What is meant by "release (her) with kindness" in this āyah?

Imām Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) summarized the scholars' opinions in his book "Zād al-Masīr" as follows:

1. It refers to the third divorce. [ʿAṭāʾ, Mujāhid, Muqātil]
2. It means refraining from taking her back and allowing her waiting period (ʿiddah) to elapse. [al-Ḍaḥḥāk, al-Suddī] Qāḍī Abū Yaʿlā comments: This is the correct interpretation because, immediately following this verse, Allah states: "And if he divorces her [again], then she is not lawful to him afterward until she marries another husband" (2:230). The divorce referred to in this instance is clearly the third. Therefore, "release (her) with kindness" should be understood as allowing the waiting period to pass without taking her back. If it were interpreted as referring to the third divorce, the following verse "And if he divorces her..." would suggest a fourth divorce, which is not permissible.