Israel misunderstood because they had another available reference that was more obvious to them than a people they did not know existed. The Gentiles were there, and would become the focus of Christian preaching after Jesus’ death. Therefore, the Gentiles were the plausible referent for the statement. Jesus explains that while this was a plausible explanation, it was not the complete one, because he has said that the “other sheep” would hear his voice. Jesus did not preach to the Gentiles, and therefore they could not be the fulfillment of the promise to bring the “other sheep” into the fold.