Arabic (Original)
حَدَّثَنَا حَسَنٌ وَيُونُسُ قَالَا حَدَّثَنَا حَمَّادُ بْنُ سَلَمَةَ عَنْ عَاصِمِ بْنِ بَهْدَلَةَ عَنْ خَيْثَمَةَ بْنِ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ عَنِ النُّعْمَانِ بْنِ بَشِيرٍ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ خَيْرُ هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةِ الْقَرْنُ الَّذِينَ بُعِثْتُ فِيهِمْ ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ قَالَ حَسَنٌ ثُمَّ يَنْشَأُ أَقْوَامٌ تَسْبِقُ أَيْمَانُهُمْ شَهَادَتَهُمْ وَشَهَادَتُهُمْ أَيْمَانَهُمْ.
English Translation
Hasan and Yunus narrated to us, both saying: Hammad ibn Salamah narrated to us, from Asim ibn Bahdalah, from Khaythamah ibn Abdur-Rahman, from al-Nu'man ibn Bashir, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: The best of this nation is the generation among whom I was sent, then those who come after them, then those who come after them, then those who come after those who come after them - Hasan said: then there will arise peoples whose oaths precede their testimony and whose testimony precedes their oaths.