Masruq narrates: We were sitting with Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) while he was teaching us the Qur'an. A man said: "O Abu Abd al-Rahman, did you ask the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) how many caliphs will rule this Ummah?" Sayyiduna Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "Since I came to Iraq, no one before you has asked me about this." Then he said: "Yes, we asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) this, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'There will be twelve (caliphs), like the number of the chiefs (nuqaba') of the Children of Israel.'"
Ahmad, Abu Ya'la and al-Bazzar recorded it; its chain contains Mujalid bin Sa'id, whom al-Nasa'i (may Allah have mercy on him) declared thiqah (trustworthy) while the majority declared him da'if (weak), and the rest of its narrators are thiqat (trustworthy).
Hadith Referenceمجمع الزوائد ومنبع الفوائد / كتاب الخلافة / 8967
Hadith Gradingمحدثین:إسنادہ ضعیف
Hadith Takhrij«اخرجه البزار فى المسند (1587 و 1586) اخرجه أبو يعلى فى المسند (5031) اخرجه الطبراني فى المعجم الكبير (10310) اخرجه احمد فى المسند (3781) ، أخرجه مسند أحمد برقم: 3772»