Mark 11:28

(ubi sup.) And indeed, when they say, By what authority doest thou these things, they doubt its being the power of God, and wish it to be understood that what He did was the devil's work. When they add also, Who gave thee this authority, they evidently deny that He is the Son of God, since they believe that He works miracles, not by His own but by another's power.

Fearing a stoning, but fearing more an admission of the truth, they answered the truth with a lie, reminiscent of the Scripture: "injustice has lied within herself." For they said, "We know not." And because they had shut themselves up against him, by asserting that they did not know what they knew, the Lord did not open up to them because they did not knock. For it has been said, "Knock and it will be opened to you." But they not only had not knocked that it might be opened, but by their denial they barricaded the door itself against themselves. And the Lord said to them, "Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things."

And when he was walking in the temple, the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders came to him and said to him: "By what authority do you do these things? And who gave you this authority to do these things?" In various ways they raise the same calumny as before, when they said: "He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the prince of demons." For when they say, "By what authority do you do these things?" they doubt the power of God, and want it to be understood that what he does is by the power of the devil. Also adding: "Who gave you this authority?" most openly they deny the Son of God, whom they think performs signs not by his own power, but by that of others.