Java external: how to check for equality between Atom [] elements

I am new to both java and java externals for MAX.
What I want to do is having two lists of Atoms, one in each inlet and then perform some actions on them. For the time being I want to check whether for example myArray_1[x] == myArray_2[y]. To experiment I send two identical lists in the inlets. But here is what I don’t understand: Suppose that I have two Atom arrays:
myArray_1 = {56, 23, 5, blah} and myArray_2 = {56, 23, 5, blah} .

Now here are some results:
outlet(0, myArray_1[0]) // it correctly outputs 56
outlet(1, myArray_2[0]) // it correctly outputs 56, again

Also:
myArray_1[0].isInt() // it correctly confirms that this is true by posting a relevant message
myArray_2[0].isInt() // it correctly confirms that this is also true by posting the same message

But:
When I check whether myArray_1[0] == myArray_2[0] it returns false although both have the same value (56) and both are recognized as integers.

Doesn’t the ‘equals’ (==) operator work here, and why? Should I use another comparing method instead, and which one?
What am I missing?

Thanks in advance