Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy. — Here the Apostle reminds his representative in the Ephesian congregation of his special gift of teaching and exhortation — that divine gift which had been conferred on Timothy at his solemn ordination long ago, when the young son of Eunice was designated for the post which John Mark had once held with the Apostle. It was in many respects a similar office, that which Timothy held about St. Paul, to that which in old days Elisha had held with Elijah; and, as in the case of the Hebrew prophet of the old dispensation, so here, the choice of St. Paul had been divinely guided. The very titles of the old covenant dispensation seem to have been revived in this instance of the divine selection of Timothy; for in 1 Timothy 6:11 the older Apostle addresses his representative at Ephesus with the old prophetic title when he writes: “Thou, O man of God, flee these things.” Now he solemnly calls attention to that strange, miraculous “grace” which some inspired prophet at his ordination declared was to be conferred on Timothy. The “gift” was said to be conferred, as to its certainty in the divine counsels, by such prophecy — the Holy Spirit, by the mouth of one or more of His prophets, declaring His will and intention to confer this special grace on the young companion of St. Paul.
With the laying on of the hands. — This was a symbolic action — the outward sign of an inward communication of the Holy Spirit for some spiritual office or undertaking — and was derived from the old solemn Hebrew custom. (See Numbers 8:10 in the case of the consecration of the Levites, and Numbers 27:18; Deuteronomy 34:9 in the ceremony of the dedication of Joshua.)
Of the presbytery. — The brotherhood of presbyters connected with the place where the ordination of Timothy took place is here alluded to. There appears to have been such a body of elders in each particular city or district. The presbytery in this instance would seem in all probability to have belonged to the district of Lystra, Timothy’s native city; but an old ecclesiastical tradition speaks of Ephesus as the place of this ordination.