At that time the Israelites did not have a king. There was a Levite who lived far back in the hill country of Ephraim. He had taken as a wife a slave woman. She was from the city of Bethlehem in the country of Judah.
Israel was divided into twelve districts. Solomon chose governors to rule over each district. These governors were ordered to gather food from their districts and give it to the king and his family. Each of the twelve governors was responsible for giving food to the king one month each year.
The Lord had commanded that he get this land. So they gave Joshua the town of Timnath Serah in the hill country of Ephraim. This was the town that Joshua told them he wanted. So he built the town stronger and lived there.