4712. 'And he said to him, Go now, see the peace of your brothers' means every coming of the Lord, and a perception of what the situation was with those who taught. This is clear from the meaning of 'laying' as perception, dealt with just above in 4708; from the meaning of 'peace' as salvation, dealt with in 4681, and so a perception of what the situation was; and from the representation of 'brothers' here as those teaching from faith, dealt with above in 4705. From this it is evident that the words used here mean a perception of what the situation was with those who taught. The reason every coming of the Lord is also meant is that 'Joseph' represents the Lord's Divine Spiritual, 4669, 4708, 4710, and therefore when it is said that Joseph was told to 'go and see the peace of his brothers' His coming is meant. The expression 'every coming' is used to describe whenever truth enters into thought from the Word.

4681. 'And they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him' means contempt and aversion, that is to say, contempt for Divine Truth represented by 'Joseph', and an aversion to it. This is clear from the meaning of 'hating' as holding in contempt, for in the internal sense 'hatred' does not mean hatred as this exists with people given to hatred (for as this word rises up to heaven it takes on a milder meaning, because in heaven they do not know what hatred is, and therefore it is contempt that is meant by it); and from the meaning of 'not being able to speak peaceably to him' as being averse, for speaking peaceably is wishing another person well. Indeed by peace the ancients understood in the highest sense the Lord Himself, in the internal sense His kingdom and life in that kingdom, which is a state of salvation. But in the external sense they understood a comparable state in the world, which is a state of healthiness. The reverse of this is meant by being 'unable to speak peaceably to him', that is, not wishing him well, and so being averse, in this case to Divine Truth.