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.

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

6682. 'And he said to them, Why do you act like that and keep the boys alive?' means anger that the truths were not destroyed. This is clear from the meaning of 'why do you act like that?' as words of reproach, and so of anger; from the meaning of 'keeping alive' as not destroying, as above in 6677, 6680; and from the meaning of 'the boys' as truths that are the truths of good, dealt with in 6680.