6541. 'And the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing-floor of Atad' means a discernment of the grief by the good of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of 'seeing as discerning, dealt with in 2150, 3764, 4727, 5400; from the meaning of 'inhabitant' as good, dealt with in 2268, 2451, 2712, 3613; from the meaning of 'the land', here the land of Canaan in which the Canaanites were inhabitants, as the Church, dealt with in 1413, 1437, 1607, 1866, 3038, 3481, 3705; from the meaning of 'the mourning' as grief, dealt with immediately above in 6539, 6540; and from the meaning of 'the threshing-floor of Atad' as the initial state, which is one of introduction, dealt with in 6537, 6538. From all this it is evident that 'the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing-floor of Atad' means a discernment of the grief by the good of the Church.

2150. 'And he saw' means when He recognized this. This is clear from the meaning in the internal sense of 'seeing' as understanding and recognizing, and also of becoming enlightened, dealt with in 1584. Nothing is more common in the Word than for 'seeing' to have such meanings Here the meaning is that He recognized the presence of perception from the Divine, as just stated.