Generally in the Bible a "country" means a political subdivision ruled by a king, or sometimes a tribe with a territory ruled by a king or chieftain. Others are what we now call city-states, with surrounding farm areas. In almost all cases these countries were far smaller than our modern idea of countries, though Egypt and Assyria would be exceptions. Sometimes the word is used to refer to countryside, a wide area with no consideration of boundaries as when the twelve Israelites were sent to spy out the country.

(რეკომენდაციები: Arcana Coelestia 3816 [3], 6818, 6820, 6821; Charity 83, 85; True Christian Religion 305)

6822. The Church is the neighbour over one's country, for one who cares for the Church does so by caring for the souls and the eternal life of people living in his country; the Church is cared for when a person is led by him to good. If he does it out of charity he loves the neighbour since he desires and intends that heaven and the happiness of the life that lasts forever should be the other's. Good can be inculcated in another by any citizen, but truth only by those who are ministers that teach it. If others teach it, heresies arise, and the Church becomes confused and is torn apart. Charity is exercised when a truth that the Church possesses is used to lead the neighbour to good; and if in the Church something is said to be true and yet it leads away from good, it should not be repeated, for it is not the truth. Everyone must first obtain truth from the teachings of the Church, then after that from the Word of the Lord; and this must serve him as the truth composing his faith.