5512. 'And took us for men spying out the land' means that it saw the truths known to the Church as ones existing there for the sake of gain. This is clear from the representation of the sons of Jacob, to whom 'us' refers here, as the truths known to the Church that were present in the natural, dealt with in 5403, 5419, 5427, 5458; and from the meaning of 'spies' or 'men spying out the land' as people interested in the truths known to the Church solely for the sake of gain, dealt with in 5432.

5403. 'And Jacob said to his sons' means perception regarding truths as a general whole. This is clear from the meaning of 'saying' in the historical narratives of the Word as perception, dealt with in 1791, 1815, 1819, 1822, 1898, 1919, 2080, 2619, 2862, 3395, 3509; and from the meaning of 'sons' as the truths of faith, dealt with in 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 3373, 4257. Also, because they were Jacob's sons, truths as a general whole are meant; for 'the twelve sons of Jacob', like the twelve tribes, meant all aspects of faith, and so truths as a general whole, see 2129, 2130, 3858, 3862, 3926, 3939, 4060.