11:2–16:20 Review · Rejection by leaders and Jesus’s withdrawal from conflict:In Matthew 11:2–16:20, Matthew narrates Jesus’s ongoing ministry to Israel in the face of increased confrontation with and rejection by Jewish leaders. Faced with these controversies, Jesus withdraws from confrontation and instead turns to compassionate ministry focused on the Jewish crowds (12:15; 14:13; 15:21, 30). Matthew shows a range of responses to Jesus’s emerging identity, from rejection by Jewish leaders and Jesus’s hometown to the disciples’ right confession of Jesus as Messiah–Son of God (cf. 14:33; 16:16; cf. chap. 13 for varied responses expressed in parable). Yet Matthew also narrates the struggle of Jesus’s disciples to fully understand and embrace the truths about God’s kingdom that Jesus both an…