Matthew 1:19 (WEB)
Joseph, her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, intended to put her away secretly.
As quoted in the map (KJV)
Matthew 1:19 (KJV)
Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
Key words
- δίκαιος ὤνdikaios ōn · Greek
- 'being a just man' — righteous, that is, obedient to the Law of Moses.
- λάθρᾳ ἀπολῦσαι αὐτήνlathra apolysai autēn · Greek
- 'to put her away privily' — divorce her quietly.
Why it matters
Joseph is 'a just man,' one who keeps the Law. Pitre uses this to close his Numbers 30 argument (p 100): the Law says a husband who breaks a vow he had accepted 'shall bear her iniquity' (30:15), so a righteous Joseph who had accepted Mary's vow of abstinence was bound to honour it. His silence is consent, and his abstinence is obedience.