Mark 11:27-33

²⁷ Then they came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him.

²⁸ And they said to Him, “By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this authority to do these things?”

²⁹ But Jesus answered and said to them, “I also will ask you one question; then answer Me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things:

³⁰ The baptism of John—was it from heaven or from men? Answer Me.”

³¹ And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’

³² But if we say, ‘From men’ ”—they feared the people, for all counted John to have been a prophet indeed.

³³ So they answered and said to Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus answered and said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

Also found in Matthew 21:23-27 and Luke 20:1-8.

Representatives of three orders approached Him, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders. The definite article is used in each case, which fact indicates that those who came, represented their own group. This united action was probably agreed upon during the night. Their questions were in themselves reasonable ones from their point of view. They were the custodians of the Temple. Our Lord, by forcibly ejecting those who were engaged in business in the Temple, was claiming a superior jurisdiction. — Wuest, pages 225-226.

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They sought to trap Him fatally. For Him to claim divine authority would, so they thought, amount to blasphemy; to claim authority as Son of David would be treason against Rome; to disclaim all authority would prove Him an imposter. — Guthrie, page 876.

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Our Lord … says that He has one question to ask them. The one question is not contrasted to the two questions asked Him, but points to the simplicity of the issue. The answer to our Lord’s one question should clear the air. He refers to John the Baptist. The latter had testified to the divine source of His mission. The question of the Sanhedrin resolved itself into a question as to the source of the Baptist’s teaching. In demanding an answer from them, our Lord was claiming an answer as from authorized teachers who were acquainted with the facts. — Wuest, page 226.

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John the Baptist had borne testimony to Jesus as the Messiah. If they acknowledged him to be a prophet with divine authority, the answer to their question was plain, and they would see that the authority of Jesus was derived from the same source. The ministry of John was one of high public importance upon which men in their position should be competent to pronounce. When therefore they pleaded ignorance on a matter of such magnitude they virtually abdicated from their office as teachers of the nation, and had no further right to question the authority of Jesus. Our Lord, therefore, did not reply to their question directly. Instead, He provided the complete answer in the parable that follows [Mark 12:1-9]. — Guthrie, page 876.

The leaders would not answer according to their own convictions. Their only consideration was how their answer would be received.