Mark 11:29 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.

NIV: Jesus replied, "I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

NASB: But 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.

CSB: Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one question; then answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.

NLT: I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,' Jesus replied.

KJV: And Jesus answered and said unto them, I will also ask of you one question, and answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.

NKJV: 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:

Jesus has been confronted by the chief priests, scribes, and elders who demand to know who has given Jesus the authority to drive out the venders and commuters who use the Court of the Gentiles (Mark 11:15–19). Jesus tosses the ball back in His accusers' court. His question to them is "where did John the Baptist get his authority?" Using a question to answer a question is a common tactic in Greek and Hebrew teaching. The fact that Jesus refuses to answer if they do not, however, is not common. But the answer to Jesus' question also answers that of the religious and civil leaders, so it is valid.

John's ministry was on the Jordan River, east of Judea in Perea. He was an extremely popular preacher who taught that the people needed to repent of their sins if they wanted to be right with God. But he also identified Jesus as God's Messiah. He even said that Jesus is the "Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29).

In addition, John drove a wedge between the people and their religious leaders. The people loved him and believed his message. The religious leaders didn't. In response, John called the Pharisees and Sadducees vipers and told them they were not Abraham's true descendants (Matthew 3:7–10).

As a result, these religious leaders have a choice. They must either affirm or deny John's message. If they admit John's message of repentance and baptism was from God, they'll have to explain why they rejected that message when John was alive; the next logical step would be to accept what the Baptist said about Jesus. If they want to deny Jesus, they must deny John's baptism. But if they deny John's baptism, they will lose influence with the masses who believe in it.

From a purely religious standpoint, this should not be a difficult decision—the priests, scribes, and elders do not support the message of John or Jesus. And yet, they deflect Jesus' question and refuse to answer. This exposes them as hypocrites and liars: their influential positions and popularity are more important than standing up for what they supposedly believe (John 12:42).

Mark 11:27–33 is the first of four stories of religious leaders challenging Jesus. The others are found through verse 27 of chapter 12. First is a confrontation with the chief priests, scribes, and elders. Next, Jesus' parable about farmland tenants solidifies the authorities' desire to kill Him (Mark 12:1–12). The Pharisees and Herodians try to trap Jesus with a question about taxes (Mark 12:13–17). And, finally, the Sadducees challenge Jesus with a question about the resurrection (Mark 12:18–27). Eventually, Jesus can have a friendly conversation about the greatest commandment with a scribe (Mark 12:28–34). This first story is also in Matthew 21:23–27 and Luke 20:1–8.

Jesus and the disciples arrive in Jerusalem a week before the crucifixion, and Jesus begins the last days of His public ministry. They spend their nights on the Mount of Olives and their days in Jerusalem (Luke 21:37). Jesus accepts the accolades designed for a king (Mark 11:1–11), attacks materialistic tradition that keeps people from worshiping God (Mark 11:15–19), gives an object lesson about the fate of fruitless Jerusalem (Mark 11:12–14, 20–25), and reveals the Jewish religious leaders' hypocrisy (Mark 11:27–33). Despite the support of the crowd, Jesus is pushing the leaders toward the crucifixion.

The preceding passages included several miracles and lessons from Jesus. These set the stage for the last, dramatic days of His earthly ministry. In this chapter, Jesus enters Jerusalem to great fanfare and openly confronts local religious leaders for their hypocrisy. Over the next few chapters, Mark will continue to record controversial teachings, leading up to Jesus' arrest and early sham trials, recorded in chapter 14.

The Gospel of Mark emphasizes both Jesus' servanthood and His role as the promised Messiah: the Son of God. This is done through a concise, action-packed style. Mark provides relatively few details, instead focusing on actions and simple statements. This relates to the Gospel's authorship, which is believed to be based on the memories of the apostle Peter. These include many of Jesus' miracles, in contrast to other Gospels which include many more of Jesus' teachings and parables. Mark also makes frequent mention of Jesus' ministry being misunderstood by others.