Abu Sa’eed Al-Khudri narrated that the Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, gave a speech during his final sickness, and said:
“Allah gave a slave a choice between giving him the beauty of this life, and between what is with Him, so he chose what is with Allah.” So Abu Bakr cried profusely and said: “May our fathers and mothers be sacrificed for you!” I said to myself, “Why is this old man crying, just because Allah gave a slave a choice between this life and between what is with Him, so he chose what is with Allah?”
So (we realized) that the Messenger of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was that slave, and Abu Bakr was the most knowledgeable amongst us. The Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:
“O Abu Bakr, do not cry. The person who has given me the most from his companionship and wealth is Abu Bakr. If I were to take an intimate friend from my nation, I would have taken Abu Bakr. But [he has] the brotherhood and love of Islam. Every door in the mosque should be closed, except for the door of Abu Bakr.”
Ibn Hajar said: “Abu Bakr understood that this was referring to the death of the Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.”