The response to the arguments they adduced may be summarized as follows:
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Evidence has established that this gathering will occur in this world, as the hadiths concerning it were cited above.
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The division mentioned in the verses of Surah al-Wāqiah does not necessarily correspond to the division mentioned in the hadith. The hadith concerns those who set out intending to escape the tribulation. Whoever seized the opportunity traveled with ample mounts and sufficient provisions, eager for what lay ahead and fearful of what lay behind; these constitute the first category in the hadith. Those who delayed until mounts became scarce had to share them; these constitute the second category. The third category consists of those whom the fire will gather and the angels will drag away.
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The corroborating hadiths make it clear that the fire intended is not the fire of the Hereafter. Rather, it is a fire that will emerge in this world. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) warned of its emergence and described what it would do in the hadiths cited above.
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The hadith they cited, narrated by Alī ibn Zayd—whose reliability is disputed—does not contradict the hadiths establishing that this gathering will occur in this world. The aforementioned hadith of Alī ibn Zayd, as recorded by Imam Ahmad (1), states that they “ward off every rise and thorn with their faces, while the standing ground on the Day of Resurrection is a level expanse with no unevenness