You seem to want to make “the day of the Lord” into a single 24 hr day. It’s not. It’s a period of time.
It is actually both ... you are both right ... however, you cannot force the one into the other or you get aberrant positions like the pre-wrath view.
There is a narrow sense use of the term "Day of the Lord" and there is a wide sense use of the term "Day of the Lord."
There are some passages that depict the day of the Lord as a single event occurring on a single day ... we call this the narrow sense use of the term. But there are others that describe it as an extended period of time, the wide sense usage. This is a source of constant confusion ... and it has actually led to the pre-wrath view.
Determining which usage is involved in a particular passage is paramount to good interpretation.
I will post a few scriptures later ...
Showers has a good section in his book "Maranatha, Our Lord Come" that highlights the usage of the term. I found this very helpful.
“You seem to want to make ‘the day of the Lord’ into a single 24 hr day. It’s not. It’s a period of time.”
I regard the Day of the Lord as the latter part of Daniel’s seventieth week. It could be a year, but it is not specifically defined as a length of time. When Christ quoted from Isaiah in the temple, He stopped short of quoting the part about the Day of the Lord:
Isaiah 61:2
To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord,
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,
Isaiah also makes a more specific reference here:
Isaiah 34:8
For it is the day of the Lord’s vengeance,
The year of recompense for the cause of Zion.
I infer from this that it could be a year or happen within a year. But I would not be dogmatic other than to agree that it is not a single day but a period of time.
I believe that the second coming encompasses two time periods: the Day of the Lord and the millennial reign. However, both the second coming and the Day of the Lord arrive suddenly, unexpectedly (for those who are not watching), and in a moment in time. So the arrival will happen in a single day.
I hope this clarifies any comments that I made from which you or anyone might infer I define this time period any differently.