Why are the nations in derision?
The nations are in derision because they think they can rule without God, rejecting His Messiah. God ridicules mankind in His frustration, showing the futility of their rebellion. This is the present condition of the nations, and God will then speak in wrath during the tribulation before establishing His King on Zion.
Les teaches from Psalms chapter 2 that the nations are in derision because they think they can rule without God, and God ridicules mankind in His frustration. The passage first shows the rejection of the Messiah in verse 2. God then holds them in derision, which is where the nations of the world are now. In verse 5, God speaks in wrath and sore displeasure, which is the tribulation. Then verse 6 brings in the Kingdom: "Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion," centered in Jerusalem where Zion is.