592 - 'Abd Allah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal informed us, saying: I heard my father say regarding superiority: "Abu Bakr, and 'Umar, and 'Uthman. And we do not criticize the one who includes 'Ali as the fourth due to his kinship, his marital relation [to the Prophet], his early conversion to Islam, and his uprightness."
٥٩٢ - أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ حَنْبَلٍ، قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ أَبِي يَقُولُ فِي التَّفْضِيلِ: «أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرُ وَعُثْمَانُ، وَلَا نَعِيبُ مَنْ رَبَّعَ بِعَلِيٍّ لِقَرَابَتِهِ، وَصِهْرِهِ، وَإِسْلَامِهِ الْقَدِيمِ، وَعَدْلِهِ»
