Select the most appropriate meaning of the given idiom.

A cry in the wilderness

A useless cry

The most appropriate meaning of the idiom "a cry in the wilderness" is a useless cry. This idiom means that someone's warning or message is being ignored or not taken seriously. The image of a cry in the wilderness is one that is lost and unheard.

The other options for the meaning of the idiom are not accurate. To reach a crisis means to come to a point of great difficulty or danger. To be ruined means to be brought to financial or moral ruin. To decide the matter means to reach a conclusion or settlement on a matter.