This chapter is resonating deeply with me this morning. It is how closely the Lord stood with them as he directed them along the way to where they needed to go, and how far they needed to go before they reached their destination. How many barges He had them build and abandon.
The land of the Americas is set forth as a free land here in these verses. Moroni takes pains to explain the decrees of God upon the Americas which have been ever since the days of the Jaredites, and which continue to be even until this time now.
Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ…
Verse 12
Continuing down through the rest of this chapter, I am impressed by the manner in which the Lord chooses to communicate with the brother of Jared. Or rather, the focus of this record is not a history of the people of Jared and his brother, but rather to report on key events (many of them being communications) between the Lord and his servants. Four years had passed with their people camped along the seashore. The brother of Jared forgot to call upon the Lord and was reprimanded for not doing so in a communication that lasted 3 hours.
I also appreciate how, after following his instructions to build barges, the Lord is able to reason with the brother of Jared about the nature of their travels and is really challenging the brother of Jared to think differently about the challenge in front of them. (See verses 23-25)