ἐπίθεσις

From the study of Hebrews 6:2

Range of meaning

Laying on of hands. In the Hebrew Bible: the worshipper placing a hand on a sacrificial animal (Leviticus 1:4), Moses commissioning Joshua (Numbers 27:18–23; Deuteronomy 34:9), Jacob blessing (Genesis 48:14). In the New Testament: healing (Mark 6:5; Acts 28:8), blessing children (Mark 10:16), receiving the Spirit after baptism (Acts 8:17; 19:6), and setting people apart for a task (Acts 6:6; 13:3; 1 Timothy 4:14; 2 Timothy 1:6).

Against the English

All major versions say "laying on of hands." The English is accurate. The risk is assuming one particular later use, usually ordination of clergy or a healing service, when the verse names only the gesture.

Used elsewhere in the period

Acts 8:14–17 and 19:5–6 put laying on of hands straight after baptism, connected with receiving the Holy Spirit. The same word ἐπίθεσις appears in Acts 8:18 and 1 Timothy 4:14 and 2 Timothy 1:6. Later Jewish sources use the Hebrew semikhah ("leaning on") both for the sacrificial rite and for authorising teachers.

From the study of 1 Timothy 4:14

Range of meaning

'Laying on of hands.' In Scripture this gesture blesses (Gen 48:14), identifies a sacrificial animal with the offerer (Lev 1:4; Hebrew samakh, 'lean, press'), heals (Mark 6:5), accompanies receiving the Spirit (Acts 8:17–18; 19:6), and commissions someone to a task (Num 27:18–23; Acts 6:6; 13:3).

Against the English

The English is literal and accurate. NIV and ESV turn it into a clause ('when the elders laid their hands on you'), which reads naturally but makes the elders the subject and loses the noun phrase.

How it drifted

Readers may hear later, fully developed 'ordination', a formal rite conferring clerical status and, in some traditions, a sacrament. The first-century act was a recognized commissioning gesture with prayer. The later rites grew out of it, but it was not yet a fixed liturgy.

Used elsewhere in the period

Num 27:18–23: Moses lays hands on Joshua before the congregation and gives him a share of his authority. Deut 34:9: Joshua was 'full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him', which links the gesture to a God-given endowment, as here. New Testament: Acts 6:6; 8:18; 13:3; Heb 6:2 (a foundational teaching); 2 Tim 1:6. Later rabbinic practice used semikhah (laying on of hands) to authorize teachers, though how far back this practice goes is debated.

From the study of 2 Timothy 1:6

Range of meaning

'Laying on of the hands'. Epithesis means placing something upon something else. With 'hands', it is the fixed term for a rite with several uses in Israel and the early church: blessing (Gen 48:14; Mark 10:16), healing (Mark 6:5; Acts 28:8), the Spirit being given (Acts 8:17; 19:6), and setting people apart for a task (Acts 6:6; 13:3; 1 Tim 4:14; 5:22).

Against the English

KJV and YLT have 'putting on of my hands'; most modern versions have 'laying on'. Both are accurate. The risk is not in the wording but in reading back later, fully developed ordination rites. The New Testament describes a commissioning with prayer and hands, without the later structure of church offices.

Used elsewhere in the period

The key background is Moses and Joshua. Moses laid his hands on Joshua at God's command (Num 27:18–23), and 'Joshua was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him' (Deut 34:9). Leadership and the Spirit's equipping were passed on through hands. Later rabbinic tradition called the ordination of scholars semikhah ('leaning on' of hands) after this model. How far that formal practice already existed in the first century is debated.