حَتَّىٰ إِذَا جَاءَ أَحَدَكُمُ الْمَوْتُ تَوَفَّتْهُ رُسُلُنَا وَهُمْ لَا يُفَرِّطُونَ
When death comes to one of you, Our messengers take that person's soul, and they do not fail in their duty. (Al-An'am 6:61)
ثُمَّ إِنَّكُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ تُبْعَثُونَ
Then, on the Day of Resurrection, you will surely be raised. (al-Muʾminūn 23:16)
The apparent difficulty: If there is an intermediate life after death, is death itself the final judgment?
Resolution: Death, the intermediate realm (barzakh), resurrection, and final judgment are successive distinct stages. Affirming one does not cancel another.
Inference to avoid: Treating barzakh exactly like worldly life or denying the later resurrection is unwarranted.
Application: One must distinguish the grave’s questioning from the final reckoning in time and context.