Matthew 1:19

Ι. ὁ ἀνὴρ : proleptic, implying possession of a husband's rights and responsibilities. The betrothed man had a duty in the matter δίκαιος … δειγμανίσαι. He was in a strait betwixt two. Being δίκαιος, just, righteous, a respecter of the law, he could not overlook the apparent fault; on the other hand, loving the woman, he desired to deal with her as tenderly as possible: not wishing to expose her (αὐτὴν in an emphatic position before δειγματίσαι the loved one. Weiss-Meyer). Some (Grotius, Fritzsche, etc.) take δίκαιος in the sense of bonitas or benignitas, as if it had been ἀγαθός, so eliminating the element of conflict. ἐβουλήθη … αὐτήν. He finally resolved on the expedient of putting her away privately. The alternatives were exposure by public repudiation, or quiet cancelling of the bond of betrothal. Affection chose the latter. δειγματίσαι does not point, as some have thought, to judicial procedure with its penalty, death by stoning. λάθρα before ἀπολῦσαι is emphatic, and suggests a contrast between two ways of performing the act pointed at by ἀπολῦσαι. Note the synonyms θέλων and ἐβουλήθη. The former denotes inclination in general, the latter a deliberate decision between different courses maluit (vide on chapter Matthew 11:27).