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What the Fathers say
Eastern Fathers
John Chrysostom
Do you observe that this was ordered by Providence from of old? What then, he means, does He say this on account of the Ishmaelites, or of the Amalekites, or of the Hagarenes? This however, as he goes on he proves more distinctly not to be said of these. But as yet he presses forward to another point, by which means he proves this very thing by defining the mode of the relationship, and establishing it with a vast reach of mind. …
Theophylact of Ohrid
The meaning is as follows: Abraham is the father of all "before God," that is, in a manner similar to God. As God is the Father of all, so also is Abraham, not by natural kinship, but by the bond of faith. He added "whom he believed" in order to show that Abraham also received a reward for his faith—to be the father of all. Therefore, if you, O Jew, do not acknowledge that Abraham is the father of all, then you have diminished the honor which he received through faith. …
Western Saints
Thomas Aquinas
Third, at before God, he explains what he had said. For I have made you seems to imply that something destined to be fulfilled in the distant future had already come to pass. However, things that are future in themselves are present in God's providence: before the universe was created, it was known to him; so it was also after it was finished (Sir 23:20). Accordingly, the Apostle says that the statement, I have made you, should be understood before God, i.e., in his presence, whom he believed. …
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