opinion, when one buys a bad bargain at the market should one commend it in the eyes of the owner, or should one point out its fault in the presence of the owner? Surely, you will say that one should commend it in the eyes of the owner." From this originates the saying of the sages: "At all times should person's disposition be pleasant in associating with people." When R. Dimi came from [the land of Israel] he said: "Thus they usually sing before a bride in the land of Israel. "There is neither paint, nor polish, nor hair dyeing, and nevertheless she is a graceful gazelle.'"
כלה כמות שהיא - ואם יש בה מום ישתקו ולא ישבחוה אי נמי ישבחוה בדבר נאה שיש בה כגון בעיניה או בידיה אם הם יפות וב"ה אומרים ישבחוה לגמרי דכשמזכירין מה שיש בה לשבח מכלל דשאר לגנאי: ישבחנו בעיניו או יגננו בעיניו - וב"ש סברי אע"ג דישבחנו בעיניו אין להם לחכמים לתקן להזקיק לומר שקר דהתורה אמרה מדבר שקר תרחק:
The bride as she is: And if she has a blemish, they are quiet and they do not praise it. And also (another possibility is) they praise her with something pleasant that she has - for example, [he praises her] about her eyes or her hands if they are beautiful. And Beit Hillel says that you praise her altogether, as when we mention that which she has to be praised, it implies that the rest is to be denigrated.
ישבחנו בעיניו או יגננו בעיניו. פי' דכל שהוא מפני דרכי שלום אין בו משום דבר שקר תרחק. הריטב"א ז"ל
Because whatever is done to promote peace it does not violate דבר שקר תרחק (Ritvah).
(יב) וַתִּצְחַ֥ק שָׂרָ֖ה בְּקִרְבָּ֣הּ לֵאמֹ֑ר אַחֲרֵ֤י בְלֹתִי֙ הָֽיְתָה־לִּ֣י עֶדְנָ֔ה וַֽאדֹנִ֖י זָקֵֽן׃ (יג) וַיֹּ֥אמֶר יְהוָ֖ה אֶל־אַבְרָהָ֑ם לָ֣מָּה זֶּה֩ צָחֲקָ֨ה שָׂרָ֜ה לֵאמֹ֗ר הַאַ֥ף אֻמְנָ֛ם אֵלֵ֖ד וַאֲנִ֥י זָקַֽנְתִּי׃
(12) And Sarah laughed to herself, saying, Now that I am withered, am I to have enjoyment - with my husband so old?" (13) Then the Lord said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh, saying, 'Shall I in truth bear a child, old as I am?'"
וא"ר אילעא משום רבי אלעזר בר' שמעון מותר לו לאדם לשנות בדבר השלום... דבי רבי ישמעאל תנא גדול השלום שאף הקדוש ברוך הוא...
And R. Ilea said in the name of R. Eleazar the son of R. Simon: A person may edit what has been said for the sake of peace... The school of R. Yishmael taught: peace is so important that even God altered what was said for its sake!
PART II: MESSIANISM and RABBINIC MASCULINITY
(ד) לֹא יֵצֵא הָאִישׁ לֹא בְסַיִף, וְלֹא בְקֶשֶׁת, וְלֹא בִתְרִיס, וְלֹא בְאַלָּה, וְלֹא בְרֹמַח. וְאִם יָצָא, חַיָּב חַטָּאת. רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר אוֹמֵר, תַּכְשִׁיטִין הֵן לוֹ. וַחֲכָמִים אוֹמְרִים, אֵינָן אֶלָּא לִגְנַאי, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ישעיה ב) וְכִתְּתוּ חַרְבוֹתָם לְאִתִּים וַחֲנִיתוֹתֵיהֶם לְמַזְמֵרוֹת, לֹא יִשָּׂא גּוֹי אֶל גּוֹי חֶרֶב וְלֹא יִלְמְדוּ עוֹד מִלְחָמָה.
A man may not go out with a sword, nor with a bow, nor with a shield, nor with a round shield, nor with a spear. If he has gone out [with any of these] he is liable. Rabbi Eliezer says: They are ornaments ("jewelry") for him.
But the Sages say: They are nothing but an indignity, for it is said, "They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears unto pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (Isaiah 2:4).
(א) לא יצא. אם לא לצורך מלחמה:
May not go out - unless for the sake of fighting/war...
שלשה נכנסין לגוף ואין הגוף נהנה מהן גודגדניות וכפניות ופגי תמרה שלשה אין נכנסין לגוף והגוף נהנה מהן אלו הן רחיצה וסיכה ותשמיש שלשה מעין העולם הבא אלו הן שבת שמש ותשמיש
Three matters are microcosms of the World-to-Come, and they are: Sabbath, the sun and sexual intimacy.
The Rabbis said to Rabbi Eliezer: And since, in your opinion, they are ornaments for him, why are they to be eliminated in the messianic era? He said to them: They will not be needed for war anymore, as it is stated: “Nation will not raise sword against nation” (Isaiah 2:4). The Gemara asks: And let the weapons be merely for ornamental purposes, even though they will not be needed for war. Abaye said: It is just as in the case of a lamp in the daylight. Since its light is not needed, it serves no ornamental purpose. Weapons, too; when not needed for war, they serve no ornamental purpose either.
And this statement disagrees with the opinion of Shmuel, as Shmuel said: The only difference between this world and the messianic era is subjugation of the exiles to other kingdoms, from which the Jewish people will be released. However, in other respects, the world will remain as it is, as it is written: “Because the poor will not cease from within the land” (Deuteronomy 15:11). Society will not change, and wars will continue to be waged.
Abaye said to Rav Dimi...: What is the reason for the opinion of Rabbi Eliezer who said: These weapons are ornaments for him? As it is written: “Gird your sword upon your thigh, mighty one, your glory and your splendor” (Psalms 45:4), indicating that a sword is considered an ornament, even in messianic times.
Chaim N. Saiman, Halakhah: The Rabbinic Idea of Law, (71, 137-140)
For all the focus on themes of justice, holiness, and faith, nowhere in the Talmud's two million words is there a sustained discussion on topics such as "What is justice?" or "What is holiness?" or "What is faith?" In fact, the Talmud seems preternaturally suspicious of such philosophical abstractions...Instead, the Talmud offers a profoundly different way of thinking. Its starting point is the mitzvah - God's call to action - and its core intellectual tool is interpretation, be it of the Bible, the Mishnah, or its own earlier material.
...
The rabbis assume that a niggling detail in the laws of Shabbat can engender a conversation about the ideals of manhood and even about humanity's ultimate destiny. The reverse is equally true. Assessing the ideal person, or the value of human wisdom, or the goals of a legal system, is inextricably tethered to the small matters of halakhic observance. In tying these ideas together, the Talmud imparts a claim that is alternately maddening and compelling: that the starting point for human exploration and self-actualization is that a person stands commanded to live by God's Torah. The rest, as it were, is commentary.