Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The best number of companions (on a journey) is four, the best number for a military detachment is four hundred, the best number for an army is four thousand, and people who reach twelve thousand will not be defeated because of small numbers, so long as they are truthful and patient." (Allamah al-Haythami says:) I say: Abu Dawud and al-Tirmidhi recorded this narration, but they did not record these words: "so long as they are truthful and patient."
Abu Ya'la recorded it; its chain contains Hibban bin Ali, who is da'if (weak), though he has been declared trustworthy. The remaining narrators of this report are thiqat (trustworthy).
Hadith Referenceمجمع الزوائد ومنبع الفوائد / كتاب الجهاد / 9319
Hadith Gradingمحدثین:إسنادہ ضعیف
Hadith Takhrij«اخرجه ابو يعلى فى المسند (2714) ، أخرجه سنن الترمذي برقم: 1555، وأخرجه سنن أبي داود برقم: 2611، وأخرجه مسند أحمد برقم: 2713، وأخرجه سنن الدارمي برقم: 2438، وأخرجه المستدرك على الصحيحين برقم: 2535، وأخرجه إتحاف الخيرة المهرة بزوائد المسانيد العشرة برقم: 4381»