The Day of Reckoning is one day, but it is a day whose length is equal to fifty thousand years, as Allaah says

The Day of Reckoning is one day, but it is a day whose length is equal to fifty thousand years, as Allaah says

(interpretation of the meaning):
Upon the disbelievers, which none can avert,
From Allaah, the Lord of the ways of ascent.
The angels and the Rooh [Jibreel (Gabriel)] ascend to Him in a Day the measure whereof is fifty thousand years”
[al-Ma’aarij 70:1-4]
i.e., this torment will befall the disbelievers on a day the length of which is equal to fifty thousand years.
In Saheeh Muslim it is narrated from the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “There is no owner of gold or silver who does not pay what is due on it (i.e., zakaah) but when the Day of Resurrection comes, plates of fire will be prepared for him and with them will be branded his forehead, his flanks and his back, and every time they cool down they will be reheated, on a Day the length of which is equal to fifty thousand years, until judgement is passed among the people.”
This long Day is the day that will be hard for the kaafirs as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“and it will be a hard Day for the disbelievers”
[al-Furqaan 25:26]
“Truly, that Day will be a Hard Day —
Far from easy for the disbelievers”
[al-Muddaththir 74:9-10]
What may be understood from these two verses is that it will be easy for the believer, and that is indeed the case. For this long Day with its horrors and serious matters will be made easy by Allaah for the believer, but it will be hard for the kaafir. I ask Allaah to make me and my Muslim brothers among those for whom Allaah will make the Day of Resurrection easy.
But thinking too deeply about such matters of the unseen comes under the heading of extremism concerning which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Those who go to extremes are doomed, those who go to extremes are doomed, those who go to extremes are doomed .”
Our duty with regard to the matters of the unseen is to submit and to accept them according to their apparent meaning, without discussing them in depth or trying to compare them to worldly things. For the matters of the Hereafter are not like the matters of this world; even if the meanings may have something in common, there is still a great difference between them. I will give the example of what Allaah has told us about there being palm-trees, pomegranates, fruits, the flesh of birds, honey, water, milk, wine etc in Paradise, but He also tells us (interpretation of the meaning):
“No person knows what is kept hidden for them of joy as a reward for what they used to do”
[al-Sajdah 32:17]
And Allaah says in a hadeeth qudsi: “I have prepared for My righteous slaves that which no eye has seen, no ear has heard nor has it entered the heart of man.”
There are things in this world that bear the same names as these blessings of Paradise mentioned here but the fact that they have a name in common does not mean that the wine of Paradise is like the wine of this world, or that the fruits of Paradise are like the fruits of this world, and so on.
Although they may share a name and a common meaning, all the things of the unseen that share a meaning with things that are seen in this world are not like them in reality, so we should pay attention to this principle and accept the matters of the unseen according to the apparent meanings, and not try to do any more than that.
Hence when Imam Maalik (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about the words of Allah (interpretation of the meaning):
“The Most Gracious (Allaah) rose over (Istawa) the (Mighty) Throne (in a manner that suits His Majesty)”
[Ta-Ha 20:5] –
How did He rise over it? He lowered his head and started to sweat, because of the seriousness of this question. Then he raised his head and spoke his famous words that became the standard comment regarding all the attributes that Allah has ascribed to Himself: “(The concept of) rising is not unknown, but how it happened (in the case of Allah) cannot be comprehended. Believing in it is obligatory and asking about it is bid’ah (an innovation).”
Probing deeply into such matters is bid’ah because the Sahaabah (may Allah be pleased with them) who were more keen than us to seek knowledge and goodness did not ask the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) such questions, and they are sufficient as an example. What I have said now about the Last Day may also be applied to the attributes of Allaah which He has ascribed to Himself of knowledge, power, hearing, seeing, speaking etc. The way in which these words apply to Allah is nothing like the way in which the same words apply to man. Each attribute suits the one to whom it is ascribed. Just as there is none like unto Allah in His Essence, there is none like unto Him in His attributes.
In conclusion: the Last Day is one Day, and it will be hard for the kaafirs and easy for the believers. What has been narrated about the various kinds of reward and punishment is a matter which cannot be fully understood in this world, even though the basic meanings may be known to us in this world.
Evidence in the Quran and Sunnah points to the fact that Allah is above the heavens, seated on the Throne in a manner that befits His Majesty and Greatness. Allah says in the Quran (interpretation of the meaning): "The Most Beneficent istawaa (rose over) the (Mighty) Throne (in a manner that suits His majesty)." [Ta-Ha 20:5] (For more information, please see question #992 ).
As for meeting Allaah and seeing Him: meeting Him occurs after death and on the Day of Judgement; seeing Him will occur only on the Day of Judgement. Concerning the meeting with Allah after death, Imam al-Bukhaari (may Allah have mercy on him) reported in his Saheeh, in the chapter on "whoever loves to meet Allah, Allah loves to meet him":
From ‘Ubaadah ibn al-Samit, from the Prophet (Peace & Blessings of Allaah be upon Him) who said: "Whoever loves to meet Allah, Allah will love to meet him, and whoever hates to meet Allah, Allah will hate to meet him." ‘Aishah or one of his wives said: "But we all dislike the idea of death." He said, "It is not what you are thinking. When death approaches the believer and he is given the news of Allaah’s pleasure and honor, nothing will be more dear to him than what lies ahead of him, so he will love to meet Allah and Allaah will love to meet him. But when death approaches the disbeliever and he is given the news of Allah's wrath and punishment, nothing will be more disliked by him that what lies ahead of him, so he will hate to meet Allah and Allaah will hate to meet him." (Saheeh al-Bukhaari, 6026).
