Verse 37 reminds us that the text we have just seen, that quoted Mosiah, was quoting a document, not a speech. He sent that document to his people. They responded favorably. Notice that one of the consequences of this change in the way the government worked was to shift communal responsibility from the king to the community itself. Therefore, it became critical that “every man expressed a willingness to answer for his own sins.” While answering for one’s own sins might seem out of place in a political discussion, given the conjunction of politics and religion in Nephite society, it was precisely the point.
The selection of the first judges appears to have had more communal participation than later judges would have. After establishing this set of judges, the positions appear to return to the assumption of inherited service. In order for that assumption to have been acceptable, it is not unreasonable to speculate that the lower judges were selected from the tribes or clans that would be governed by those judges.