King James Bible
"And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed."
Paul personifies Scripture as having prophetic foresight, emphasizing that God's plan to declare Gentiles righteous through faith (not law-keeping) was embedded in the Old Testament from the beginning. This counters Judaizers who insisted Gentiles must follow Jewish law for salvation. The gospel message was announced to Abraham centuries before Christ, showing the continuity of God's salvation plan. Paul uses 'preached' (proeuangelizo) to assert that Abraham received the same essential good news that Paul now proclaims. This quotes Genesis 12:3, where God's covenant promise extends beyond Israel to encompass all peoples. Paul interprets this universal blessing as fulfilled through faith in Christ, Abraham's ultimate descendant, making Abraham the spiritual father of all believers regardless of ethnicity.