Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,
Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people. Thus divinely commissioned and encouraged, the new leader inaugurated his work by issuing orders to the Shoterim (see the notes at Exodus 5:10; Deuteronomy 20:5), whose duty it was to keep a regular genealogical register of the people in their divisions and sub-divisions, to allot to each one his share of public work, by levying men for military service, and noting those who claimed exemption.