Satan's Counterfeit Christs

Verses 29-35 of this passage undoubtedly refer to the terrible deeds of a 'little a' antichrist by the name of Antiochus Epiphanes who persecuted God's people, attempted to stamp out biblical religion and even set up a statue of Zeus in the temple in Jerusalem (the 'abomination of desolation' in verse 31).

But in verse 36 on we have a transition to prophecies not about the tribulations that attended the reign of Antiochus Epiphanes, but the tribulations that will attend the reign of the coming of the final 'big A' Antichrist. The man of lawlessness spoken of by Paul in 2 Thess. By comparison to him, the depradations of Antiochus will seem mild.