The words "nothing will be more dear to him than what lies ahead of him" refer to what he will go through after death. Muslim and al-Nisaa’i report that Shurayh ibn Haani’ said: "I said to ‘Aishah: ‘I have heard a hadeeth which, if it is as I heard it, means that we are doomed. The hadith says: "There is not one of us who does not dislike death."’ She said: ‘It is not what you think. What it means is when a person’s eyes stare without blinking, when the death rattle is in his chest and his skin and muscles contract.’ This is the state of one who is dying.
"Al-Khattab said: "There are different types of meeting: it may mean seeing with one’s own eyes, or it may mean resurrection, as Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):‘They indeed are losers who denied their meeting with Allah…’ [al-An’aam 6:31]; or it may mean death, as Allah says: (interpretation of the meaning): ‘Whoever hopes for the Meeting with Allah, then Allah's term is surely coming…’ [al-‘Ankaboot 29:5] and ‘Say (to them): Verily, the death from which you flee will surely meet you…’ [al-Jumu’ah 62:8]"
The meeting with Allah (mentioned in the hadeeth quoted above) refers to something other than death, because in another hadith the Prophet (Peace & Blessings of Allaah be upon Him) said, "Death is a barrier between us and the meeting with Allah." But when death is the means of meeting Allah, it is described as the meeting with Allah. Imaam Abu ‘Ubayd al-Qaasim ibn Salaam said: "The hadith does not refer to a dislike of death and the suffering involved, because everybody feels this way. What is being criticized here is a love and preference for this world and a dislike of the idea of moving on to Allaah and the Hereafter. This is explained by the fact that Allah condemned people who love this life, and said (interpretation of the meaning): ‘… those who hope not for their meeting with Us, but are pleased and satisfied with the life of the present world…’ [Yoonus 10:7]."
Al-Nawawi said: "The meaning of the hadeeth is that the like and dislike referred to are those that occur at the time of death, at the stage when repentance is no longer acceptable, when the dying person is shown where he is headed. There is also some discussion in the hadeeth about the dislike of death. Whoever dislikes death because he prefers this life to the blessings of the Hereafter is condemned. Whoever dislikes death because he fears being brought to account for his shortcomings, lack of preparation and failure to carry out the commands of Allah properly, is not to blame in this case. The one who feels this way should hasten to prepare himself so that when death comes to him he will not dislike it but will love it because of the meeting with Allah which he is hoping for after death.
The hadeeth quoted above also indicates that no living person will see Allah in this life, but that the believers will see Him after death, as the Prophet (Peace & Blessings of Allaah be upon Him) said: "Death is a barrier between us and the meeting with Allah." This fact is stated even more clearly in another hadith narrated by Muslim from Abu Umamah, in which the Prophet (Peace & Blessings of Allaah be upon Him) says: "Know that you will not see your Lord until you die." The meeting with Allah and seeing Him on the Day of Judgement is proven in many texts, such as the aayah (interpretation of the meaning):
"Some faces that Day will be naadirah (shining and radiant), looking at their Lord." [al-Qiyaamah 75:22-23] Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) reported that the people said, "O Messenger of Allah, will we see our Lord on the Day of Resurrection?" He said, "Do you have any doubts about seeing the full moon on a cloudless night?" They said, "No." He said, "Do you have any doubts about seeing the sun on a cloudless day?" They said, "No." He said, "Then you will see your Lord in the same way." (Reported by al-Bukhaari, 764). We ask Allah to let us meet Him when He is pleased with us. May Allah bless our Prophet Muhammad.
The Last Day is the Day when mankind will be resurrected to be asked about their deeds and receive reward or punishment for them. It is called the Last Day,because it is the last day, no day after that. Afterwards, people of Paradise will permanently reside and take their places in it, and people of Hell will permanently reside and take their places in it.
Belief in the Last Day is firmly believing that everything that Allah has told us about in His Book (Al-Quran) and that His Messengerﷺhas told us about what will happen after death, will indeed happen and come to pass. That includes believing in the signs of the Hour which will happen before the Last Day; in death and things that accompany it when a person is on his deathbed; what comes after death, namely the trial of the grave and torment or blessing therein; the Trumpet and resurrection; the standing and terrors of the Day of Resurrection; the details of the gathering and reckoning; Paradise and its delights, the greatest of which will be looking upon the Face of Allah; Hell and its torments, the most severe of which will be their being veiled from seeing their Lord. And belief in the Last Day includes acting in accordance with what is implied by these beliefs, ( A'laam al-Sunnah al-Manshoorah, 110; Sharh al-Usool al-Thalaathah by Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen, 98-103.)