now Jesus was riding upon a young ass, which he got by the way; as it is written,

"fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy king comes sitting on an ass's colt."

A woman, when she is in labor, has pain because her time [to give birth] has come; but when she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of her joy that a child has come into the world.

The Jews therefore who were with her in the house and consoling her, seeing Mary that she rose up quickly and went out, followed her, saying, She goes to the tomb, that she may weep there.

So Jesus said, “Let her alone, so that she may keep [the rest of] it for the day of My burial.