^21:23Now after Jesus³² entered the temple courts,³³ the chief priests and elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching and said, “By what authority³⁴ are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” ^21:24Jesus³⁵ answered them, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. ^21:25Where did John’s baptism come from? From heaven or from people?”³⁶ They discussed this among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ ^21:26But if we say, ‘From people,’ we fear the crowd, for they all consider John to be a prophet.” ^21:27So³⁷ they answered Jesus,³⁸ “We don’t know.”³⁹ Then he said to them, “Neither will I tell you⁴⁰ by what authority⁴¹ I am doing these things.

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Footnotes

32 Grk “he.”
33 Grk “the temple.”
34 On this phrase, see ποῖος 2.a.γ.1
35 Grk “answering, Jesus said to them.” This is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
36 The plural Greek term ἀνθρώπων (anthrōpōn) is used here (and in v. 26) in a generic sense, referring to both men and women (cf. , , “of human origin”; , “from human beings”; , “merely human”). The question is whether John’s ministry was of divine or human origin.
37 Here δέ (de) has been translated as “So” to indicate that the clause is a result of the deliberations of the leaders.
38 Grk “answering Jesus, they said.” This construction is somewhat awkward in English and has been simplified in the translation.
39 Very few questions could have so completely revealed the wicked intentions of the religious leaders. Jesus’ question revealed the motivation of the religious leaders and exposed them for what they really were—hypocrites. They indicted themselves when they cited only two options and chose neither of them (“We do not know”). The point of Matt 21:23–27 is that no matter what Jesus said in response to their question, they were not going to believe it and would in the end use it against him.
40 Neither will I tell you. Though Jesus gave no answer, the analogy he used to their own question makes his view clear. His authority came from heaven.
41 On this phrase, see ποῖος 2.a.γ. This is exactly the same phrase as in v. 23.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And when he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, and if you tell me the answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John, from where did it come? From heaven or from man?” And they discussed it among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From man,’ we are afraid of the crowd, for they all hold that John was a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”

Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?”

They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”

So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching and said, “By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority?”

Jesus answered them, “I will also ask you one question, and if you answer it for me, then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Did John’s baptism come from heaven, or was it of human origin?”

They discussed it among themselves, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we’re afraid of the crowd, because everyone considers John to be a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

NLTNew Living Translation

When Jesus returned to the Temple and began teaching, the leading priests and elders came up to him. They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?”

“I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,” Jesus replied. “Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human?”

They talked it over among themselves. “If we say it was from heaven, he will ask us why we didn’t believe John. But if we say it was merely human, we’ll be mobbed because the people believe John was a prophet.” So they finally replied, “We don’t know.”

And Jesus responded, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I do these things.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And after he arrived at the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to him while he was teaching, saying, “By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?” And Jesus answered and said to them, “I also will ask you one question. If you tell the answer to me, I also will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. From where was the baptism of John—from heaven or from men?” And they began to discuss this among themselves, saying, “If we say ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From men,’ we are afraid of the crowd, because they all look upon John as a prophet.” And they answered and said to Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

KJV 1900King James Version

And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority? And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him? But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet. And they answered Jesus, and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.

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