Mark 11:27
And they come again to Jerusalem: and as he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders, And they come again to Jerusalem: and as he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders,
Jesus was walking in the temple at Jerusalem near the close of His ministry, after returning to the city and cleansing the temple. He was there confronting the corruption of the temple leadership, who had turned sacrificial worship into a means of gain. Their traffic had obscured that animal sacrifices pointed to His death for the world, and that God desires repentance and obedience rather than heartless ritual.
The chief priests and scribes and elders came to Him there in the temple to challenge His authority for His actions in cleansing it. He answered their challenge by asking whether John's baptism was from heaven or from men. Their refusal to answer exposed their fear of the people and their unwillingness to accept John's witness pointing to Him as the Messiah.
In this encounter He repeated the prophetic warning and acted as Israel's king, giving evidence of His divine mission. Reforming the corrupt priesthood would prove fruitless.