حَدَّثَنِي عَبْد اللَّهِ حَدَّثَنِي أَبِي حَدَّثَنَا وَهْبُ بْنُ جَرِيرٍ حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي قَالَ سَمِعْتُ يُونُسَ يُحَدِّثُ عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ خَيْرُ الصَّحَابَةِ أَرْبَعَةٌ وَخَيْرُ السَّرَايَا أَرْبَعُ مِائَةٍ وَخَيْرُ الْجُيُوشِ أَرْبَعَةُ آلَافٍ وَلَا يُغْلَبُ اثْنَا عَشَرَ أَلْفًا مِنْ قِلَّةٍ
مسند امام احمد بن حنبل · Hadith 2682
It w'as narrated that Ibn 'Abbas (RA) said: The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: "The best number for companionship is four, the best number for an expedition is four hundred, the best number for an army is four thousand, and twelve hundred will never be defeated due to being too few in number."
Translated by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan · Reviewed by Islamic University of Madinah · Published March 2020