Abu Juhaifah - whom `Ali used to call Wahb al-Khair - said: ‘Ali (رضي الله عنه) said: O Abu Juhaifah, shall I not tell you of the best of this ummah after its Prophet ? I said: Yes indeed, He [Abu Juhaifah] said: And I did not think that anyone was better than him. He [`Ali] said: The best of this ummah after its Prophet is Abu Bakr, and after Abu Bakr it is ‘Umar (رضي الله عنهما), and after both of them there is a third one - but he did not name him.