Let no man despise your youth; but be an example to those who believe, in word, in your way of life, in love, in spirit, in faith, and in purity.
It should not be inferred from this, however, that Timothy was young by present-day methods of reckoning youth.  Youth is a relative term, as pointed out by White: "Forty is reckoned old for a captain in the army, young for a bishop, and very young for a prime minister."[26]