Abū Bakr would accompany the Prophet—peace and blessings of Allah be upon him—during the pilgrimage season, joining him in calling the unbelievers to Islam and providing him with tremendous assistance in the mission, unlike anyone else. For this reason, the Prophet—peace and blessings of Allah be upon him—said, as authentically reported:

“If I were to take an intimate friend from among the people of the earth, I would have taken Abū Bakr as an intimate friend” (1).

He also said:

“O (2) people, I came to you and said, ‘I am the Messenger of Allah,’ but you said, ‘You are lying.’ Abū Bakr, however, said, ‘You have spoken the truth.’ Will you not, then, leave my Companion alone for my sake?” (3).

Moreover, Moses offered this supplication before conveying the message to the unbelievers, seeking assistance in doing so. Our Prophet—peace and blessings of Allah be upon him—however, conveyed the message when Allah sent him; he conveyed it alone. By universal agreement, the first believers in him were four: the first man to believe in him was Abū Bakr; the first woman, Khadījah; the first boy, Alī; and the first freedman, Zayd.

Of these four, the one who contributed most to his mission, by universal agreement, was Abū Bakr, followed by Khadījah. Abū Bakr was the first free adult man to believe in him, by universal agreement. He enjoyed high standing among Quraysh because of his excellent qualities and was more generous to the Prophet than anyone else, both through his companionship and with his material means.

Yet despite all this, he did not ask Allah to strengthen him through anyone—neither Abū Bakr nor anyone else,