Mark 11:27-33

They came again to Jerusalem. And as Jesus was walking in the [courts and porches of the] temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him, [Matt 21:23-27; Luke 20:1-8] and began saying to Him, “By what authority are You doing these things, or who gave You this authority to do these things?” Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question, and you answer Me, and then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was the baptism of John [the Baptist] from heaven [that is, ordained by God] or from men? Answer Me.” They began discussing it with each other, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ But shall we say, ‘From men?’ ” —they were afraid [to answer because] of the crowd, for everyone considered John to have been a real prophet. So they replied to Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”