Arabic Text
حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الْعَزِيزِ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، حَدَّثَنَا سُلَيْمَانُ، عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ سَعِيدٍ، عَنْ نَافِعٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ قَالَ كُنَّا نُخَيِّرُ بَيْنَ النَّاسِ فِي زَمَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَنُخَيِّرُ أَبَا بَكْرٍ، ثُمَّ عُمَرَ بْنَ الْخَطَّابِ، ثُمَّ عُثْمَانَ بْنَ عَفَّانَ رضى الله عنهم.
English Translation
Narrated Ibn 'Umar: We used to compare the people as to who was better during the lifetime of Allah's Apostle . We used to regard Abu Bakr as the best, then 'Umar, and then 'Uthman .
This hadith is from Sahih al-Bukhari, the most rigorously authenticated collection in Islamic scholarship. No editorial opinion is added.