And I will also be your in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before youThis made me think of "the two ways" that has been much discussed in recent posts. "The way" the Lord prepared for Nephi and is preparing for us in the wilderness is definitely the "way of life", which leads to the promised land and the tree of life. The other way, the way to death, is pretty much any other way that is not the way the Lord has prepared. We can see this described in several 'wilderness accounts'
Lehi's dream:
There was a path to the tree of life, but some chose forbidden paths and strange roads. Note the plural here. Any way that is not the path to the tree of life is ultimately the way to death.Lehi and his family
The Liahona pointed the way to the promised land. Alma is re-emphasizing what the Lord said in 1 Nephi 17:13, that He prepared the way in the wilderness.
Alma goes on to describe 'the other way' in verses 41-4238 And now, my son, I have somewhat to say concerning the thing which our fathers call a ball, or director—or our fathers called it , which is, being interpreted, a compass; and the Lord prepared it.39 And behold, there cannot any man work after the manner of so curious a workmanship. And behold, it was prepared to show unto our fathers the course which they should travel in the wilderness. (Alma 37)
They were , and forgot to exercise their faith and diligence and then those marvelous works ceased, and they did not progress in their journey; Therefore, they tarried in the wilderness, or did travel a direct course, and were afflicted
The Exodus of the children of Israel
God lead the children of Israel along "the way" to the promised land.
And the went before them by day in a pillar of a , to them the way (Exodus 13:21)
There are many examples of the way to death in this story. They worshipped the golden calf and suffered death as a result. Because of iniquity, they were ultimately not allowed to "enter into his rest". Another example is described in 1 Nephi 17:41
He sent fiery flying among them; and after they were bitten he prepared a way that they might be ; and the labor which they had to perform was to look; and because of the of the way, or the easiness of it, there were many who perished.
When the next generation was at the borders of the promised land after 40 years in the wilderness, Moses spoke to them about the two ways.
Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse (Deuteronomy 11:26)
See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it ... I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live (Deuteronomy 30:15-16, 19)
Deuteronomy is full of that kind of language.
Our personal wilderness
There are numerous quotes from modern day Apostles and Prophets that could be fitting here. President Nelson talks about the covenant path. About straying from this path, Thomas S. Monson has saidIn our journey we will encounter forks and turnings in the road. There will be the inevitable trials of our faith and the temptations of our times. We simply cannot afford the luxury of a detour, for certain detours lead to destruction and spiritual death.
Whether it's an iron rod, a compass or a pillar of cloud, it's the same pattern at display: God preparing a way in the wilderness to the promised land using "small means" (Alma 37:6) to point the way and to lead his children along. This is the way to eternal life, whereas the other way leads to death.