John 1:19

Now this was John's testimony when the Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was.

John's activities were certainly causing a stir. He was behaving like an historic Nazarene in his dress and diet and he was calling people everywhere to repent and be baptized. Jews and even pharisees were being told that they needed to have their sins washed away. He must have presented a problem to the Jewish leaders. He was dressed like some sort of wild man; he was obviously a Holy Man; was he some sort of prophet? Prophets had been thin on the ground for generations. He had something special about him and they were supersticious enough not to want to offend him. They did what governments do when they don't know what to do. They set up a committee of enquiry. Lets go and ask him who he was, the committee decided. So they did.